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The official photo blog of J. David Buerk Photography.

Total Solar Eclipse: April 8th, 2024

This time around the weather wasn’t going to be as cooperative; a problem most of the US’ totality path suffered.  In the weeks and days leading up to the 2024 Solar Eclipse, I monitored the cloud forecast like so much of the country did, and it seemed that my original target of Erie, PA, along with most of the Northeast save for Maine and Vermont, would inevitably have some degree of cloud cover ranging from 50-90%.  The nearest guaranteed clear sky to me was going to be Indianapolis, which was simply too far away to be feasible on short(ish) notice, especially considering the outbound traffic (18hrs) will be around double the inbound travel time (9hrs).  Disappointed, I chose not to travel more than a day-trip distance from home for this eclipse due to the equally disappointing totality centerline weather.

Following this late, final decision to not travel far out of state for the eclipse, I had other interesting eclipse viewing options on my radar.  Top of my list was an event at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility, which not only would feature telescopes to view the solar surface up close, but also to watch three sounding rocket launches into the moon’s shadow during different phases of the eclipse.  I’ve watched livestreams of Wallops launches for quite a long time, and have even seen and photographed a few visible from my backyard at night, but had never made it down to the launch facility.  I considered this, since the weather in the DC and Chesapeake regions seemed about the same, however ultimately decided agains it because I didn’t think the amount of driving time and inconvenience merited seeing three small and fast rockets launch in daylight with over a 5+% reduction in eclipse visibility - DC saw 89% eclipse, and up over 90% if you were in Leesburg, VA, while Wallops was down to 84% thanks to just an extra ~2hrs away from the totality line.

While making these very overthought choices, I saw an article from the 2017 eclipse with people viewing from the National Mall - the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum was hosting an eclipse watching event on the Mall agin this year, but that was beside the point for me - I decided that if I couldn’t see totality again this year, and knowing that anything less than totality is honestly disappointing, then the story should be more focused on the people watching the eclipse.

I made my way in to the District just as the eclipse was starting, and knew I was in good company when I saw people on every streetcorner with eclipse glasses or cameras.  Entering the street from one of my usual parking spots in Federal Triangle, workers from the offices in the Ronald Reagan Building were gathered in Woodrow Wilson Plaza watching the moon progress over the sun.  This included Customs and Border Protection Officers that work in the office and Global Entry Enrollment Center inside the Reagan Building.  Walking toward the National Mall, people were gathered on benches on the grounds of the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

As I stepped onto the National Mall, it was clear a lot of other photographers had my same idea for setup location: the tip of the Washington Monument’s shadow, with the aim of capturing the eclipse and monument in the same image.

After I’d found my spot, set up my camera, and was dialing in my equipment, a couple other nearby photographers asked if I was with Reuters or AP or another wire or media agency, because they said another Reuters photographer had just shot a photo from this location with my exact same jury-rigged contraption of modifying eclipse glasses to fit over my lens (rather than using an expensive and long-sold-out dedicated solar filter - eclipse glasses are tiny solar filters, just not in the correct size for mounting to a lens assembly).  If I had been surely planning to visit totality again, I’d have purchased a dedicated solar filter weeks prior, but it wasn’t looking likely due to seasonal weather even then.  Instead I had built the simple contraption at home and left mounting for on-site.  If I was thinking like a wire photographer, I must be thinking the right way.

The time of maximum eclipse was fast approaching and finally here, and the sun was moving as quickly across the sky as the moon progressing before the sun - mid-way through the peak of the eclipse I had to move positions twice to keep the sun visible from hiding behind the Washington Monument.  Peak was immediately obvious to me, with the same uncanny and hair-raising dip in luminosity and vibrant change of color rendering leading up to totality in 2017.  It’s difficult to visualize in a picture, but it feels like you’re wearing sunglasses when you aren’t, and images during this short time appear as though they have been HDR-to-SDR overprocessed as was popular in the 2000s-2010s, with soft shadows.

I captured the moon coming and going, with and without the solar filter.  Although solar photography gets all the talk, I think my standard un-filtered photography of the 2024 Solar Eclipse, with DC’s partly cloudy skies above the Washington Monument, are the highlight.  To me these images feel ancient; reminiscent of sights societies have witnessed through the ages beside their great monuments.

Once the sun was fully visible again, I had clear view of something I’d been noticing while shooting the eclipse: I was capturing sun spots.

Once the eclipse had passed DC, and the crowds had left the Mall, I decided to enjoy the weather and enjoy the nearby sights - I can’t remember if I’ve ever actually stood under or touched the Washington Monument before, but I did today.  Like The Gateway Arch, it increasingly feels like a structure that shouldn’t be capable of freely standing so tall the closer you get to its base.

