It's Time to Talk about the Magic Hours in Photography

Get ready to immerse yourself in the magical realms of golden hour and blue hour photography on the Travel and Adventure Photography School podcast. 
Join host Robert Massey as he delves into the enchanting periods of the day, offering photographers a wealth of creative opportunities to capture the world in all its breathtaking glory. 
Discover the soft, diffused light of golden hour, enhancing colours and textures, perfect for captivating portraits, landscapes, and travel shots. Then, delve into the tranquil atmosphere of blue hour, where soft, diffused light creates a moody, calming ambiance, ideal for unique action shots and serene landscapes. 
From planning and scouting locations to essential gear and shooting tips, Robert shares his expertise to help you make the most of these magical hours. Tune in to elevate your adventure and travel photography skills and let your creativity soar.

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Find all the show notes and connect with Robert:
Website: robertmasseyphotography.ca
Instagram: @robertmasseyphotography

Transcript

0:02

Welcome back. Welcome back. Welcome back. This is the travel and adventure photography school podcast. As always, I'm your host, Robert Massey. And I am. stoked that you are here today and working on improving your adventure and travel photography skills. On this episode, we're immersing ourselves in the magical realms of golden hour and blue hour photography. These two enchanting periods of the day, offer photographers, a wealth of creative opportunities to capture the world in all its breathtaking glory. All right, let's just get right into this. Let's not waste your time. So let's begin with golden hour. Often hailed as the most picturesque time for photography. Golden hour occurs twice a day, shortly after sunrise. And just before sunset, when the sun sits low on the horizon casting a warm golden globe across the landscape. During this time, the quality of light is soft, diffused and embedded with a radiant warmth that enhances colors and textures, making it ideal for creating captivating portraits, landscapes, and travel shots. This is often that time you see almost everyone stopping and looking around, especially as we creep closer and closer to sunset. And the golden light starts to play with color in the clouds. Now it's not always guaranteed to happen. Overcast days, types of clouds, where the sun sitting on the horizon. Other things like that can really impact the quality of the light. But at its best golden hour is truly magical. So, all right. Take a step back. Why is it called golden hour? Well, during this time at the angle of the sun being lower on the horizon creates a soft diffuse light. That's a golden almost honey, like quality. And the light flattering to nearly everything and brings out the warmth of an image. So that's why it's called golden hour. It's got that beautiful warmth that tends to make us feel all warm, fuzzy, and joyful. And to be totally honest, just like everybody else. I love heading out and shooting in the warmth and joy of golden hour. There's nothing quite like when a sunset just goes off and then these beautiful reds and oranges explode across the sky. And yeah, there's nothing quite like watching that occur, especially if you've been out shooting in the night and the sunrises starts in that first time that the sun pops over the horizon and golden hour begins and you get that warmth in the sunlight, hitting you on the face. And. It's a truly majestic experience. I have literally run around entire lakes while I've been out backpacking. Just to hit the Sunbeam. So, yeah. I love golden hour and I love those kinds of moments. There's nothing really quite like them. But to be totally honest, from a photographic perspective, there are a lot of days where I really prefer that magic of blue hour. And to me, blue hour is the true magic hour. So blue hour occurs twice a day, just before sunrise and after sunset. And during this time, the natural light takes on a soft diffused quality casting, a serene and tranquil atmosphere over the landscape. Now why is it called blue hour? Well, it's the sun moves further below the horizon, the shorter blue wavelengths of light scatter more easily in the Earth's atmosphere. Which creates a stunning blue color palette. It's not just blues. It goes across the entire kind of blue moody, cool range. Cause I've seen. Dark pinks, deep purples. Little bit of turquoise going on up there. Just all sorts of beautiful, cool spectrum colors. I have seen happening in the sky during blue hour. Including one point where I was out kayaking on a lake and we could see the bubble of the atmosphere because of the layer of blues that was going on. It was this beautiful pink on the horizon. That turned to a dark pink to a purple. To this beautiful, dark blue and just radiate up into this dark blue. And we watch. The bubble of the atmosphere around us because of blue hour. I think that's the moment I truly fell in love with just how magical this time period is. One of the coolest things is like blues are known to be a calming color. So unlike those intense brightness of daylight or the warm tones of golden hour, which can make you feel joyful and happy. Blue hour offers this unique opportunity to capture just with a calm, soothing ambience and some more of a moody atmosphere. And that's because blues tend to calm us down. Blues tend to encourage