bacsa Posted December 3, 2003 Share Posted December 3, 2003 Hi. Has anybody here ever photographed the green flash of the Sun? Have you tried? Or, do you know a (web)place where I can find an example? Cheers, and have a good light. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nathan_cohen Posted December 3, 2003 Share Posted December 3, 2003 Yes. I've seen it, oh a dozen times; mostly because when I was younger I looked for it. Amateur astronomers like looking for the Flash a lot, and you can find various shots in Sky and Telescope; Dennis DiCicco comes to mind. I never found it made for much of an interesting slide although fun to watch. The best way to do it is to find a large piece of water with a western view (read: ocean) which is calm, and also a steady and clear air mass. No clouds on horizon. The flash will last about 1/2 to 2 seconds. Most of the green will come from the water reflection. The flash is reasonably bright and you can probably capture on slow film with a moderate (say, f/8) aperture. At least 200 mm lens, IMO, but some people have done a nice job with a wide angle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neal_shields Posted December 3, 2003 Share Posted December 3, 2003 I had my video camera running and focused on the sunset while several people saw the green flash and commented on it. Nothing, on the video. Nada. From that I concluded that the green flash was an optical illusion simular to the Black and white U.S. flags that you stare at and then when you close your eyes you see Red, white and blue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alex_lofquist Posted December 3, 2003 Share Posted December 3, 2003 "Scientific American" had an article on the "Green Flash" many years ago. As I remember, the green was caused by refraction of the air near the cool ocean surface. A rough analogy to desert mirages, but with dispersion. The higher the observer, the more likely the appearance of the flash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charcoal Posted December 3, 2003 Share Posted December 3, 2003 I googled "green flash" and got quite a few hits. The first one is shown below. They also link to pictures of the phenomenon. I witnessed the green flash on Kaua'i under circumstances listed above. Unfortunately, I'd never heard of it and was standing there with my camera, all unprepared. Sigh. http://mintaka.sdsu.edu/GF/ Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craig_gillette Posted December 3, 2003 Share Posted December 3, 2003 Never saw it while in the Navy, it is one of those things that needs pretty nearly perfect conditions. But do know people who have seen it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carroll_hughes1 Posted December 3, 2003 Share Posted December 3, 2003 Many photos of the Green Flash exist - One was on the cover of Scientific American a number of years ago - try the image search in google for "Green Flash" -- Carroll Hughes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
george_gilbert Posted December 3, 2003 Share Posted December 3, 2003 It's quite the tourist thing to do along the waterfront at Key West, Florida. Everyone goes down to the harbor for a great street show at sunset, and they look for the green flash as the sun goes down. I figured that the flash was just a reflection off the olive in my glass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ole_tjugen Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 I saw it clearly last summer, and managed to grab a camera and fire off four frames while it lasted (a lot longer at 69 degrees north, which is where I was). The green is completely swamped by the geneal sunset red, but is clearly visible with some filtering (sandwiching the slide with a blue filter). If the fliter had been on the camera, I might have gotten a convincing photo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bacsa Posted December 4, 2003 Author Share Posted December 4, 2003 Thanks, guys. I do know what the green flash is, the one that comes from the Sun, and not from olives in your glass:o)). I did find some pics with google myself. I was more curious about how to photograph it... Have a good light. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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