What Is Golden Hour, and Why Does It Matter for Your Photo Session?

If you’ve ever booked a session with me — or even thought about it — you’ve probably heard me talk (a lot) about golden hour. It’s not just a trendy term photographers throw around; it’s actually one of the biggest secrets behind those dreamy, glowing, share-worthy images. So what is golden hour, and why should you care?

Let’s break it down.

🌅 What Exactly Is Golden Hour?

Golden hour is the short window of time right after sunrise and just before sunset when the sun is low in the sky — typically at an angle between -4 and 6 degrees above the horizon.

From a photographer’s perspective, this moment is magic.

🧭 First, a Quick Lesson on the Horizon Line

To understand golden hour, picture the horizon line — that visual line in the distance where the earth seems to meet the sky. This is fine art concept taught as an important compositional concept for imagery creation. When the sun rises or sets, it crosses that horizon from your point of view.

Now, the next concept for photography - throughout the day, the sun moves in an arc across the sky (thanks to the Earth’s rotation), and its angle affects everything about how light hits your face, your surroundings, and ultimately, your photos - harsh light is often created when the sun is high will create harsh shadows and very different vibe in your photographs than a more diffused light.

☀️ Midday Light vs. Golden Hour Light

At noon, the sun is directly overhead, casting light straight down. The sun is at a 90 degree angle from the horizon line. This results in harsh shadows under the eyes, nose, and chin — not ideal for portraits unless we have artificial light or open shade. Harsh light can be desirable for more high fashion sessions and looks great with sunglasses! Harsh light also does not provide a lot of opportunity for diversity in your images.

But as the sun dips closer to the horizon, the angle of light becomes softer, more directional, and more flattering. It wraps around the subject, evens out skin tones, and casts long, dreamy shadows that bring warmth and depth to every image.

✨ Why Golden Hour Is a Photographer’s Dream

Golden hour is when the sun is at a -4 to 6 degree angle to the horizon line. Golden hour offers a variety of light from soft filtered light, reflections and rays (no harsh shadows here!), to dramatic backlit light, to that beautiful diffused glow.

The soft filtered light, reflections and rays that makes a world of difference in portraits. Instead of harsh shadows or squinty eyes, you get warm, soft filtered light that wraps beautifully around your subject. It flatters all skin tones and brings out the natural beauty in every scene. This light is often found in open shade as the sun dips behind a trees or other taller scenic features. This can create that magical bokeh or dappled light due the sun being at an angle to be filtered through natural features. In a more urban setting the angle of the sun can create reflections and rays that flatter your subject.

Golden hour is fabulous because it is dynamic and moving. As the sun sets at a more severe angle it creates the time for dramatic backlighting, which is a huge part of my signature style. If you’ve ever seen one of my portraits with that dreamy glow dancing behind the subject — that’s golden hour magic. It’s the perfect moment to catch sunlight streaming through tall grass, creating hair halos, or lighting up a soft lens flare. My work showcases a lot of lens flare - that rainbow light leak that frames a subject.

And then there’s the diffuse scenic glow. Out here in Colorado, golden hour sets the stage with honey-colored rays across open fields, lights up the tops of the Flatirons, and gives the tall grass that unforgettable golden shimmer. It’s no wonder we call it golden hour — it’s literally golden! When the sun is between -4 - 0 degrees and is behind the horizon it still casts a more diffused light - providing that dreamy evening light with even shadows and usually a gorgeous sky with clouds of all colors.

There is not time of day quite like golden hour to create a journey of magical images!

📸 Timing Is Everything

Golden hour only lasts about 45 minutes (sometimes less), and it shifts depending on the season and your location. This is why I always plan sessions around this timeframe whenever possible — it truly makes all the difference.

A Quick Note About Timing:
Golden hour shifts throughout the year! Because the days are shorter in winter and longer in summer, golden hour can begin as early as 4 PM or as late as 7 PM — sometimes even later.

When you book your session, keep in mind that we won’t finalize the exact start time until about 7 days before your shoot. That’s when we can check the most accurate sunset forecast for your specific date and location.

If you're curious in the meantime, you can ask Google: “What time is sunset on [your date] in [your location]?” This will give you a general idea of when we’ll be shooting.

Another Quick Note About Timing!

In Colorado, even locations just minutes apart can experience golden hour at very different times — sometimes up to an hour or more apart! That’s because our dramatic mountain peaks create unique horizon lines that shift the way light falls in each spot. This is why it’s so important to work with a local Colorado photographer who knows the terrain well and understands how the light changes from location to location throughout the year. Timing is everything when it comes to golden hour, and local knowledge makes all the difference. I pride myself on knowing my locations like the back of my hand and will work to guide you in this process to get the best lighting!

So when I suggest we meet just before sunset or early in the morning — trust me. That golden glow is worth setting your alarm or staying up just a little later for. 😉