us to take a breath and take a step back. And so that's why when you take photos during blue hour, They're typically infused with a little less energy and there's a little, something more tranquil and calming about them. That's why it's so cool to juxtapose these kinds of situations with high action shots. So if you get somebody out, dirt biking or rock climbing or hiking, or doing something at night where you're lighting them with lights and it's during blue hour, but they're doing something high active. It's this really. Beautiful juxtaposition between the two and it can help your image stand out. So using blue hour to help your action photos get better while it's way harder to shoot them. Can be such a cool juxtaposition. Now on the non-photo side, blue hour is also when the world, kind of starts calming down in a lot of those outdoor locations. People start heading in doors, they start heading towards the light, then warmth of campfires and just kind of heading out of these areas back to doing other things. They're a little closer to heat and light and warmth. This means that frequently. Blue hour is a lot quieter at those iconic spots that tend to be very busy right up to sunset. wait just 10, 15 minutes after the last warm colors of sunset have disappeared from the sky and you will find 75% of people have moved on from that spot. It's remarkable how fast this happens, and this can give you a lot more freedom of how and what you want to shoot and really open up your creativity just a bit more. So as people had away. You get a lot more chance to photograph these iconic locations with a lot more freedom. You can have a lot more freedom in how and what you want to shoot, and you can open up your creativity just a bit more. And sometimes I find it a lot easier to shoot when it's a lot less busy because I can be a little bit more creative and do things that are a little bit weirder and probably don't work to be totally honest. But I'm not having those thoughts of am I getting in the way of somebody else? Am I. Honestly being watched and judged by other people. It's a big problem with my own work. And the way I think is they, I feel like other people are judging me when I'm out there working. And so I do find it a little easier when situations are a lot quieter to just kind of go about my business, to be able to be a lot more creative. Now, honestly, I tend to plan for both golden hour and blue hour. To be in the same location at the same time, because you don't really have time to move locations between these two, unless you're going just five, 10 minutes away. And even then. That means you might miss the best part. Because the best part of golden hour can frequently happen right before that sun really turns into sunset. Or like right after sunset and you've still got that little bit of beautiful, soft warm light on mountain peaks or on the tops of buildings, but everything else is deep and blue and it gives you this cool cinematic effect. I tend to just plan to be in the same spot and in the same location. Now by location. I mean, somewhere like a viewpoint overlooking the city or a mountain top, I don't mean one spot with the tripod. Move around in the location you've chosen for sure. Unless you want to capture that exact same composition in all time periods, which is a super cool and challenging photo project. So take it on if you're interested in that case, don't move that tripod. But if you're like me by location, I mean, you know, the edge of Moraine lake or the top of a mountain or something like that. And then in there move around and hunt and try to find the best compositions that you can taking into account where the sunset is going to go, where it's going to cast its light. All those kinds of pieces. Now. Okay. The most critical thing to shooting is to plan in advance. So you can make amazing photos off the cuff. But if there's a specific thing you're trying to capture, or you want to make the most of in that time period, it's best to have a bit of a plan going in. So let's start with scouting locations. It's essential to research potential locations that offer compelling compositions interesting subjects. Things that you're going to want to photograph. So consider factors like the direction of the light, the presence of prominent landmarks, natural features and potential hazards to you, or to blocking off your light or to not being able to complete your photograph or get in to complete your photograph. And while traveling, I really like to make a list of the things I would like to capture and do a bit of pre-scouting on potential locations and angles way back before even get on a plane. Or before I take off for that location, I'm doing a lot of pre-work on my computer before heading out. What this means is that I'm not guessing at where I want to go. When I get somewhere, I've already got an idea of the landmarks and the angles I want before showing up into destination. And this can be really critical. Let's take Banff, for example. As somebody who's here all the time and shooting all the time around here, I'm pretty familiar with all the really great angles of locations. But if you just know, I want a photo of cascade mountain. Okay. That's great. Cascade is massive. It can be seen from literally kilometers away. There are so many different places. You could take a photo of cascade from just saying, I want a photo of cascade mountain is not super helpful. What you need to be doing is picking, say that