Mastering Golden Hour Photography

Every photographer loves "Golden Hour"—that magical window of time shortly after sunrise and just before sunset. The light is soft, warm, diffused, and incredibly flattering.

But capturing the magic of golden hour requires preparation, because that beautiful light disappears fast.

Timing is Everything

The "hour" is rarely a full 60 minutes. Depending on your location, the season, and the surrounding terrain (like mountains or tall buildings), your window of perfect light might only be 20 minutes.

Always use an app (like SunSeeker or simply the weather app) to track exactly when the sun will set, and tell your clients to arrive early.

Backlighting for the Win

One of the best uses of golden hour light is backlighting. Position the sun behind your subject to create a beautiful, glowing halo around their hair.

To make this work:

• Expose for your subject's skin, letting the background blow out slightly if necessary.
• Use a lens hood to prevent too much lens flare from washing out the contrast.
• Consider using a reflector to bounce some of that warm light back onto their face.

Embrace the Flare

While a lens hood helps control flare, sometimes you want it! A little bit of sun flare can add a beautiful, dreamy, and romantic quality to the image. Take off the hood and experiment with shooting slightly into the sun.

Be Ready to Move Fast

As the sun gets lower, the light changes by the minute. You need to be shooting continuously adjusting your settings. The exposure you used 10 minutes ago will not work right as the sun dips below the horizon.

Golden hour is fast and furious, but when you nail it, the results are undeniably stunning.