Eclipse

 On the 20th of March 2015 there was an eclipse that came to about 93% of totality over the house where I used to live in York. 

I had just that Christmas received a new camera from my father so I was eager to try it out. I bought filters and everything.

At 8am the day promised to be absolutely perfect. I sent my son off to Sixth form with two pairs of eclipse specs so that he could share if they let the students out of class to watch. 

Of course the perfection didn't last. 

By 9am the sky had clouded over. And even worse, my special silver filters didn't photograph the sun through clouds. 

Wearing my pair of eclipse specs meant I could see the sun through the clouds that prevented my photography. Oh well, at least I'd see the eclipse, even if I couldn't record it.

That was when I had my bright idea. While the special photography filters didn't work, holding my pair of eclipse specs over the lens gave a sort of red filter that let me photograph the sun through the clouds. 

I achieved a series of shots by using the red filter when the clouds covered the sun and the silver filter when I had a gap. 

This is my favourite one. 

"Well! I've often seen a cat without a grin," thought Alice; "but a grin without a cat! It's the most curious thing I ever saw in all my life!"

-Lewis Carroll from Alice in Wonderland.