QuestionX-S20 for the eclipse on 12 August, battery and power questions

Hola, as some of you know I have been planning for the total eclipse on 12 August since I joined, we are going to be near Burgos, inside the path of totality. Plan is the X-S20 with the 70-300 on a tripod, solar filter for the partial phases and off for totality.

My question is about power, I want to run an interval for about an hour and a half and I dont trust one battery for that, specially in the August heat. Can the X-S20 run from a USB-C power bank while it is shooting? And has anyone done long intervals with it, does it get hot? Any other tips are welcome, I only get one chance at this.

Good plan. A few things from someone who has done two of these.

First, check your horizon. In northern Spain the eclipse is in the evening with the sun quite low in the west, so make sure there's nothing between you and it from about an hour before totality. A hill or a line of trees will end your day.

Second, do the numbers for the interval. One frame every 10 seconds for 90 minutes is 540 frames, which a single battery can probably manage, but I'd still run from USB power to take the worry away. The manual will tell you whether the X-S20 accepts power while shooting. Use a PD power bank and a decent cable.

Third, filter off for totality only, and back on the moment the diamond ring appears. Practise the whole sequence on the sun at home a couple of times. Most people waste totality fiddling with settings instead of looking at it.

Thank you, this is gold. The horizon I didnt think about at all, I will drive to the site this weekend and check where the sun is at half past eight. There is a small hill to the west that I think is fine, but I want to be sure, it would be a disaster.

Ooh I'm so jealous. We were hoping to get to Spain as well but the flights are proper silly now. Only tip from me: take a camping chair. You'll want to watch it with your eyes, not through a screen.

And I know it's Spain in August but pack a jumper. Friends who went to the 2017 one in America said the temperature drop during totality caught them right out, and with it being so close to sunset there it'll only be colder. Can't wait to see your pictures, honestly

Marta_G said:

Can the X-S20 run from a USB-C power bank while it is shooting?

my friend ran timelapses off a power bank with an x-s20 all last summer, no issues that i heard of

Tested at home with the power bank, 3 hours of interval and it was fine, the camera a bit warm but no problem. Now I only need the clouds to stay away. Gracias a todos

Update for everyone who helped: we got it! Clear sky, the sun was low over the hills to the west like rjhowell said and we moved 50 metres along the road to be sure. Totality felt like ten seconds. I took the filter off, did my bracket, then just looked. Most of the interval shots are good, some of the partial phases are a bit soft from heat haze so close to the horizon. I will post some in Showcase when I have edited them.

The strangest thing was the light in the last minutes before, everything went a metallic colour and the birds went completely quiet, and then the temperature dropped like Dreich said, I was happy I had the jumper. The X-S20 ran all the time from the power bank with no problems, the battery was still at full when I packed up. My husband did a phone video of me shouting which I will not be sharing anywhere. Thank you all, really.