I used my glasses from the 2017 eclipse and they worked fine. I tested them yesterday by looking at my truck headlights on bright from about 10'.

From our backyard.

I decided not to look. There will be plenty of pictures in the newspapers.

I should have read how to photograph. My eclipse glasses over iphone method didn’t work! 😂

Neither did mine.

tj

ETA- I did manage to get a pic of mini eclipses through gaps in pine pine needle shadows.

I looked with no problem but got a headache from

I used one of my husbands old welding lenses he had. Works great and no after effects.

Yeah wife and daughter said like a strained eye headache. Whatever was bothering me seems to be lessening. Maybe (hopefully) psychological? I have problems focusing because of floaters, and it just seemed a lot more pronounced. But whatever it was, I wasn’t sad that my son who is in the path said it was too cloudy to see anything other than the darkness.

Thankfully the clouds moved and we got a 96% eclipse to view with glasses from our backyard. Many from here drove five hours to Erie where I heard it was cloudy. Then a ten-hour round trip for four minutes? No thanks. Traffic was a killer.

We had around 96% here, clear skies. Did not look up. Did the colander trick with a large one on the front porch to watch the shadow drift. It was neat to watch. Even though we didn't look up, we both felt the light was uncanny. Amost headache or eye strain.

That's concerning. Were they ISO 12312-2-certified?

I’m impressed that Lone Jack had his/her glasses from 2017 and KNEW WHERE THEY WERE!

While I couldn't take a picture directly, I did make a pin hole projection on paper and managed to get this. We weren't into totality but about 95%.

There was a recall on some of the glasses as not being verified as safe. Also we did not look at the sun for very long but maybe 5-10 seconds at a time and then we looked away even with the glasses. During maximum, it was weirdly colored outside too...it was still bright, but a tad green-grayish ... a different hue. Stunning to see how bright it was outside with only 5% of the sun exposed.

Eileen, the glasses ”said” they were certified. I also read that HD was a reliable source, and I guess I put trust in the schools.

Beesneeds - Your post makes me feel a lot better. Maybe we had similar reactions to the light.

LoneJack - I’m gonna second what littlebug said. You must have quite a junk drawer! 😉

Just 85% covered here and it turned out to be clearish skies, better than expected. #12 wielders glass used for my last 3 TSEs but #13-14 are recommended now. During my first TSE back in 1970 I used a layer 5-6 over exposed photographic negatives (it beat using smoked glass, nyuk). Even so I would only take short glances of the eclipse in progress until the sun's disk was completely covered. Never viewed longer than 3 seconds at a time/glance as there was no point in looking longer. Having a projection screen on my scope showed basically the same image too. Hope that those of you who experienced eye problems find it just temporary.

Heavy clouds until a few mins before maximum (which was ~95%). I didn't have viewing glasses. Managed with luck to catch a few rough-aim photos amidst slight cloud breaks before the full clearing. That was enough for me. Nothing to safely see here, move along.

People at work were passing around glasses so everyone got a glimpse. Was amazed at the orange color Was.

My eyes felt very strained too after gazing through my eclipse glasses. I have enough problems with my vision and dont need to add another, so i probably should have been a bit more careful. My glasses were on a list of approved manufacturers. My neck hurts from bending my head back for so long.

I took this shot with my glasses pressed against my iphone camera. posted this on another thread, too too.

I drove about an hour northwest to get closer to the center line - it did make a difference, compared to 2017 when we were in the 100% zone but near the edge. I didn't quite make it to my target location on the center line, thanks to road construction and accidents on the way.

I got to see the 360 degree sunset effect, which was lovely, and watched the black shadow approach then pass over. When I say black, it was just exactly that - looking up into the sky at a totally black cloud passing over. I did see stars - especially Venus close to the sun.

At ground level, although it was sort of dark, it wasn't so dark that there was no visibility. Dark enough turn on headlights if I were driving, like in a heavy rain, but still able to see.

I took one quick glance at 100% totality, and another (with glasses) as the sky brightened with just a sliver of sun exposed. It is one thing to see a photo, and another to be standing in a field seeing the black sun surrounding by the corona, with the dim dusk all around.

Hope your eyes will be OK, FOAS

We were pretty far from the path of totality and I saw only a bit at the beginning @ work, sharing glasses with coworkers. You could see the shadows and light changing too - just not much.

I think stuff that happened here on earth was as fascinating as the eclipse itself. Hubby's friend in OH said bats came out and were flying around.

NASA has a video on their YouTube channel...

https://www.youtube.com/live/2MJY_ptQW1o?si=MTL2C9MVovQvp2kW

My kids and I were surprised that with 96% totality, it wasn't dark. It was just as if a cloud passed over. The birds kept singing and it got two degrees cooler. I still wouldn't have driven a ten-hour round trip for four minutes but our very skinny slice was entertaining for an hour.

Now that you mention it, my eyes feel "tired" too. I have bad allergies and experience itchy eyes most of the time, but this is a more strained feeling. I used my glasses from 2017.

