How To
To capture beautiful colors in your photos, shoot during the Golden Hour, which is the hour before or after sunrise or sunset. If you're shooting cityscapes, wait until the building lights come on for added visual appeal. Use a tripod to keep your camera steady and prevent camera shake, resulting in sharper images. If you're using a smartphone, tripods with adapters specifically designed for them are also available.
Shooting during the golden hour in photography is advantageous because it offers soft, warm, and flattering lighting that can greatly enhance the quality of your photos. The golden hour refers to the period of time shortly after sunrise or before sunset when the sun is low on the horizon, resulting in a warm and golden-toned light that creates a magical and dreamy atmosphere in your images.
Better Image
Lesser Image
Examples
Check the time of sunrise or sunset in your location using a weather or photography app. The golden hour typically occurs within the first hour after sunrise or the last hour before sunset.
Arrive at your location well before the golden hour to allow time for setup and composition.
Set your camera to manual mode and adjust your settings accordingly. Start with a low ISO (e.g., 100-400) to reduce noise, a wide aperture (e.g., f/2.8 - f/8) to create a shallow depth of field or achieve bokeh, and a faster shutter speed (e.g., 1/125 - 1/500) to avoid motion blur.
Pay attention to your composition, keeping in mind the soft and warm lighting during the golden hour. Look for interesting subjects, foregrounds, and backgrounds to create visually appealing compositions.
Try different angles and perspectives to capture the warm tones, long shadows, and unique lighting during the golden hour. Use backlighting or side lighting to create depth and dimension in your photos.
Experiment with different settings, compositions, and focal lengths to capture a variety of shots during the golden hour. Take multiple shots to ensure you have options to choose from during post-processing.
Keep track of the changing light during the golden hour, as the lighting conditions can change rapidly. Be prepared to adjust your settings and compositions accordingly.
During post-processing, you can enhance the warm tones, adjust exposure, and fine-tune your images to achieve the desired look and feel.
In summary, shooting during the golden hour can greatly enhance the quality of your photos by providing soft, warm, and flattering lighting, beautiful golden tones, reduced contrast, longer shadows, and more flexibility in timing. It's a magical time for photography that can result in stunning and captivating images.
