bluehoursite.com
Everything about Blue Hour and Night Photography

During the time blue hour site is available I continuously get comments and questions about the following subjects so I decided to write a bit about them. I've also collected some photo ideas with an example shoot to get you a visual aid and idea.

Blue hour? Never heard of it, what is it?

Well, blue hour is a relatively short time frame right after the sun goes below the horizon and the sunset ends. The sky turns into a deep blue color then. It seems most people who are not into photography are not aware of this effect. I was thinking on how this is possible and found the answer to it, it seems simple. During the sunset most people are already at home, watching TV, surfing on the internet, eating dinner, playing with kids..etc. Sounds familiar? Well it is not a problem because you reading this and it means you're interested in photography.
So usually we watch sunset only during vacation and after the sun is finally down, we sit next to the campfire or go inside.
Well with photography in mind, the show just starts after the sun goes down. Sunset is a relatively easy subject, you see the sun, hopefully with nice colors, interesting silhouettes around it. It is also a beautiful subject, with some creativity you can take great photos. Blue hour is something much different. Right after the sunset the sky becomes deep blue at the other side of the horizon and this deep blue color slowly becomes the only color above us, then it turns into night. Other important things also happen at this time, like city lights usually turns on at this time. So if you're in or around a city, this is the most amazing time to take photos because you not only have the city lights but you have a deep blue sky and beautiful blueish reflections on everything, especially on water and glass.

What kind of photos should I take?

Surprise, surprise: the most important fact in blue hour and night photography that you cannot take a good photo without lights in your scene. I'm writing this because I've seen several photos on the net where only some moon light lit the scene and it was really dim, no strong subject, no meaning at all. So with some lights this can be solved. Lights are good subjects. All you need is to find the right combination of lights and other objects in the scene and find the best spot for yourself with the camera.

Some ideas

I've collected some ideas so it may help you to start thinking on good subjects around you that worth a try.

City lights

The most common subject is city lights. This can be the windows of buildings, public lights, decorative lights (statues, squares, fountains...etc), bridges, landmarks... everything that has lights.

Traffic

You can use the lights of cars. At most places during blue hour there is still good traffic so with a low ISO and small aperture you can take long enough exposures to have nice light-lines on your photo. Of course this needs a stable tripod and a really good spot near the traffic but please make sure to not get hit by a car! With some creativity you can play with the white front and the red tail lights too, it can be great looking effect.

Water

Water is always a good component of a photo. During the blue hour it has the ability to get the same blue color by revealing its texture. In the night the water becomes black and it reflects only light spots or well lit buildings close to it. If you also lucky and had some rain during the day but you have a clear deep blue sky at the end of the day, try to use the puddles and the reflections in it.

Factories, chimneys, smoke

Chimneys with smoke and lights, on a factory or power plant can be interesting too. The smoke usually brighter than the sky and also it gets tinted by other colors (like the red light on high objects). For such subjects always be creative to frame it, make sure to not cut off the lower part just because it doesn't fit into your image. Do a portrait photo or get closer and take an image with slight rotation from "under" the chimney.

Final words

Well no big words here. Just a little checklist that may be useful. Always check the blue hour starting time on or the closest possible location to make sure you won't miss it. Never leave your tripod at home when going for a blue hour photo. Be creative!

I hope this article makes sense at all to you and find it useful. If you have any questions or ideas what should I change, improve, explain more please don't hesitate to leave a comment or send a personal message to me.