THE GOLDEN HOUR The golden hour is a name used to define two different times of day when the light has a distinctive look to it that is not found during any other time. These lighting situations are heavily sought after by photographers because the light quality is nearly impossible to replicate outside of these times. With these photo tips and a little practice you'll be able to make the most of this lighting and take fabulous golden hour photos.

What is the Golden Hour The golden hour is one of two specific times each day when the light tends to appear very bright and create a golden cast to the landscape. This shift in lighting moves the white balance over to the warmer tones. In spite of what the camera may perceive as low light levels, the golden hour lighting appears very intense and produces vibrate colour tones not found at any other time of day.

When is the Golden Hour? The golden hour is considered to be from sunrise to one hour after and one hour before sunset until sunset. For example, if the sun sets at 5PM, the golden hour would be measured from 4PM to 5PM. If the sun rises at 5AM, look for the golden hour from 5:00AM to 6:00AM. Exactly when the best point of the golden hour light will occur within these windows is harder to predict so it is best to plan to arrive early and be prepared to wait for the right moment to press the shutter.

How do I Take Golden Hour Photos? Taking photos within the golden hour can easily be done handheld without a tripod. While the light is deceptively low, there should still be plenty of light for a handheld shot...as long as you aren’t using a very long lens. Expect exposure times of 1/250 down to 1/30 depending on the subject, your location, and aperture. If you are using a long lens it is best to be prepared for possible slow shutter speeds by taking a tripod or other sturdy camera support. The best golden hour photos are taken with the sun behind the photographer so that the full force of the gold tinted light falls directly on the side of the subject facing the camera. If you shoot the photo so that the sunlight is angled from behind the subject you will often lose much of the colour of the light in your shot although that is not always the case.

What Should I Photograph During the Golden Hour? The best golden hour photography subjects are things that work well with golden tint. Portraits, sweeping wheat fields, animal portraits, anything that isn’t going to clash with a golden tint is fine. There isn’t much that doesn’t look great in golden hour light but occasionally you’ll find a subject that just doesn’t work, often the colour red can become burnt brown in golden hour light for example. Action sports or anything moving quickly (like a running horse) are probably not a great golden hour subject because they move too fast for the shutter speeds you’ll be using.