The Golden Hour

The Golden Hour in photography terms is that time immediately after sunrise and before sunset when the light of the day is soft. The tint to the light lasts about an hour at either end of the day, hence the moniker ‘Golden Hour’.

I found myself working during the Golden Hour last week when I undertook a photoshoot for a pet health company. The brief asked for photographs of two dogs at play. I had the dogs, but I needed to get them playing. This isn’t difficult when the dogs in question spend most of their time behaving like big puppies. The challenge was to get them both playing in the same shot. The spaniel turns like a speedboat when she runs, while the shepherd reminds me more of a tanker when he makes the same move.

I love being out in the early morning, especially on a clear day. Other than the early rising birds, places are usually quiet. If it’s been cold overnight, there’s often a heavy dew or a frost, and your breath can be seen hanging in the air around you.

I spent some of the time taking portrait shots as well as ‘at play’ pictures. The soft light made for a nice backdrop to portraits of the dogs, not bright enough to create glare but enough to offer a gentle highlight.

Golden hour light does not wait around for long, and I had to work quickly to make the most of it. Running with the dogs as they chased, camera set to high shutter speed, I worked to capture the photographs I needed. The brief hadn’t specified the time of day that the images should depict, but natural light is usually preferred for these jobs, and soft early daylight adds an almost ethereal look to the pictures.

When it comes to career paths, there are times when I marvel at this journey. Standing in the fresh air, watching the daylight harden, listening to birds singing and watching the dogs together, my mind as well as my body was refreshed. I was ready for another day as a photographer.