That golden hour, that moment, call it as you wish … the magical time for photos … and more. Then, when the sky paints, the palette is unique, and every moment is colored differently. Then! A favorite moment for me, and for many other lovers of sunsets and photography. Even if you are not a professional photographer, you’re still tempted to capture the purple sky, admit it. Therefore, today I will reveal to you my 5 tips for better sunset photos.
📷Choose the perfect place
Find out first about the hour when the sun sets and if you decide to go to the horizontal to watch the weather, do not pull it out. Explore the place you have chosen – as the light spreads there, the shooting angle would be perfect for you. Choose interesting objects to publish in the foreground of your photo to make even more impressive shots. Put the setting sun as a background and create a landscape.
Note: This advice, is not mandator, as of personal experience I can confirm that the successfully planned photos of sunsets are counting on my fingers, while the spontaneous ones are countless. The fact that you did not plan does not deprive you of the perfect shot. Just planning can guarantee you more photos and time to experiment. (long exposure, re-framing, etc.)
📷White balance
Adjust the white balance (WB) to “Shade” to get the most out of those golden hues that make this time of day special. Simple, isn’t it?
📷Underexpose your photos
In other words. make an idea a darker picture (at least 1 step down from the perfect exposure). Why? There is an option to process after this frame to highlight dark areas of the photo, but if you have pre-listed / highlighted ones, you will not be able to change the colors in detail. This will prevent you from “burning” the frame.
📷Stay longer
Once the sun goes down, stay another 20 minutes. You will see wonderful colors in the sky, which are worth it. However, keep in mind that in this short period of time, the light and colors change with each passing second and the “magic” can disappear quickly.
📷Use an ND filter
Those of you who have taken up photography may be using or considering using photo filters. Prepare to include an ND filter in some of your sunsets and experiment. With it, you will be able to block the brightness of the sun and set the time of the camera to capture the beautiful landscape you have framed. Yes, that’s right – use a long exposure for your sunset to create a masterpiece. If you hesitate about how familiar you are with taking a long exposure, you can refer to my article “How to take a long exposure?”
Note: For those of you who have a beach, its sea, its river, this is a great option for a landscape with a similar filter.
🎁Bonus: Escape boring sunset photos
So far I have been explaining to you how incredibly beautiful sunsets are … what does a boring sunset mean ?! Personally, I find the sunsets in the cloudless sky boring. Don’t judge me for that. BUT, if you think like me and are planning to take pictures at sunset, and a whole gram of cloud in the sky has not appeared all day … I have an idea for you – silhouettes.
Involve in the framing of the subject / person standing in front of the setting sun. It can be in front of him – to hold it in the palm of your hand, to play football with it, experiment. The important thing, in this case, is to keep the silhouette dark.
Plan, arrange, adjust, shoot, but…. you still missed the perfect shot. Don’t get angry, and tomorrow the sun will set again and you will have a chance to catch it. Maybe with an even better idea than today! Or it may accidentally find you like that, without a plan. Enjoy and take pictures, carry your camera – not in your backpack, not in your bag, but on your neck, for sure! Because a beautiful shot can lurk from anywhere.
Hey, if you liked what you read, you can find more interesting tips for photography in my article: How to take better photos?
Happy shooting 🙂