Solar Eclipse Totality – August 21, 2017 – Lake Greenwood, South Carolina

My absence became much longer than I planned, and I truly appreciate all the well-wishes and prayers so many of you left me. They were so very encouraging, I read them over and over. Thank you so much!

I’m back with sharing a shot of mine of the Solar Eclipse event today that occurred across the United States. We went to Lake Greenwood, South Carolina, at the center of the path of totality to watch it.

There was a lot of hype with this event. And it was worth it! I was absolutely amazed from start to finish. And when totality occurred, WOW! It was spectacular and unforgettable.

I didn’t take my tripod. I wanted to experience the totality in full, not worry about setup, settings, and ‘getting the shot’. I did have my camera & wide angle lens, and fired off a quick series of the totality, guessing at settings & hoping I could hold it steady enough. Then I was back to watching it with my solar glasses, while listening to the birds and insects chirp in the cooler darkness. Again….WOW!

I am surprised I captured something I liked and decided it’s time to get back to blogging, to share.

And now it’s time for me to start back visiting your blogs, my friends. I have really missed your posts, and look forward to getting back to enjoying them!

Enjoy your week, be safe!

Tags: August 21 2017, Lake Greenwood, moon, nature, new moon, photo, photograph, photography, Solar Eclipse, South Carolina, sun, totality

54 thoughts on “Solar Eclipse Totality – August 21, 2017 – Lake Greenwood, South Carolina”

circadianreflections on 08/21/2017 at 8:26 PM said:

How awesome that you made the image, and got to travel to see it!

Welcome back! I’ve missed you.

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 08/21/2017 at 9:35 PM said:
  
  Thanks, Deborah! It’s nice to be back. 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
tanjabrittonwriter on 08/21/2017 at 8:41 PM said:

Thank you for sharing this remarkable shot, Donna. I am so glad you are back and hope that means you are better.
Best wishes,
Tanja

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 08/21/2017 at 9:39 PM said:
  
  Thanks, Tanja! I’m happy I did attempt a couple shots and got it. Recovery is going well but still a ways to go. I can’t wait to get back to going out and shooting!
  
  Reply ↓
  - tanjabrittonwriter on 08/21/2017 at 11:02 PM said:
    
    Glad to hear you are improving. Hang in there. I look forward to seeing what you can find.
avian101 on 08/21/2017 at 9:14 PM said:

I’m so glad to hear from you Donna.I hope that all your ills are long gone! Great captures! 🙂

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 08/21/2017 at 9:41 PM said:
  
  Thanks HJ! I’m determined to get well, can’t wait to be out and about hiking with the birds and nature!
  
  Reply ↓
Becky on 08/21/2017 at 9:16 PM said:

Welcome back Donna. Just love your photos and once again you did not disappoint!!

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 08/21/2017 at 9:42 PM said:
  
  Awwwww….thanks, Becky! 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
Ellen Jennings on 08/21/2017 at 9:16 PM said:

Nice you had a successful trip to see this event. Glad to know you are feeling better.

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 08/21/2017 at 9:42 PM said:
  
  Thanks Ellen! I’m determined to get back to life! 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
  - Ellen Jennings on 08/22/2017 at 6:57 AM said:
    
    You are off to a good start with the eclipse!
  - bayphotosbydonna on 09/05/2017 at 7:09 PM said:
    
    Slowly but surely…… 😉 Thanks Ellen!
Stephen Talabac on 08/21/2017 at 9:25 PM said:

So glad to see that you’re back on line Donna!!! And what an experience the eclipse must have been! I had a couple of friends that had also traveled to SC and they each said that the 2 minutes or so of totality was an incredible, truly awe-inspiring experience.

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 08/21/2017 at 9:45 PM said:
  
  Thanks Steve! It was awe-inspiring! I was really blown away, it was so much more than I expected! 🙂 A few clouds were high above, but they continued to pass by and never covered it up. Thank goodness!
  
  Reply ↓
1nmbirder on 08/21/2017 at 9:34 PM said:

Nice!! Great shot! It was cloudy in New Mexico so I couldn’t see it. Bummer….
Welcome back!

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 08/21/2017 at 9:47 PM said:
  
  Thanks Kelly! Sorry you had clouds! 😦
  
  Reply ↓
Jodi on 08/21/2017 at 9:34 PM said:

Great shot! Welcome back Donna!

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 08/21/2017 at 9:47 PM said:
  
  Thanks Jodi, good to be back!
  
  Reply ↓
Jodi on 08/21/2017 at 9:36 PM said:

How did the knee surgery go?

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 08/21/2017 at 9:48 PM said:
  
  Still recovering…..can’t do hikes yet, but I’m walking longer and longer…..and off that cane! 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
  - Jodi on 08/21/2017 at 9:50 PM said:
    
    👍😉
aussiebirder on 08/21/2017 at 10:44 PM said:

Great hear from you again Donna, only yesterday I was wondering if I should message you to find out how you are going. It was good to see your amazing shot of the eclipse, well done! Keeping you in prayer for a full recovery😊

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 09/05/2017 at 7:07 PM said:
  
  Thanks Ashley for thinking of me! 🙂 It was a nice trip to see the eclipse but so hot. I didn’t even try to capture any birds, I’m still trying to ‘gain’ my passion back……I cannot wait til I can start getting out more and look for God’s lovely birds!
  
