How to use light at different times of the day?

From a photographic point of view, light at different times of the day has different functions.

The change of natural light not only affects the exposure level of photos, but also affects the color and contrast.

Before Sunrise

During this time, the sky began to brighten, but the sun was not above the horizon. At this time, we need to overcome the problem of insufficient light, which means we need a tripod and a remote control cable to release.

Shooting before sunrise has many advantages. At this time, there is no need to worry about too strong contrast or dynamic range, because everything in the field of vision will be dark. In addition, because the sun is not direct, it will shoot various colors in the sky, which is impossible during the day.

There is no direct sunlight before sunrise, so you can shoot all kinds of interesting colors in the sky.

dawn

This time period is the time when the sun will come out, and the sun is 0-6 degrees below the horizon. For photographers, the sun has not yet come out, but everything around has begun to become very bright.

Location and season determine the start and duration of dawn, which can be queried by mobile phone application software.

The Blue Hour

Blue time refers to the phenomenon that occurs at dawn.

During this period, there is a long distance between the sun and the horizon. Most red light is emitted into space, while most blue light is emitted into the earth's atmosphere. This causes the sky to be dominated by blue.

This period lasts about 30-40 minutes and ends about 15 minutes before the sun comes out. For many landscape photographers, this is prime time, so at least make sure that the photographer finds the right shooting position before sunrise 15 minutes.

Blue time is the time between dawn. There is enough light to see things on the ground, but you can still see the stars and the moon.

sunrise

After dawn, the sunrise comes, and the scenery has become bright.

But the sunlight is softer, because at this time, part of the sunlight is still below the horizon, and when it arrives, it will pass through the whole atmosphere obliquely. Only at this time can the sky be warm.

In addition, photographers can take photos of the sun directly. You can shoot clear sunlight, and even make the sun feel radiant by narrowing the aperture. Make sure that the aperture is at least at the level of f/ 16 or f/22. Of course, there are certain diffraction risks.

After sunrise

One hour after sunrise is also a very good time for photography. During this time, the sun kept a low angle on the horizon. ?

Therefore, sunlight needs to pass through the thick atmosphere to reach the ground, which will scatter some light, thus weakening the intensity of light. Even if the sun has risen above the sky, this time is still a good time to take pictures.

After sunrise, the sun will rise higher and higher in the sky, and you will encounter the problem of taking pictures at noon.

afternoon

The contrast of the photos taken during this period is too large, resulting in a heavy black shadow. But you don't have to stop shooting all the time, but you can do something to improve your photography. Photos taken at noon generally need polarizers.

Golden period

At this time, the light is warm and you can shoot exciting works.

When the sun began to set, the received light arrived obliquely through the thick atmosphere. Therefore, after a long time of scattering before reaching the ground, the light will be softer and have a golden texture.

The climax is before sunset, which is called prime time. About 30-40 minutes (depending on your latitude), about 20 minutes before and after sunset. The advantage of this time period is that there is a lot of light, and it is soft scattered light without heavy shadow.

sunset

Sunset is the time when every photographer wants to take pictures, and everyone knows that it is the easiest "magic moment" to take pictures.

There is not much direct light on the ground, so it will make the ground look dark.

After sunset

After sunset, photographers can still find their favorite lighting conditions. In fact, this may also be the best time for photography. This is another "blue time", when the sun goes down for a long time, the scattered blue light will dominate.

In the last stage of dawn, light looks very similar to night.

night

I took a lot of wonderful photos at this time. Don't worry about the change of light, it's time to relax.

If you want to shoot some stars, you need real night time until the sun disappears completely from the atmosphere. Whether it is light painting photography or star orbit, this time is the best period.