Next usable light
Portland
7:18 PM – 8:17 PM
Solar noonDaytime54.1° · 180° S
Light windows
Fri, Aug 28 · America · Los AngelesMorning
- Golden hour
- 6:09 AM – 7:08 AM59 min of warm light
- Blue hour
- 5:57 AM – 6:09 AM12 min of deep blue twilight
Evening
- Golden hour
- 7:18 PM – 8:17 PM59 min of warm light
- Blue hour
- 8:17 PM – 8:29 PM12 min of deep blue twilight
- Sunrise
- 6:28 AM
- Sunset
- 7:58 PM
- Day length
- 13 hr 30 min
- Solar noon
- 1:13 PM
Where to point the camera
Solar path and bearing
On this selected date, the sun reaches 54° at its highest point and the evening light approaches from 285° WNW.
Pick the month before the day
Light through 2026 in Portland
Portland's sampled golden window runs from about 57 min in March to 1 hr 11 min in December. Check the bearing column before trusting a remembered spot: sunset lands at 237° WSW in December but 306° NW in June, a 69° shift. Day length spans 8 hr 44 min in December to 15 hr 40 min in June.
| Month | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Golden window sample | Sunset bearing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7:48 AM | 4:54 PM | 9 hr 6 min | 4:07 PM · 1 hr 8 min | 240° WSW |
| February | 7:13 AM | 5:38 PM | 10 hr 25 min | 4:56 PM · 1 hr 1 min | 253° WSW |
| March | 7:24 AM | 7:17 PM | 11 hr 53 min | 6:38 PM · 57 min | 268° W |
| April | 6:26 AM | 7:57 PM | 13 hr 31 min | 7:17 PM · 59 min | 285° WNW |
| May | 5:41 AM | 8:35 PM | 14 hr 54 min | 7:52 PM · 1 hr 4 min | 299° WNW |
| June | 5:22 AM | 9:02 PM | 15 hr 40 min | 8:16 PM · 1 hr 9 min | 306° NW |
| July | 5:37 AM | 8:57 PM | 15 hr 20 min | 8:13 PM · 1 hr 6 min | 303° WNW |
| August | 6:12 AM | 8:20 PM | 14 hr 8 min | 7:39 PM · 1 hr 1 min | 291° WNW |
| September | 6:50 AM | 7:24 PM | 12 hr 34 min | 6:45 PM · 57 min | 275° W |
| October | 7:28 AM | 6:27 PM | 10 hr 59 min | 5:46 PM · 59 min | 259° WSW |
| November | 7:11 AM | 4:42 PM | 9 hr 31 min | 3:57 PM · 1 hr 5 min | 244° WSW |
| December | 7:45 AM | 4:29 PM | 8 hr 44 min | 3:39 PM · 1 hr 11 min | 237° 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 · Los Angeles, including any daylight-saving change.
Full light and twilight schedule
Midnight to midnight
| Phase | Time |
|---|---|
| Astronomical dawn | 4:40 AM |
| Nautical dawn | 5:20 AM |
| Blue hour (morning) | 5:57 AM |
| Golden hour (morning) | 6:09 AM |
| Sunrise | 6:28 AM |
| Solar noon | 1:13 PM |
| Sunset | 7:58 PM |
| Golden hour (evening) | 7:18 PM |
| Blue hour (evening) | 8:17 PM |
| Nautical dusk | 9:06 PM |
| Astronomical dusk | 9:46 PM |
Seven local days in Portland
The week ahead
| Date | Morning golden | Sunrise | Sunset | Evening golden |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri, Aug 28 | 6:09 AM – 7:08 AM | 6:28 AM | 7:58 PM | 7:18 PM – 8:17 PM |
| Sat, Aug 29 | 6:11 AM – 7:09 AM | 6:29 AM | 7:56 PM | 7:16 PM – 8:15 PM |
| Sun, Aug 30 | 6:12 AM – 7:10 AM | 6:31 AM | 7:54 PM | 7:14 PM – 8:13 PM |
| Mon, Aug 31 | 6:13 AM – 7:11 AM | 6:32 AM | 7:52 PM | 7:13 PM – 8:11 PM |
| Tue, Sep 1 | 6:14 AM – 7:13 AM | 6:33 AM | 7:50 PM | 7:11 PM – 8:09 PM |
| Wed, Sep 2 | 6:16 AM – 7:14 AM | 6:34 AM | 7:49 PM | 7:09 PM – 8:07 PM |
| Thu, Sep 3 | 6:17 AM – 7:15 AM | 6:35 AM | 7:47 PM | 7:07 PM – 8:05 PM |
Moon and candidate vantage points
Context to verify
Moon on the selected date
The moon over Portland 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 285° 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 Portland, the evening golden hour window runs 59 min on the selected date and approaches from 285° 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 Portland
- When is golden hour in Portland?
- Whenever the sun is between +6° above and −4° below the horizon — a band that wraps around both sunrise and sunset. For Portland, the representative monthly window is 57 minutes in March and 71 minutes in December; separate morning and evening crossings merge or wrap overnight near the poles. Pick a date above for the minute-exact times.
- Which direction does the sun set in Portland?
- In Portland it depends on the month: 237° WSW in December, moving to 306° NW by June — a 69° annual swing. Use the sun-path panel above to read the exact bearing for your shoot date.
- How much does day length change in Portland?
- Portland's swing is 6 hr 56 min: December bottoms out around 8 hr 44 min of daylight while June peaks near 15 hr 40 min. Each month's numbers are in the table above.
- Does Portland get blue hour right after golden hour?
- Yes — they are adjacent bands of the same descent: golden hour spans +6° to −4° of solar altitude and blue hour continues from −4° to −6°. In Portland, the representative December golden window lasts 1 hr 11 min; on ordinary dates evening blue begins when its evening side ends, while polar dates can merge or wrap overnight. The light-windows panel above computes both for any date.