On July 28, 1851, the first-ever photo of a total solar eclipse was recorded by a Prussian daguerreotypist named Johann Julius Friedrich Berkowski.
Daguerreotypy is an old photographic process that uses silver-plated copper treated with chemical fumes that make it light-sensitive. Previous attempts to take photos of solar eclipses failed to show the contrast between the sun’s corona and the dark disk of the moon.
Using a small, 6-centimeter telescope, Berkowski captured an 84-second exposure starting right after the moon moved completely in front of the sun.
Why it mattered
Until Berkowski, total solar eclipses were something people saw once and never again. The ability to document a solar eclipse visually opened the door for scientists to study the solar event – and the sun – like never before. (Not to mention, make a rare astronomical phenomenon more accessible to people unable to see it.)
To be clear, many photographers did try to capture solar eclipses before Berkowski, but those attempts were often overexposed or underexposed. But Berkowski’s daguerreotype was detailed enough that in 2005, 154 years, it was hailed as the first correctly exposed image of the sun’s corona, the super-hot outer atmosphere of the sun that is visible around the moon during totality.
Today, more than 170 years later, the advent of digital cameras — and even smartphones — has put the ability to photograph a solar eclipse literally in the palm of our hands. Our Editor-in-Chief Tariq Malik has seen two total solar eclipses (in 2017 and 2024), and managed to snap the 2024 eclipse with a smartphone with no training at all (and a bit of luck).
By the way, the next total solar eclipse is coming on Aug. 12 and will be visible across parts of Greenand, Iceland and Spain. To find out how you can capture a totality photo of your own during a total solar eclipse, check out our solar eclipse photography guide and gear up with our best solar eclipse photography equipmetnt for 2026.
And DON’T FORGET! If you’re observing a solar eclipse on your own, you’ll need eclipse glasses for safety.
Want more space history? Check out our full On This Day In Space video archive on YouTube.