icon. You want a photo cascade mountain. Okay. What's that angle you want on it? Is it the classic cascade over BAnff Ave, is it looking at it from. The backside, which isn't as normally thought of as people. Cause it's not as iconic of view. Is it coming in from the highway in that like classical my God, I'm in Banff kind of moment. There's all sorts of different angles you can have on it. And you can't get between these locations really during one golden hour, at least not easily by any stretch and properly shoot them. So you really need to pick that angle properly before you go, and you don't want to be disappointed. Ask somebody and be like I want a photo of this. And they send you to a totally different spot that isn't nearly as good an angle as the photo that you'd seen or the thought that you had in your head. So. Take that time to really get to know what angle you want as well. Look up other photos for inspiration. And narrow in on what it is that you exactly want before you get to your destination. Now. Don't take this as gospel. Sometimes you're going to get to a destination and fall in love with another feature, like a building or a landscape. And in that case, make it your focus. We aren't obligated to capture those iconic spots in a destination. Most of the time it's best to follow your artistic gut. And I had this happen when we first landed in Paris. Oh. Going nine years ago. Now when we were there. And. We got there. It was a beautiful sunset. We were hanging out. We were heading off to a specific spot to take photos of the arc de Triomphe. And then we came across this statue in a park that was on its way over there. And I just fell in love with the statue, the way the light was playing with it, how the clouds looked above it. And I ended up just hanging out there. We ran a time-lapse with the clouds running behind it, and the way that the light was changing across the statue. And I ran around with my other camera taking a few different angles on it as well, making sure to. Stay out of my time-lapse, so I didn't have to do a lot of editing. And we totally missed the Arc de Triomph for that night. But those photos I got that first night, we were in Paris was some of my favorites that I shot and I absolutely loved the way they feel, the way the light is just everything about them. And so I'm super stoked that actually missed the arc of that night. But those photos from that first night, just bring me so much warmer than happiness. And so I'm so happy that we did that and skipped out on that iconic golden hour shot that I had been planning. So. Definitely plan in advance, but leave yourself. Some grace to be able to capture. What your artistic side is telling you and what you're feeling and to listen. To yourself. Don't listen to Instagram. Don't listen to what everybody else is saying. Listen to what you are saying to you. While, obviously being a good traveler and respecting that area and the people who are there. Now to aid in your location scouting efforts, there are several helpful apps available that can provide valuable information about the sun's position in the sky. So apps like PhotoPills and sun surveyor allow you to visualize the sun's trajectory throughout the day, helping you plan your shoot with precision. These apps also provide details about sunrise, sunset golden hour, blue hour times, allowing you to really time your shoot accordingly. So one of the great things to look at at this point in the planning process is where the light will be coming from on your intended subject. Will it be illuminated by golden hour? Will the sun be behind it? Will there be shadows across it? Because the sun has dropped behind some larger objects. I'm thinking there's a lot of bowls in the Canadian Rockies. Where it's really only bright for a few hours in the day. Especially during winter. And by the time golden hour rolls around, there is no light in that bowl anymore. It's totally shaded in and shadowed. And so you actually won't get golden hour down there. The sun is way behind the mountains at that point. So, this is when you really want to know where the sun is going to be coming from. And certain locations look amazing, no matter what time of day you are there. And other locations really do need to be at a certain time period. So make sure that you're getting to a spot when it has the optimal light bathing over it, especially if you only have the chance to go once. If you can go multiple times. I love seeing locations where someone's like, that's a sunrise spot. And I love going there at sunset and seeing how it changes and how, it shifts and all those kind of things I have done that. I think I have probably seen Vermilion Lakes here in Banff. Literally at every hour of the day, I'm talking midnight. 