Hope all of your eyes feel better now.

My son is in Omaha and got some really good pictures. Mine and daughter's didn't come out too good. I should've dug out my old Canon and taken it but up until about 2 am last night I thought my daughter was working today. It was cloudy here at home and some people got some really interesting pictures.

We drove to Benton, KY, to a farm where one of my daughter's friend's dad lives. Apparently he was okay with us showing up and we did even though we both felt odd about it. He sat out with us to watch the eclipse and then took us in his truck on a tour of his farm, over 80 acres! He lives alone now and so probably enjoyed the company. We were at about 99.5% totallity. As we got off the interestate for the other heading towards Benton, the line for Paducah was massive and at a standstill. Most of them from out-of-state. I'm pretty sure those people ended up having to watch it from the interstate. We were less than an hour from the eclipse when we passed them by to the left of them.

Almost stopped to take a nap on the way home, after having burgers at a little cafe, recommended by my daughter's friend. Neither one of us got a full night's sleep last night but after a stop for coffee and energy drinks my daughter brought along with us, we woke up enough to finish. Weirdly we both had crazy dreams last night, she dreamed she was walking toward a building and someone had put burning hot stove burners in front of it so her feet got burnt. My dream was her and I standing in line at a gas station for coffee, in our nightgowns, me with no bra or shoes on and her with a nightgown and shoes. When we got to the front the woman told us that we could've stayed in town to watch the eclipse and didn't have to drive so far away. Made me a little apprehensive about our little trip, was someone trying to tell us something?

Sadly we had rain from start to finish yesterday and saw none of it. I put on the glasses and went outside a few times anyway but no sun, no viewing at all this time. Disappointing.

Are your eyes better today FOAS?

Carol, Morz, thanks for asking; we’re all better now! I panicked because with my eyesight issues I get nervous. (Yet somehow can’t adjust to wearing sunglasses, even at the beach and on the water - I REALLY need to work on that!) Aside from the anecdotes here, I’m seeing a lot of news articles about people reporting eye strain, and a spike in google searches on the topic.

My mom wrote to me asking, "What happened with the eclipse? Was it more by you?" Mind you she’s 3.8 miles away. 😂 Seeing similar disappointment on the local subreddit. I guess people thought others were heading upstate just for giggles.

Speaking of my mom, yesterday morning’s email from her began with her noting that this would be her last solar eclipse. So I was glad when my daughter came home with an extra pair of glasses which I rushed over to her. I see there’s one in Australia in 2028. It would be cool to take her to see that - and her famous ancestral home - but even with the likelihood that she’ll make 98 she definitely won’t be up for the trip!

Glad to know all is well now 🙂

And re: sunglasses - I find that acrylic frames are most comfortable and lighter than many others I've tried. I have to wear corrective lenses for driving, and my current pair is in this style, with amber tinted lenses, which give the world a golden glow...

https://www.zennioptical.com/p/plastic-fashion-full-rim-frame/2329?skuId=232915

Zenni's low prices are nice and I've had excellent fit too

I sent away for my eclipse glasses a few weeks ago. Yesterday I discovered I'd accidentally bought child size. I have a pretty small head and wore them anyway. I only glanced for a second or two at a time. I know it was a big event, but it was also a bit like watching paint dry. I started up on our building's roof where there was an impromptu party. Then the sun went behind a building, so I went down to my apartment -- where I discovered that I had an excellent view of it through the window. I think we had about 90%. At it's peak, it looked like a French manicure.

Glad you're feeling better.

Nashvilleans all posted the same pictures I did, very cloudy, with glimpses when clouds broke. Boss did the drive I decided against. He said 2 1/2ish hours there, 4 back. UGH! So glad I didn't go. Also glad I didn't go since I had a horrific allergic reaction. Same as Valentine's Day. Still haven't figured it out. And so many days inbetween the two with no reaction. So weird, and frustrating.

Anyone else making plans for the "next"? 2033 in Alaska is one I am considering. It's in the middle of the Aurora Borealis season. Though, 2026 in Reykjavík or Spain sounds very appealing. Hot springs or a wine tour? Bring it on.

Didn’t look at the moon, didn’t have eclipse glasses. I stayed inside the house and noticed it got dimmer for a few minutes. I live in Colorado.

Rob - I just texted wife and sister to mark July 22, 2028 in their calendars. Right over Sydney, perfect!

Food, I hope your eyes are okay and feel better. And also hope that the rest of your family is good.

We considered driving a few hours to Burlington, but decides to stay here in 95% area. We had a variety of special glasses and warched some of the partial eclipse — nothing like the real total deal, but no traffic or hours in a car.

Thanks to those of you sending you descriptions, photos and experiences. The quality of the light was different than ”dusk” —- bluer light. We give our local cottontails and cardinals a snack at dusk (sunflower seeds). DH was in back yard an a rabbit came up to him asking for his evening snack at 3 PM.