What Time Should You Take Photos?

You can get a good understanding of the direction of the sun at specific times by looking at Apps. We use an app called SunSurveyorLite. This App also tells you sunrise and sunset times. Another App called Sunrise Times also displays first light and last light.

We prefer to take photos at Golden Hour which is 1 hour after sunrise and 1 hour before sunset. Before sunrise and after sunset (Blue Hour) are also good, especially if you have a direct line of sight to the horizon. However, this depends on whether it is sunny. When it’s cloudy it may be too dark for sunrise and sunset. You will still get that soft light throughout the day with cloud cover.

To understand the lighting better it’s best to visit the location beforehand and look at photos on Instagram from that location.

It’s important to check the weather forecast. The lighting conditions can change the photo significantly. For example, see photos below. These photos were taken 1 day apart at sunset. Luckily we had enough time here to visit the Gibson Steps more than once.