4:00 AM. Four in the afternoon, every hour of the day, I have seen Vermilion lakes and. It's beautiful. No matter what time period, we're there in. So when people say that's a sunrise location, Yes, because if the sun does go off, it is phenomenal. But the way I have seen the light play across Rundel's peak when it's setting, because it's. Just bathing it in this direct intense orange beam is also absolutely stunning. If you have a chance to go multiple times, that's amazing. But if you don't. Really make sure you are getting to that spot for the optimal time period. Now I personally tend to use sun surveyor to quickly get an idea where the sun is going to be in the sky. When I'm out on location. I've used this for years before I picked up the PhotoPills app. And so it's still just part of my habit and I find the tracking. To be really accurate and really easy to use when I'm standing somewhere. And then I tend to use photo pills to help plan all of my shoots in advance. So this is much more of a planning before I get there kind of situation and sun surveyor tends to help me a lot once I'm actually there. So PhotoPills lets you see things like shadows and the direction from the sun, which can really help, you know, if a location is going to work out or not. So during the planning process, I also spend time figuring out how long it's going to take me to reach a destination because honestly too often, I've underestimated those travel times and missed out on a sunrise or be driving to a location at the sunset goes off. So it's best to plan your timeline at this point as well. So when you're planning that timeline, remember the length of golden hour varies greatly around the world. It's called golden hour. It's not an hour everywhere. It definitely is not an hour out here right now. It tends to only be about 30 minutes at the moment. So really you need to think about that time period and really know how long golden hour is going to actually last, wherever you're going. And then figure out how long it will take you to get to that exact location. So including plenty of time for getting stuck in traffic and that time, especially if you're hiking, you're heading in somewhere, lots of time to head into that location. So you're there. Not just as golden hour starts, you really need to get there. Well, before golden hour starts that you have a chance to scout the location, look for where the sun's going to go line up your shot. You're probably going to be competing with some other photographers as well, especially in these iconic destinations. So if you want to make sure you have your spot that you really want to capture for golden hour. You need to get there a little bit earlier, scouted out and lock yourself in where you want to be. Now, like I was saying before, I also tend to prepare how I'm going to get to a specific angle. So a lot of the times I've looked up angles of iconic things or places that I've really wanted to capture, and I've gone looking for different photos of them and then try to figure out where that photo is taken from so that I actually know the location to go to. Because. It's great to just show up to a location and be able to explore and really dive in. But I might not be at the right spot to capture exactly the angle I was thinking about. This goes back to what we were saying about cascade mountain just a few minutes ago, but you might not get to the exact angle that you're looking for. If you just kind of show up because there could be so many different places to go to. Take that time research, some of those angles research, some of those places that you want to go and then figure out how you're actually going to get to that angle. It's not just about getting to that spot. You also need to know how to actually get to that angle itself. So I need to know what trail am I taking when I get there? Do I head to the right or the left? Is there a staircase I need to go up? Is that angle actually from inside of a building or a location that I may not be able to access without asking somebody in advance? If there's an angle you fall in love with or an angle, you can see while you're out and you think it would be amazing? You might need to do a little bit of pre-planning and ask some questions to see if you can get in somewhere. And if someone doesn't you in, don't be rude about it. Don't be mean. Just keep going on with your life, jump to your next idea and your next idea, and just keep going. Don't let it get you down. So there's all sorts of things that can prevent you from getting to that specific angle. So if you don't figure that out in advance, There might be some barriers to getting the photo you're dreaming about. All right. So that's your pre planning phase. It's a lot. It seems like, but honestly, I find it really fun because you get to dream about a location. You're going to, you get to start setting up some details and ideas and. You get to really start delving into your trip or delving into something creative and photographically creative, which is to me, a lot of fun. Now while you're in your planning stage, there's also obviously the gear that you need to think about. Now, the gear can range massively. It depends on how you like to shoot what you like to shoot. What you're going there to shoot. Gear can change so much depending on your shooting style and what you're aiming to shoot. So this list is not by any means extensive or exhaustive, and this list is also not meant as a, you must have this to do this. These are the things I tend to think about a lot when I'm heading out to shoot golden hour and blue hour. And that's because I tend to mix between a lot of travel photography and a lot of action, adventure photography, and then some landscape stuff as well. And so I try to bring out some gear that can kind of cover off all three of those pieces. Now you could honestly just go up with your camera of choice and do a great, the lake quality is such that it makes for really easy photography, but this list is just some extra things to think about. Beyond the obvious, like your camera, plenty of batteries and storage and something warm to throw on when the sunsets, because it can actually get