SHOOT TRUE-BLUE SCENICS

Mike Harris shows you how to photograph the blue hour, proving that sunrise and sunset aren't the be-all and end-all of landscapes

- Mike Harris

1 HOUR

We're willing to bet that there isn't a landscape photographer in all the land who doesn't love to photograph sunsets. But this jawdropping spectacle isn't the be-all and end-all of landscape photography, We've lost count of how many times we've seen fellow photographers pack up once the gorgeous golden light has faded, trudging back to their cars and missing the encore: the blue hour.

Blue hour occurs before sunrise and after sunset, and tends to last less than 30 minutes. This incredible phenomenon happens during civil twilight, when the sun is between four and six degrees below the horizon. The longer wavelengths of red light fly into the Earth's atmosphere and out the other side while the shorter blue wavelengths hit the atmosphere and scatter, shrouding the landscape in those distinctive cool hues.

You can calculate when blue hour will occur at a given location with planning apps like PhotoPills, but as with any landscape shoot, it's worth turning up ahead of time so you can prepare your kit and frame a good composition before the main event.

Shooting the blue hour doesn't require any special techniques, but darker conditions make a tripod a must. It's also worth spending a bit of time in post-production really honing those gorgeous blue hues.