Golden Hour Shooting

One of the best times to shoot landscapes is always ‘golden hour’. But what does this mean?

Whilst there is no defined hour (it isn’t always 7-8pm!), this refers to the time of day where the light takes on an orange/yellow/gold glow. This is created by the angle of the sun, and in physics terms is affected by angle of light through the atmosphere. It is affected by a variety of physical factors, including where you are on the planet, time of year and even weather (if it is high pressure or low pressure for example). The combination of these factors results in a beautiful golden glow across the landscape, which is perfect not only for landscape photography, but also for portraits, family shoots and lots else.

So what does this mean in practice? Well this is where it stops being scientific.

The hardest part is getting the right time. Predicting golden hour can be very tricky, as it relies on a wide range of factors, none of which are in your control! Sometimes it is just about patience, perseverance and yes, luck. However a simple rule of thumb is roughly an hour before sunset, on a clear(ish) day, you may well be in luck.

So how do we use this golden glow for landscape photography?

For me, this is a great time to get out the wide angle lens (which for me is a Nikon Z 14-24 2.8 S). This gives me a wide angle with which to take in as much of that golden light as possible. This is especially helpful when taking in large vistas, where it allows you to get great contrast between the light hitting the landscape, and the shadows being thrown behind them. However, you can also use closer up shots, again so long as you use that contrast produced by the different light and the changes between them.

This is how I was shooting recently up a hill on the shores of Lake Balafon in hungary. It took sitting for a couple of hours to make sure we managed to catch the light at the right time, but this is one of my favourite things about landscape photography - you can spend time watching the light, and the landscape, change around you, really making you feel part of the natural world you find yourself in.

Golden hour landscapes are something I offer in my landscape photography courses so if you are interested in learning more, get in touch!