With the passing of the September Equinox, it was time to complete the exposure of my second solargraph!

As a reminder, solargraphy is a very simple photographic method for capturing the path of the sun across the sky. Using a pinhole camera, a single piece of photographic paper is exposed for a set length of time, from days to weeks to over an entire year. Such extreme exposure lengths capture the journey of the sun as it rises and falls and the Earth rotates, so the longer the exposure, the more of this movement you capture!

I revealed my first attempt in August 2020, which you can see here. This year, with a sturdier mount and a higher elevation, I pointed my camera south-west (ish) in March and hoped for the best.

Glasgow, Scotland, March – September 2021

It might not look like I live in the middle of a city, but if you look closely you can pick out the faint, ghostly images of tower blocks and other buildings, as well as the dim outlines of the distant Argyll islands. I think it worked out rather well! I’m planning my next one for an entire year, Solstice to Solstice!

Again, I’d heartily recommend this to everyone, if you have somewhere you think would be a good place to photograph the sun.

Creating a a pinhole camera is relatively simple, with instructions widely available online, and after that all you need is a sheet of light-sensitive paper, a digital scanner, and a suitable place to put it, where it can see a large amount of the sky, and can remain undisturbed for a long amount of time. There are also ready-made kits available to buy; I purchased a Solarcan, which meant I didn’t have to buy more photography paper than I needed, etc. Visit their website for other photographs from around the world! http://www.solarcan.co.uk

Take care and have a great day, everyone!