Field notes · sunhour blog
Writing about light, twilight, and planning the shoot.
Photographer-leaning posts on golden hour, blue hour, the science of twilight, moon phases, and how to plan around them in any city on Earth. RSS.
Twilight explained: civil, nautical, and astronomical — and what each is for
Twilight is not one thing. There are three distinct phases after sunset, each with its own light and its own uses, from cityscape photography to stargazing. Here is what separates them.
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The best time of day for landscape photography, season by season
Golden hour is the standard answer, but its timing and quality shift dramatically through the year. Here is how to plan landscape shoots across the seasons, from long summer light to brief, low winter sun.
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Blue hour photography: how to shoot the best light after sunset
The minutes after the sun disappears can be better than sunset itself. Here is what blue hour is, why it flatters cityscapes and water, the exposure challenges it brings, and how to plan for a window that lasts only minutes.
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How to photograph the moon: timing, phases, and settings that work
The moon is bright, far away, and moves fast, which is why most moon photos come out as a tiny white blob. Here is how to plan the timing and phase, and the camera settings that actually capture detail.
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Sunrise vs sunset photography: which light is actually better?
They look similar in a photo, but shooting at dawn and dusk are very different experiences with different light, crowds, and colour. Here is how to choose the right end of the day for the shot you want.
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Golden hour photography: how to plan the perfect shoot using sun times
The best light of the day lasts minutes, not hours, and it moves with the season and your location. Here is how golden hour, blue hour and twilight actually work, and how to plan a shoot so you are in position before the light arrives.
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Why the Magic Hour Is Marketing, and How It Differs From Golden Hour
The film industry called it magic hour; photographers called it golden hour; both meant slightly different things. Here is the actual distinction and why it matters.
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Reading the Timeline Strip on Sunhour
The timeline strip is the single most useful feature of sunhour. Once you can read it at a glance, you stop needing to memorise sunrise tables.
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The Maths Behind Sun Azimuth and Altitude, in Plain English
Two numbers — azimuth and altitude — completely describe where the sun is in the sky from your location. They are easier to understand than they sound.
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Best Apps and Tools for Outdoor Photographers
After a few years of outdoor shooting, your phone ends up with a stack of niche apps. Here are the ones that actually earn their place on the home screen.
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Need exact times for tonight's shoot? Open the sun calculator or browse 219 ready-made city pages.