Next usable light
Philadelphia
7:04 PM – 7:57 PM
Solar noonDaytime59.7° · 181° S
Light windows
Fri, Aug 28 · America · New YorkMorning
- Golden hour
- 6:08 AM – 7:02 AM53 min of warm light
- Blue hour
- 5:58 AM – 6:08 AM11 min of deep blue twilight
Evening
- Golden hour
- 7:04 PM – 7:57 PM53 min of warm light
- Blue hour
- 7:57 PM – 8:08 PM11 min of deep blue twilight
- Sunrise
- 6:26 AM
- Sunset
- 7:40 PM
- Day length
- 13 hr 15 min
- Solar noon
- 1:03 PM
Where to point the camera
Solar path and bearing
On this selected date, the sun reaches 60° at its highest point and the evening light approaches from 284° WNW.
Pick the month before the day
Light through 2026 in Philadelphia
December is the generous sample in Philadelphia — 1 hr 2 min of golden light — while March tightens the window to about 52 min. The 62° seasonal walk of the sunset point (240° WSW in December, 302° WNW in June) matters more than the clock time for framing. June days run 14 hr 59 min; by December they shrink to 9 hr 21 min.
| Month | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Golden window sample | Sunset bearing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7:21 AM | 5:00 PM | 9 hr 39 min | 4:19 PM · 1 hr | 243° WSW |
| February | 6:55 AM | 5:37 PM | 10 hr 42 min | 4:59 PM · 55 min | 254° WSW |
| March | 7:13 AM | 7:08 PM | 11 hr 55 min | 6:32 PM · 52 min | 268° W |
| April | 6:24 AM | 7:39 PM | 13 hr 15 min | 7:03 PM · 53 min | 284° WNW |
| May | 5:46 AM | 8:09 PM | 14 hr 23 min | 7:31 PM · 57 min | 296° WNW |
| June | 5:32 AM | 8:32 PM | 14 hr 59 min | 7:51 PM · 1 hr | 302° WNW |
| July | 5:45 AM | 8:29 PM | 14 hr 44 min | 7:50 PM · 59 min | 299° WNW |
| August | 6:13 AM | 7:59 PM | 13 hr 46 min | 7:22 PM · 55 min | 289° WNW |
| September | 6:42 AM | 7:11 PM | 12 hr 29 min | 6:36 PM · 52 min | 275° W |
| October | 7:12 AM | 6:23 PM | 11 hr 11 min | 5:46 PM · 53 min | 260° W |
| November | 6:46 AM | 4:46 PM | 9 hr 59 min | 4:06 PM · 58 min | 246° WSW |
| December | 7:16 AM | 4:37 PM | 9 hr 21 min | 3:54 PM · 1 hr 2 min | 240° 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 ~3 min per day in the fastest season. Clock times follow America · New York, including any daylight-saving change.
Full light and twilight schedule
Midnight to midnight
| Phase | Time |
|---|---|
| Astronomical dawn | 4:49 AM |
| Nautical dawn | 5:24 AM |
| Blue hour (morning) | 5:58 AM |
| Golden hour (morning) | 6:08 AM |
| Sunrise | 6:26 AM |
| Solar noon | 1:03 PM |
| Sunset | 7:40 PM |
| Golden hour (evening) | 7:04 PM |
| Blue hour (evening) | 7:57 PM |
| Nautical dusk | 8:42 PM |
| Astronomical dusk | 9:17 PM |
Seven local days in Philadelphia
The week ahead
| Date | Morning golden | Sunrise | Sunset | Evening golden |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri, Aug 28 | 6:08 AM – 7:02 AM | 6:26 AM | 7:40 PM | 7:04 PM – 7:57 PM |
| Sat, Aug 29 | 6:09 AM – 7:03 AM | 6:27 AM | 7:39 PM | 7:03 PM – 7:56 PM |
| Sun, Aug 30 | 6:10 AM – 7:04 AM | 6:27 AM | 7:37 PM | 7:01 PM – 7:54 PM |
| Mon, Aug 31 | 6:11 AM – 7:05 AM | 6:28 AM | 7:36 PM | 7:00 PM – 7:53 PM |
| Tue, Sep 1 | 6:12 AM – 7:05 AM | 6:29 AM | 7:34 PM | 6:58 PM – 7:51 PM |
| Wed, Sep 2 | 6:13 AM – 7:06 AM | 6:30 AM | 7:33 PM | 6:56 PM – 7:49 PM |
| Thu, Sep 3 | 6:14 AM – 7:07 AM | 6:31 AM | 7:31 PM | 6:55 PM – 7:48 PM |
Moon and candidate vantage points
Context to verify
Moon on the selected date
The moon over Philadelphia 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 284° 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 Philadelphia, the evening golden hour window runs 53 min on the selected date and approaches from 284° 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 Philadelphia
- When is golden hour in Philadelphia?
- The reliable answer is an angle, not a clock time: golden hour is the span with the sun between +6° and −4° of the horizon, around sunrise and again around sunset. In Philadelphia the representative monthly span is 52 minutes in March and 62 minutes in December. The panel above computes it for the exact date you pick.
- Which direction does the sun set in Philadelphia?
- Roughly west, but the useful number changes with the season: 240° WSW in December versus 302° WNW in June in Philadelphia. That 62° difference decides whether a street or shoreline actually faces the light on your date.
- How much does day length change in Philadelphia?
- Philadelphia's swing is 5 hr 38 min: December bottoms out around 9 hr 21 min of daylight while June peaks near 14 hr 59 min. Each month's numbers are in the table above.
- Does Philadelphia get blue hour right after golden hour?
- Yes, with no gap: blue hour is simply the next slice of the same sunset, defined by the sun dropping from −4° to −6° after the golden band (+6° to −4°) closes. Planning a December shoot in Philadelphia? Budget 1 hr 2 min of gold, then the blue window follows immediately — both computed per date in the light-windows panel.