quite cold. All of a sudden. So some of the other things I tend to think about is the lenses, a wide aperture lens, especially for blue hour can really enhance your photography. Think something 2.8 or lower perferably, you can get down to like 1.2. That's amazing. Blue hour gets dark rather quickly, to be honest, meaning you're going to need to pump that ISO and a fast lens can give you more light as well as providing that beautiful dreamy fall off. And that really looks amazing during the moody tones of blue hour. And when things start to get a little bit darker and a little bit more mysterious feeling, so a fast lens can actually really enhance what you're shooting and it can mean that you don't always have to stabilize your camera as much. You can get away with shooting by hand a little bit more and giving yourself a little bit more flow, especially if you don't love shooting on a tripod, which is my second thing that I always look at is the tripod. So if you're looking to create the best landscape shots you're will need a tripod. You don't have a choice, the best landscape shots come from being set down on a tripod. 90% of the time. Now we're talking like artsy. High-end spectacular. Shots where you're going to be doing some focus stacking, and you're going to be blending exposures and doing all those kinds of things. You really do need a tripod, but. If you aren't doing something like that, a tripod isn't actually a necessity. But you'll just need to realize that you'll need to bring in more lights some other way than dropping your shutter because admittedly, at a certain point, you can't keep dropping your shutter down and handholding it and. Getting usable images. So things like pumping your iso, opening up your aperture. Are going to be what your answers are. If you can't set it up on a tripod and throw the shutter speed down as low as you want it to go or as slow as you want it to go. So just be prepared for that outcome. If you can't stabilize your camera or you don't want to stabilize your camera. So number three, remote shutter release. Well, not strictly necessary. A remote shutter release or cable release can be useful for minimizing camera shake when triggering the shutter, particularly during long exposures. This is because when you hit the shutter button, you are introducing shake through the camera. And every time you touch the camera, you shake it. Even a little bit, and that can just introduce a little bit of detail being thrown off in your image. So if you don't have to touch your camera to set the shutter off, that is spectacular, especially if you're doing really long exposure photography. One of the ways I get around this when my apple and connect, or when I forget the trigger at home or, you know, there's all sorts of reasons, the stuff like that can happen pretty quickly. Is to set the ten second timer. I have found the three second timer works. Okay. But. I tend to find the 10 seconds just guarantees that I'm not going to be having some shake introduced, especially if I'm trying to run something for 3, 4, 5 minutes, then I really don't want to touch that camera at all in advance. If I can. All right. Number four lens filters. So bring along a polarizing filter. So reduce glare and enhance those colors. Polarizers are my top suggested accessory for your camera. Get a circular polarizer. And neutral density filters are great for controlling exposure and achieving long exposures, especially during golden hour and blue hour, which really lets you drag those clouds or the water and all those kinds of beautiful things. They're also really great for balancing the sky out so you can use graduated neutral density filters to darken the sky, but leave your foreground unaffected. So all sorts of beautiful stacking methods. And if you take a look at pro landscape photographers, their sets for filters can just be phenomenal to look at and just the way they've set them up and the way they build them out. And so well-worth, if you're looking to get in deep into that artsy style of landscape photography and travel photography. You're going to have to start really learning about neutral density filters. All right. Number five, flashlight or headlamp, especially for after blue hour ends. It may be getting dark really quickly, especially if you're headed back out to somewhere. If you've got a bit of a walk and you're not in a city, you're going to need some sort of light. So I personally prefer a headlamp has at least my hands free to do other things like carrying my gear. And I despise relying on my cell phone for a torch as I want that battery safe for pretty much anything else, like potentially saving my life if something happens on the way home. So headlamp. All the way. I always throw it into my bag. If there's even the slightest of chance that I'm going to think about staying out late. All right. That is your prep period. So that's getting your camera equipment ready. And what you're thinking about, that's getting yourself prepared before you actually get out for golden hour blue hour. Now some tips for actually shooting during this time period. This isn't going to get too in depth into anything specific about camera tips, because it honestly depends on what your subject is and how you're trying to shoot and all sorts of other pieces in there that I can't give you advice on without us chatting directly in person and being in a situation. So. Instead of relying on that. I'm just going to go back to a couple