Since getting back @1am Sunday (March 1), I have been working CONTINUOUSLY to get my remaining eclipse images uploaded to my website. There is so MUCH material to edit, scan (& re-scan), process, format, upload. (11 cameras generate a LOT of film). Also, I have had to meet some pretty tight deadlines for some commercial clients (e.g., rush jobs & racing to the FEDEX drop-off stations). Many "fires to put out", especially my ISP local-dial-up not working!! I haven't had time to respond to many of the nice emails I've received (I promise I will get back to you..). Click HERE for sample feedback.
I have been receiving NUMEROUS email requests for videos & photos (from all over the world). Originally, I had not intended to sell photos & videos _individually_, and just let my agent handle the business-end (this is NOT a trivial task). My main focus is getting _quick turnaround_ of my eclipse-image-portfolio to my website & WWW. Click HERE for the story of my expedition
However, IF there is ENOUGH interest (in the 100's) in prints/videos, I can possibly do this. Thus, I need to "gauge" the demand for prints & video. So, if you are interested in prints/videos, you MUST EMAIL me!! (Otherwise, I'll figure there is insufficient demand & it's not worth the risk of having prints/videos "out there" which can be duplicated endlessly. This will destroy my commercial sales).
I would need buyers to sign a contract, that pictures are for personal use (cannot be duplicated, or reproduced for commercial use)
Technically, eclipse images are difficult to print due to the EXTREME brightness range of the corona ~10,000:1. Film just can't handle this : negatives have 128:1 range, transparency has 32:1 range. That's why most eclipse pictures have a "whitish washed-out" inner corona, i.e. ABSOUTELY NO highlight detail. Worthless.. To combat this, I'm using HI-END scans (Dmax=3.4 to 3.9, up to 4000x6000 res) of my negatives (extremely wide latitude, T-Max technology grain structure), CPU-intensive image processing techniques (i.e., compositing of 2-3 difference images & contrast stretching). For samples, see CORONA images.
I prefer to use digital-laser prints for 8x10s (FAR SUPERIOR than regular photographic prints, MUCH MORE brightness range), which are more expensive. For some images (e.g., wide-angle shots), I can get away with using regular photographic-paper prints. For larger sizes (on photographic paper), I use an astrophoto lab specializing in custom prints (burned & dodged to my specifications).
The bottom-line is image quality. I don't go half-way, in terms of
I would need buyers to sign a contract, that videos are for personal use (cannot be duplicated, or reproduced for commercial use)
The high-resolution Hi8 eclipse videos (narrow-angle & horizon) were BEYOND my expectations, REALLY GOOD. (I spent a lot of development-time on custom optics with my optical-consultant Jeff Charles/VersaCorp, so I guess it paid off). See below Eclipse Video Archive for the details. I could actually re-live my eclipse experience on my S-VHS masters! (I have been playing them back repeatedly). The narrow-angle video has a LOT of image scale (~1D of corona each side), equivalent to ~1500mm FL on 35mm format. 2nd/3rd contact sequences are very dynamic (the diamond rings!!), with the NW prominence visible during 2nd contact Bailey's Beads. The intricate finely-detailed polar streamers were recorded (along with the wide "dark channels" in the polar brushes), including the unusually curved one on the SW limb. The ultra-wide angle (84 deg horizontal FOV) horizon videos captured the incoming shadow beautifully. The outline of the umbra is clearly visible before 2nd contact. The 360 degree panoramas near totality accurately portray the surrounding environment: before (3 min), during (near 3rd contact), after (1 min). The incoming beach surf add another dimension to the experience, visually & acoustically.
NOTE: the QT videos (320x200, medium-quality compression) on my website are NOTHING compared so the above S-VHS masters (500 lines of resolution).