5 Tips to capture magical photos in Golden Hour

Technically, Golden Hour is the short period right after the sunrise and again right before the sunset, when the sky and the surrounding area is filled with a flattering golden hue which is perfect for photographing everything that includes landscape to portraits.

To be clearer with the definition, it’s the first hour of light after sunrise and the last hour of light before sunset.

So, what makes it so special?

1. Soft Light – During the time of the golden hour (morning and evening), the sun is low in the sky whereas, the soft & diffused light is produced which is perfect for shooting any subjects. It doesn’t create harsh shadows and you have the freedom to click pictures with huge details.

2. Warm Light – Since the sun is at a low angle and right above the horizon, it gives an astonishing color palette including some warm yellows, oranges, and reds. Images taken during the golden hour give warm, happy, and cheerful emotions to the viewers.

3. Directional light – Golden Hour gives directional lighting, which gives beautiful effects on the overall scene that you are about to photograph. You can use the directional lighting to illuminate your subject from the back or side or the front side and create breath-taking images.

4. Soft & Long Shadows – Shadows are part of the photography. If you love light and shadows, then you must love long shadows as well. And the best time for creating long and soft shadows is at the time of the golden hour. The use of long shadows helps to create depth, add texture, and ultimately add interest to your final photographs.

With all these characteristics of Golden Hour, you just need a few quick tips to take advantage of the golden hour and take mesmerizing photographs.

Here are few tips to shoot images during Golden Hour.

Be quick & Plan your shot

Yes, you heard it right. When it comes to the golden hour, you just have to be very quick with your shot. There’s a relatively small window of time to capture your desire shot. But remember, don’t just rush so you fail to use the proper technique.

You have to plan your shot before going for golden hour photography. You need to finalize your location, get there early, and set up everything before the golden hour starts. If you wonder what this means, then you have to set up your equipment in the dark, if you’re thinking of shooting in the first hour in the morning. Likewise, you have to be ready in the afternoon before the sun reaches its horizon if you intending to shoot before sunset.

Use a Wide Aperture setting

Many photographers have agreed that the golden hour is the best time to click portrait shots. As we have already discussed the characteristics of the golden hour above, it gives warm, diffused, and soft warm light which is kind of perfect for every kind of shot.

To give a more dramatic effect or shallow depth of field, try shooting image at larger aperture setting, let’s say f/5.6 or wider. It not only gives a depth of field, but it also helps to achieve dreamy effects on your photograph. Likewise, it also maintains the focus on the main subject.

If you are new to the photography world, try to shoot images by keeping your camera mode in Aperture Priority Mode. This is the setting where you just have to take care of Aperture whereas, other settings like Shutter Speed and ISO will be taken care of by the camera itself.

Stay with the light

As stated above, you have very little time to go for your desire images during the golden hour. The transition or changes in lighting in the golden hour occurs fast. The landscape you first clicked right after the start of the golden hour looks different in just 10 minutes. So, keep shooting till the end of Golden Hour, make sure to bring variations in your shots.

Take care of White Balance

If you are looking for a nice and smooth hue in your photographs, then you need to take care of Auto White Balance. It’s better to put AWB into “Shade” or “Cloudy”, to get perfectly desired shots. If not, AWB may end up making your shot cold even in Raw format. You need to later change it in post-processing.

If you chose to set AWB manually, then choose between 3000 and 4000 Kelvin to get warm and soft colors in your photographs. The best practice is to shoot images in Raw format so that you can change it or make necessary editing in post-processing.

Camera Setting

Golden Hour photos look good when you know how to use your camera setting. So, if you are not so good in all the camera settings and manual mode, then the only key to take perfect photographs is practice. Practice a lot, so that you know what to shoot next time.

Besides, there are lots of things to consider or take care of while using a camera setting. For instance:

• You have to use spot metering so that camera knows where to expose and where the focal point is while clicking backlit portraits.
• Likewise, you have to use a golden reflector to bounce the light or use flash with a diffuser to fill in some light while shooting golden hour photographs. Sometimes, you will lose details while using stop metering.
• Always go for wide aperture mode while shooting portraits in the golden hour.
• If you are shooting landscape, you can use the aperture value between f/7 and f/16.
• Likewise, you can use tripod and lower ISO values to click long exposure shot during golden hour.

With all these tips, how can you be creative with your shots?

Well, if you want to be creative then just follow the lights. Here are some tips to shoot meaningful and mesmerizing photos during the golden hour.

• Side Lighting – During the time of Golden Hour, the sunlight is passed or hits the subject from one side, creating soft shadows and dramatic feel to the image. Placing the subject on one side and shooting will create a nice depth of field along with well-defined textures.

• Backlighting – Golden Hour is one of the finest times to click backlit shots. As the light falls from behind, the main subject will get an artistic effect in the image. It is also a great time shooting nature, leaves, flowers, vegetation as they seem to glow and create a magical feel in the image.

• Rim or Edge Lighting – It is similar to the backlighting but it is positioned in such a way that it creates a beautiful soft rim around the subject. You can use Rim Lighting to separate your subject from the background. Whether it’s a subject face or the flowers, due to Rim lighting you will notice a nice glow around the subject.

• Silhouette – Besides all the above lighting techniques, it is also the best time to photograph silhouette. You can place your subject in front of the bright light to obtain a magical silhouette and nice golden hue background.

• Lens Flare – Flares are bad for photographs. It is created when the light directly hits your sensor and lens. It is something that all the photographers want to avoid. But Golden Hour is the time when these flares create an outstanding effect in your photographs. It creates visual interest in your photographs and gives nice colorful and magical golden hour effects in your photographs.

Well, clicking images during the golden hour time can be inconvenient as you have to sacrifice your cozy bed early in the morning and postponed your fun time in the evening. But you will be rewarded with an outstanding image. So, get out there and try it yourself.