It’s all about the Golden Hour! How many times have you heard that? Those times of the day as the sun is rising or setting and golden light floods a subject from a low angle, flattering anything you care to point the camera at. Well I had my eyes opened recently by discovering images by people like kudo_bass and twocrowspictures (check them out on Instagram). They love to take images in the “Blue Hour” defined as that period immediately before sunrise or immediately after sunset when the light has a distinctive blue tinge. Lighting tends to be provided by artificial sources such as street lamps or car headlights. Exposures tend to be long and a tripod is essential. If, like me, you choose the pre-dawn period to wander around the streets this can lead to some curious stares from other early risers - especially if they only notice you lurking at the last second. It’s usually dog walkers, and joggers who provide the encounters but there have been some instances where people have peered from their windows only to see me pointing my camera at their house! I usually leg it when that happens before they call the police. I enjoy taking these blue hour images for a few reasons really. Firstly and most importantly these are the type of images that I enjoy looking at when i’m scrolling through other peoples photos and I also love the technical challenge of the low light levels. Having said that, perhaps the most important reason is that this is the time of day when I can actually get out and capture some images before the rest of the family stirs and work starts. Plus, it is time limited, in that the blue hour in fact only really lasts 30 or 40. minutes! Because of that I have found myself going out earlier and earlier and then really it’s more “night photography”. Check out my recent shots around Birmingham (in my Blue Hour Gallery) where I was wandering around the canals at 5am! It makes my afternoon naps even more essential……….