  Reply ↓
Anonymous on 08/21/2017 at 11:01 PM said:

Donna thanks for sharing. Did you use filters. Did you damage your sensor or was that a lot of hype. I was afraid to use my camera. Best wishes.

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 09/05/2017 at 7:08 PM said:
  
  Thank you! No I didn’t use a filter. I had learned that during totality, it wasn’t necessary. I did not try to photograph any partial of the eclipse as you definitely needed a filter for those shots. Thanks for asking and best wishes to you too!
  
  Reply ↓
brighamstephen on 08/22/2017 at 7:17 AM said:

Welcome back and great eclipse shot.

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 09/05/2017 at 7:09 PM said:
  
  Thanks so much!
  
  Reply ↓
Ingrid on 08/22/2017 at 8:27 AM said:

Welcome back. You’ve been missed!

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 09/05/2017 at 7:10 PM said:
  
  Thanks Ingrid! Slowly but surely!
  
  Reply ↓
Steve Schwartzman on 08/22/2017 at 1:02 PM said:

Sounds like you were totally with it during that solar event.

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 09/05/2017 at 7:11 PM said:
  
  Great comment, thanks Steve!
  
  Reply ↓
Anonymous on 08/22/2017 at 2:09 PM said:

Beautiful shot – and beautiful memory. We saw a total eclipse back in March, 1967 from Virginia Beach, and it was truly amazing. I remember all the birds quieting down during total darkness.

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 09/05/2017 at 7:12 PM said:
  
  Thanks so much! Definitely a beautiful memory, so glad to hear you got to experience one. Birds quieting…..and the crickets chirping loudly! It was so cool! I wondered what they were all thinking……lol
  
  Reply ↓
tootlepedal on 08/22/2017 at 3:54 PM said:

I look forward to your return to blogging.

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 09/05/2017 at 7:12 PM said:
  
  Thank you Tom! I’m trying to make a come-back….
  
  Reply ↓
Jane's Heartsong on 08/22/2017 at 7:43 PM said:

Good to see you here again. We had a Solar Eclipse party at the Science Center here in Edmonton where there was up to 70% totality.I focused on taking pictures of the crowds. I did get a pair of glasses but was still afraid of burning my retinas so took a number of fairly short but frequent looks.When you took photos did you wear the glasses and/or or did you have a filter on the camera? I like your shots, think they turned out well and will be great memories. I found the event was tremendously fun and did see the sun through a large telescope and kept saying, “Wow! This is so cool!”. Was it just a little eerie when it got dark? It must have been terribly frightening to the ancient cultures.

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 09/05/2017 at 7:15 PM said:
  
  Thank you Jane! I used certified solar glasses to watch the partial, but when totality occurred, we didn’t have to wear the glasses. I only shot during totality and did not use a filter. The whole experience was indeed very cool! I’m glad to hear about your Solar Eclipse Party, fun times!
  
  Reply ↓
  - Jane's Heartsong on 09/06/2017 at 4:22 PM said:
    
    That would have been amazing to take those shots. Hear there are a lot of sun spots that you can see through those solar glasses and that means aurora activity coming up!
Camp That Site on 08/23/2017 at 9:45 AM said:

Beautiful

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 09/05/2017 at 7:15 PM said:
  
  Thank you!
  
  Reply ↓
usathroughoureyes on 08/25/2017 at 8:46 PM said:

You captured it alright. Great job. Nice seeing you back.

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 09/05/2017 at 7:17 PM said:
  
  Thanks so much! Now if I could only keep going…..but I am working on it! 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
  - usathroughoureyes on 09/06/2017 at 4:07 PM said:
    
    This is good!
Uncle Tree on 08/26/2017 at 12:28 PM said:

Fabulous shots! 🙂 Excellent work!

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 09/05/2017 at 7:17 PM said:
  
  Thanks so much!! 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
Tiny on 08/27/2017 at 11:07 AM said:

Wonderful that you could experience the eclipse ‘live’ like that, Donna. I hope you are feeling much better now. Hugs

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 09/05/2017 at 7:18 PM said:
  
  Thanks Helen, it was indeed an experience I will not forget. I am feeling better, I am keeping up with my exercises. I pray you are doing well as you can. One day at a time. Hugs back to you
  
  Reply ↓
Jet Eliot on 09/06/2017 at 9:08 AM said:

Wonderful to see you back, Donna, and your photo, as usual, was outstanding. I’m glad your eclipse event was a success. It’s been fun to hear from American friends about their various eclipse experiences; I liked hearing yours too. Looking forward to seeing more of you, but meanwhile, take good care of yourself.

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 09/07/2017 at 8:46 AM said:
  
  It was a great adventure and sighting, I am glad that we went to get to experience the totality. Thank you Jet! I’ve got wonderful family members helping me along the way of my recovery. 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
neihtn2012 on 09/08/2017 at 6:54 PM said:

An outstanding eclipse photo, even without a tripod. By the way, I hope you are not still in South Carolina, with Irma coming in the next couple days.

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 10/29/2017 at 7:37 PM said:
  
  Thanks Hien! So sorry for long long delay in replying!! No we weren’t in SC, nor the other hurricane(s), thank goodness. 🙂
  
  Reply ↓
Calysta Hannah on 10/13/2017 at 12:24 PM said:

Awesome shot.

Reply ↓
- bayphotosbydonna on 10/29/2017 at 7:41 PM said:
  
  Thanks Calysta!
  
  Reply ↓