of composition tips. That I find are incredibly helpful in these situations. Don't just get wrapped up in watching the pretty colors from a sunset and watching where the sun goes down to them. Just stare that way. I look at where the light is hitting. Let's say that it's sunrise and the lights just coming up on the horizon. If you turn and look at where that light's hitting, especially in the mountains, you can sometimes make out this beautiful Reddy orange glow on the mountain peaks. That Alpenglow is something that just warms my heart and warms all of me whenever I see it. Don't just look at where the light is and where the sun is. Look all around. You look for all the different ways that it's playing with things you might be amazed by what you can see. Second thing. Don't just go to where everybody else is. And this is slightly a pet peeve of mine as well. I was out shooting. Early one morning when it was negative 40 out here, I was out on Vermilion lakes and I was by myself. And there was kilometers worth of space around me on this lake. And another photographer came by. And set up. Literally within like elbow room beside me. He just copied exactly what I was doing. And honestly, the angle I had on Rundle wasn't anything special. I was there to film a video and it worked really well for the angle I was looking for for this video. But photographically wasn't actually that interesting. Don't just go to right where somebody else has set up their camera and set up their tripod and be like, oh, this must be amazing. I'm not the most fabulous landscape photographer by any stretch of the imagination. There are so many people who are better than me and when I see people sitting up beside me, it's like, all right, you do you, but I hope that you're also trusting your own artistic vision here, you want to be in this spot because that's where your photographic eye is telling you to go. Not just because I'm a dude with a camera and to tripod and it looks fancy and amazing. Don't just go to where the other photographers are, if that's where you want to be. And you know that, and that's your vision that's calling out to you. Hell yeah. Go for it. But if that's not your vision and that's not where you thinking about being then go somewhere else, go to where your vision is telling you. And don't worry about what those other photographers are saying. And yes. I realized easier said than done. But. Something that can really help you is by just tuning into your own artistic vision. Alright. And the last thing. Don't leave too early. I found so many times that I've been out shooting sunrise and like, oh, I've got a meeting in an hour. I need to head out and we will go back and be just a little bit early, make some coffee or whatever. And then as soon as I packed my tripod and back in the car, the sun just goes off. And it didn't look like it was going to be an amazing sunrise and then all of a sudden, poof, there it is. And it's beautiful and spectacular. So just wait around a little bit longer. And you will get to a point where you can kind of tell if it's gonna work or it's not gonna work, especially if you get. To live in a destination to really get to know that area. But if you're visiting somewhere, you've taken the time and effort to be there. Don't like wrap up your shoot suddenly just because it's like, oh, the sunset didn't happen yet. Or oh, like blue hour is not looking great right now. Wait. Spend 10 minutes. Talk to somebody, talk to the person you're traveling with, or, you know, quickly, take your gear into the cafe beside you and grab a drink and then run back out again, whatever it is. Just wait, be there and just, just wait it out a little bit, have a little bit of patience and see if something happens. Awesome. And the last piece of advice I have for you is just don't get wrapped up in only shooting during golden hour and blue hour and all that kind of stuff. Great photos happen at all times of day. Make the most of the situation when you're in it, if something catches your eye, if your artistic instinct says, photograph that. Do it. Don't always just wait for the light to be perfect. There's no such thing. Listen to what your artistic vision says. So while blue hour and golden hour. Amazing. Make sure that you're out there for them. Make sure that you're shooting during them. Just also make sure that you're out exploring all paths of capturing amazing images that fulfill your artistic vision. And then just let your creativity soar. Alright, thanks so much for tuning in today and doing what you can to improve your photography. I love talking about these kinds of things. I that's why I do this. It's just enjoyable for me. And just talking about the things that I've learned and the things that I've learned from the people who reach out to me, who. There are some spectacular photographers out there. Y'all make me jealous with how great you are. Keep it up. And if you've got something you want to learn or have a question or anything like that, reach out. I love having these conversations and I'd love to hear from you so you can connect with me on Instagram at Robert Massey photography, which I do not update nearly as often as I should or visit my website at robertmasseyphotography.ca reach out that way. Yeah, I always enjoy hearing from my fellow photography enthusiasts and sharing in our collective passion for capturing this big, beautiful world of ours. All right. Let's get out there. Let's adventure. Bye for now.