Lusaka in Zambia was the setting for the first total solar eclipse of the new millennium. This is a collection of my photographs from the journey. Following the disappointment of the solar eclipse in England 1999, the chance to experience the event under African skies was most welcome.

Not having the benefit of a photographic background, I cobbled together a collection based around my fossilised 35mm Zenit ET camera I picked up in Baku, Azerbaijan. I used a 200mm zoom lens with a 2x teleconverter from E-Bay, a tripod from Argos, shutter release and 800 speed film from my local camera shop in Tunbridge Wells, solar filter from Hull and some tips from various web sites. The total cost of the outfit was under £110.00.

I had a practice run during some very short breaks in the clouds. I used a 3x and 2x teleconverter along with the lens and ran off test shots of the Sun along with chimneys, trees and T.V. aerials at various distances. I logged the various aperture settings, shutter speeds and weather conditions. The results were pretty dismal! The two teleconverters did not let enough light in and so I decided to use only the 2x along with the 200mm zoom lens.