Plan the photograph without missing the eclipse
Photography adds equipment risk and cognitive load. Decide your shot in advance, use proper solar filtration and leave enough time to experience totality with your own eyes.
Practice before the trip
Do not learn your camera controls on eclipse morning. Rehearse tripod setup, focus, exposure changes and filter handling on ordinary days while following safe solar-viewing procedures.
Filter the optics, not your eyes
NASA warns that cameras, binoculars and telescopes require proper solar filters mounted at the front of the optics during partial phases. Wearing eclipse glasses while looking through unfiltered optics is not safe.
Automate less than you think
A complicated script can fail at the worst moment. Favor a setup you understand, and decide in advance when you will stop touching the camera and simply watch.
Protect the trip
Photography locations should still obey the same Plan A/B/C logic as casual viewing: remain inside totality, preserve a safe horizon and do not sacrifice weather mobility just to protect a pre-selected composition.