What is Golden Hour?
Golden hour is a very magical time for photography, and many photographers won’t book sessions outside of it (yeah…it’s that good)! Golden hour describes the period right after sunrise and right before sunset when the sun is very low in the sky, making the light quite soft and often warm in its hue. Photographers love it because it’s very flattering and lovely in photos.
Just think about this: The sun in the middle of the day is pretty equal to your 2 year old right before bedtime on a day when he missed his nap. The sun at golden hour is that same 2 year old right when he wakes up from a really wonderful nap and is jovial and a friend to all. The sun can be so wonderful and sweet. But at the wrong time of day the sun is an absolute beast (for photos at least!).
So why is the mid-day sun so awful for photos? Squinting in photos is obviously not ideal. Additionally, the harsh sunlight overhead will cast shadows under your eyes (and who needs that?!). Overall, it just doesn’t give you the most flattering photos. And I want you to have flattering photos!
If you book an outdoor photo shoot with me, I’ll check sunrise and sunset times on the day you’re scheduling and give you recommended start times for our session. Due to the longer summer days, I typically recommend later photo session start times in the summer than in the spring or fall. Keep in mind that golden hour happens both at sunset and at sunrise! If your little one gets cranky in the evening, consider booking a morning session!
But even when scheduling a golden hour session, you never quite know what you’ll get. On a clear and sunny day, you can typically expect some of those golden rays right before sunset. Some days the sky really lights up, and other days it doesn’t. On an overcast day, that warm hue may never come at all. That being said, overcast days are beautiful for photos! The results are just different. And you never quite know what the sun will do until it does it.
Scroll down to see some examples of golden hour sessions that are all really different from one another!
David & Katie’s maternity photo session took place on a warm and sunny summer day. Here you can see that golden hue from the sun right before it set.
Unlike David & Katie (previous photo), Justin & Abbey had the golden sun behind them in this photo.
Due to Layla’s cheery disposition in the morning, the H Family opted for an early morning session. It was an overcast day which turned out so beautifully!
The P Family enjoyed some lovely overcast weather the day of their photo session. The lighting was beautiful and soft come sunset.
Dan & Stella fought off a few sprinkles on the day of their photo session, but despite some rain clouds earlier in the evening, the sky turned bright pink and purple as we were heading to our cars. We stopped for just a few more photos with this cotton candy sky.