Golden Hour Calculator: When Is the Best Light for Photos?
Golden hour light is warm and low, and it follows sunrise and sunset. This calculator estimates both windows from latitude and date.
What is the Golden Hour Calculator?
Golden hour is the soft light shortly after sunrise and shortly before sunset. This tool estimates sunrise and sunset from latitude and day of year, then places golden hour in the hour after sunrise and the hour before sunset. These are estimates, not precise local times.
How to use it
- Enter your values in the fields provided.
- Click Estimate Golden Hour.
- Read the result and adjust an input if you want a different outcome.
Worked example
At latitude 51.5 on day 172, estimated sunrise is about 03:48 and sunset about 20:12, giving evening golden hour roughly 19:12 to 20:12.
When is evening golden hour at latitude 51.5 on day 172?
With an estimated sunset near 20:12, evening golden hour runs roughly from 19:12 to 20:12, as an estimate only.
Frequently asked questions
What do I enter to get a result?
Fill in every field with your own numbers or choices, then run the tool. Empty number fields count as zero, so check them before you trust the output.
Can I reuse this result elsewhere?
Yes. The result is calculated in your browser from the values you entered, so you can copy the numbers into your own notes or plan.