The Golden Hour

Photography is all about the light. In fact, without it photography itself would be impossible. We all know that the character and quality of natural light changes throughout the day. Who hasn’t enjoyed watching the sunrise and marveling in the golden light that is present for the hour after. In photography the hour after sunrise and the hour before sunset are referred to as the Golden Hours. Daylight is redder and softer than when the Sun is higher in the sky. When the sun is near the horizon, sunlight travels through a greater depth of atmosphere, reducing the intensity of the direct light, so that more of the illumination comes from indirect light from the sky reducing the lighting ratio. More blue light is scattered, so if the sun is present, its light appears more reddish. In addition, the sun’s small angle with the horizon produces longer shadows.

Wether taking photos with the light in the background as the photo above, or using the light to directly illuminate your subject, as below, the results are more dynamic and interesting than similar photos taken during the middle of the day.

There are many phone Apps that can help with determining when the golden hours occur each day, what angle the sun will be at variouse times during the day, and where on the horizon the sun will rise on any given date. This information can be studied days or weeks in advance of your planned photo shoot. the information is location specific in most Apps and available for any location around the world. Just a few of the Apps I prefer are  The Photographers Ephemeris, Photopills, and Sun Surveyor.

Wildlfie is more active in the early morning and late afternoon.  Get out in the morning and evening and make use of the golden light you’ll find. It will give your wildlife photos an additional pop and make you a better wildlife photographer.