Next usable light
Austin
7:28 PM – 8:15 PM
Solar noonDaytime69.4° · 181° S
Light windows
Fri, Aug 28 · America · ChicagoMorning
- Golden hour
- 6:51 AM – 7:39 AM47 min of warm light
- Blue hour
- 6:42 AM – 6:51 AM10 min of deep blue twilight
Evening
- Golden hour
- 7:28 PM – 8:15 PM47 min of warm light
- Blue hour
- 8:15 PM – 8:25 PM10 min of deep blue twilight
- Sunrise
- 7:06 AM
- Sunset
- 8:00 PM
- Day length
- 12 hr 54 min
- Solar noon
- 1:33 PM
Where to point the camera
Solar path and bearing
On this selected date, the sun reaches 69° at its highest point and the evening light approaches from 282° WNW.
Pick the month before the day
Light through 2026 in Austin
June is the generous sample in Austin — 52 min of golden light — while March tightens the window to about 46 min. Between December and June the sunset point migrates 55° — from 243° WSW to 298° WNW — which is enough to put a fixed foreground in or out of the light depending on the season. June days run 14 hr 5 min; by December they shrink to 10 hr 12 min.
| Month | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Golden window sample | Sunset bearing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7:29 AM | 5:53 PM | 10 hr 24 min | 5:18 PM · 51 min | 246° WSW |
| February | 7:12 AM | 6:20 PM | 11 hr 8 min | 5:47 PM · 48 min | 256° WSW |
| March | 7:42 AM | 7:40 PM | 11 hr 58 min | 7:08 PM · 46 min | 268° W |
| April | 7:04 AM | 7:59 PM | 12 hr 54 min | 7:27 PM · 47 min | 282° WNW |
| May | 6:38 AM | 8:18 PM | 13 hr 41 min | 7:45 PM · 50 min | 293° WNW |
| June | 6:30 AM | 8:35 PM | 14 hr 5 min | 8:00 PM · 52 min | 298° WNW |
| July | 6:40 AM | 8:35 PM | 13 hr 55 min | 8:00 PM · 51 min | 296° WNW |
| August | 6:59 AM | 8:14 PM | 13 hr 15 min | 7:41 PM · 48 min | 287° WNW |
| September | 7:16 AM | 7:38 PM | 12 hr 22 min | 7:06 PM · 46 min | 274° W |
| October | 7:34 AM | 7:01 PM | 11 hr 28 min | 6:29 PM · 47 min | 261° W |
| November | 6:57 AM | 5:36 PM | 10 hr 38 min | 5:01 PM · 50 min | 249° WSW |
| December | 7:21 AM | 5:33 PM | 10 hr 12 min | 4:57 PM · 52 min | 243° WSW |
Find the months when sunset faces your spot
Pick the direction your subject faces the sky. Months whose sunset lands within ±10° light up in the table above. Disabled shortcuts have no matching row in this visible mid-month sample.
Each row samples the 15th of the month at these coordinates, so dates near a month boundary can differ from the printed row — around here day length moves up to ~2 min per day in the fastest season. Clock times follow America · Chicago, including any daylight-saving change.
Full light and twilight schedule
Midnight to midnight
| Phase | Time |
|---|---|
| Astronomical dawn | 5:43 AM |
| Nautical dawn | 6:13 AM |
| Blue hour (morning) | 6:42 AM |
| Golden hour (morning) | 6:51 AM |
| Sunrise | 7:06 AM |
| Solar noon | 1:33 PM |
| Sunset | 8:00 PM |
| Golden hour (evening) | 7:28 PM |
| Blue hour (evening) | 8:15 PM |
| Nautical dusk | 8:54 PM |
| Astronomical dusk | 9:23 PM |
Seven local days in Austin
The week ahead
| Date | Morning golden | Sunrise | Sunset | Evening golden |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri, Aug 28 | 6:51 AM – 7:39 AM | 7:06 AM | 8:00 PM | 7:28 PM – 8:15 PM |
| Sat, Aug 29 | 6:52 AM – 7:39 AM | 7:07 AM | 7:59 PM | 7:27 PM – 8:14 PM |
| Sun, Aug 30 | 6:53 AM – 7:40 AM | 7:08 AM | 7:58 PM | 7:26 PM – 8:13 PM |
| Mon, Aug 31 | 6:53 AM – 7:40 AM | 7:08 AM | 7:56 PM | 7:24 PM – 8:11 PM |
| Tue, Sep 1 | 6:54 AM – 7:41 AM | 7:09 AM | 7:55 PM | 7:23 PM – 8:10 PM |
| Wed, Sep 2 | 6:54 AM – 7:41 AM | 7:09 AM | 7:54 PM | 7:22 PM – 8:09 PM |
| Thu, Sep 3 | 6:55 AM – 7:42 AM | 7:10 AM | 7:53 PM | 7:21 PM – 8:08 PM |
Moon and candidate vantage points
Context to verify
Moon on the selected date
The moon over Austin is a Full Moon, 100% lit. Treat this as lighting context, not a visibility forecast.
Candidate vantage points
The list supplies map-search starting points, not ranked recommendations. Confirm access, closures, permits, safety, and horizon obstructions yourself before setting out. For the selected date, the mathematical sunset bearing is 282° WNW. If the composition faces differently, use the bearing planner in the month table above to identify sampled months; the result remains a planning aid and does not prove visibility.
Plan and calculation notes
Assumptions and limits
Plan this specific light
In Austin, the evening golden hour window runs 47 min on the selected date and approaches from 282° WNW. Arrive 15 minutes before its start when that window occurs, then choose a position with an open view toward that bearing. Don't rely on the generic “one hour before sunset” rule here — the real window shifts with the season, so check the computed times for your date.
See the calculation method and limits before relying on the estimate in terrain-sensitive or safety-critical conditions.
Common questions
Golden hour FAQ for Austin
- When is golden hour in Austin?
- Austin has no fixed golden-hour clock time. The usable band begins at +6° and continues through −4°, enclosing sunrise in the morning and sunset in the evening; its representative monthly duration is 46 minutes in March and 52 minutes in June. Use the date control above for the exact boundaries of the day you will shoot.
- Which direction does the sun set in Austin?
- There is no single answer — over the year the sunset point travels 55° along Austin's horizon, between 243° WSW (December) and 298° WNW (June). The month table above lists the bearing for each month, and the sun-path panel computes it per date.
- How much does day length change in Austin?
- Enough to reshape a shoot plan in Austin: 10 hr 12 min of daylight in December versus 14 hr 5 min in June. See the table above for the month you're planning.
- Does Austin get blue hour right after golden hour?
- Always — the two are one continuous descent of the sun. Gold runs while the sun sits between +6° and −4° of Austin's horizon; the instant it passes −4°, blue takes over until −6°. Stay in position after a June golden window (52 min at its longest) and the blue phase arrives without you moving a step. Exact times for both are in the panel above.