This 2017 Solar Eclipse was sadly nowhere near as memorable as my 2017 experience of Totality, but after seeing the results from many spots across the US, including Cleveland and Erie, the two areas I had eyeballed for travel, it seems I made the right call in staying local, and would have ended up even more disappointed had I committed to the travel.  At least this way I can say I’ve experienced a solar eclipse both in and outside of totality now.

Looking forward to 2044!  Truly fortunate would be Iceland in 2026!

Madonna & Rubin - Maternity Portraits

9 months can fly by, and Madonna and Rubin are just a few weeks away from welcoming their daughter, [REDACTED].

Since Rubin and Donna share aviation deep in their roots, Donna decided it was appropriate to have her maternity portraits with the sound of jet engines roaring above.  During a busy afternoon bank of DCA departures Donna glowed in the sunlight and with the DC skyline and active runways behind her.

See Madonna & Rubin’s Baby Announcement / Gender Reveal photos here.

Patapsco Valley State Park - August, 2023

Back in August last year, I hiked a stretch of Patapsco Valley State Park with some friends - this trip was a local hiking version of “I know a spot,” because much of the hike took us off trail, through shoulder-high snake and tick paradise, and up and down steep mountains covered in thorn bushes I still have a few marks from.  But it was rewarding, worth it, and I now have some locations in mind for more creative ideas I’d like to coordinate.

Patapsco Valley State Park, nestled in the abandoned town of Daniels (formerly known as Elysville), Maryland, is a sprawling natural haven offering a blend of picturesque landscapes and historical intrigue.  Within its bounds, the park houses remnants of a bygone era, including two abandoned churches that stand as silent witnesses to the passage of time.  These forsaken structures, draped in vines and surrounded by the park's lush foliage, evoke a sense of mystery.

The small industrial town born in 1810 around a textile mill, however, its prosperity was short-lived.  The mill closed in the late 1960s, prompting the evacuation of nearly 90 families.  Tropical storm Agnes in 1972 further sealed its fate, flooding the town and leading to its complete abandonment.  Today, Daniels is a ghost town marked by crumbling stone ruins, decaying wood, and graffiti-covered remnants of its past, including the Saint Stanislaus Kostka Church, Pentecostal Holiness Church, and remnants of the old dam and bridge.  The town serves as a poignant reminder of a bygone era swallowed by nature.

After beginning the hike by immediately wading across the Patapsco River, we made our way into Daniels, and began seeing remnants of the ghost town.  Well traveled, and easily found, our first stop was at the graffiti and street art covered Pentecostal Holiness Church, which was destroyed, like much of the town, by Tropical Storm Agnes and the deluge of runoff water in 1972.  Only some of the walls remain as canvases for artists and taggers, and the bell tower stands tall, but decaying, among the trees.  Hidden in the back is a mural of a very posh woman with a bottle of champagne, which has sadly begun being defaced by other graffiti taggers.  Inside is a paper airplane; it’s not immediately clear if by the same artist, however the styles seem quite different so my guess is they’re by separate people.

Next was some off-trailing, which took us up a steep mountain, along a long fallen tree to avoid some of the deep grass likely inhabited by unseen predators, and finally to the first of several abandoned cars.  Many of the cars, which were washed downstream and deep into the woods by flooding, are nowhere near any trails, which either follow the Town of Daniels’ original roads or branch off in spots for utility and fire road access.  Making our way back to the main trail downhill, on a safer and more direct route, we headed toward the next abandoned church.  Along the way, we spotted the offshoot leading toward it, but decided to proceed to the end of the trail to explore the main trail before getting to the main attraction.

The St. Stanislaus Kostka Roman Catholic Church, dating back to the early 1800s, burned down in 1926, and were subsequently abandoned along with its adjacent cemetery that is home to local families and individuals, with some gravestones dating back to the Civil War era, and others obviously marking WWI losses.  The stone church walls remain largely upright and intact, and are mostly devoid of graffiti, and I truly hope it stays that way - graffiti and street art can be beautiful, but it needs the right place and to be self-aware of its surroundings: boring plain abandoned walls that are basically giant canvases with lots of foot traffic nearby?  Cool!  Beautiful antique stonemasonry covered in ivy and moss in a valley bathed in warm sunlight with barely any visitors?  Uncool; stick to the ugly bare industrial, and leave the antique beauty to be enjoyed as it decays naturally.  St. Stanislaus Kostka Church reminded me of The Forest Temple in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

As the sun began entering the golden hour, we made our way out of the dense woods and back onto the main trail heading back to the trailhead to go get some much needed dinner.

Devil’s Nose, WV - August, 2022

Toward the end of Summer 2022 I hiked Sleepy Creek Wildlife Management Area’s Devil’s Nose in Hedgesville, West Virginia.  It’s certainly not the longest, tallest, or most intensive hikes I’ve ever embarked upon, but it leads to a panoramic outcropping of rock with views of the mountains all around.  The hike starts with a stream crossing, and zags up the mountain carrying you past each layer of forest ecology.

I was lucky enough to be rewarded with a few pictures of myself on the hike.