Next usable light
Sydney
5:01 PM – 5:50 PM
Solar noonDaytime46.2° · 360° N
Light windows
Fri, Aug 28 · Australia · SydneyMorning
- Golden hour
- 6:05 AM – 6:54 AM49 min of warm light
- Blue hour
- 5:55 AM – 6:05 AM10 min of deep blue twilight
Evening
- Golden hour
- 5:01 PM – 5:50 PM49 min of warm light
- Blue hour
- 5:50 PM – 6:00 PM10 min of deep blue twilight
- Sunrise
- 6:20 AM
- Sunset
- 5:35 PM
- Day length
- 11 hr 14 min
- Solar noon
- 11:58 AM
Where to point the camera
Solar path and bearing
On this selected date, the sun reaches 46° at its highest point and the evening light approaches from 281° W.
Pick the month before the day
Light through 2026 in Sydney
June is the generous sample in Sydney — 55 min of golden light — while March tightens the window to about 48 min. That 57° of seasonal travel — 241° WSW at the December extreme, 298° WNW at the June one — is why a bearing beats a compass direction when you scout. Day length spans 9 hr 55 min in June to 14 hr 23 min in December.
| Month | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Golden window sample | Sunset bearing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6:00 AM | 8:10 PM | 14 hr 10 min | 7:34 PM · 53 min | 243° WSW |
| February | 6:31 AM | 7:50 PM | 13 hr 19 min | 7:16 PM · 50 min | 254° WSW |
| March | 6:55 AM | 7:16 PM | 12 hr 21 min | 6:43 PM · 48 min | 267° W |
| April | 6:18 AM | 5:34 PM | 11 hr 16 min | 5:00 PM · 49 min | 281° W |
| May | 6:41 AM | 5:04 PM | 10 hr 23 min | 4:28 PM · 53 min | 292° WNW |
| June | 6:59 AM | 4:54 PM | 9 hr 55 min | 4:16 PM · 55 min | 298° WNW |
| July | 6:59 AM | 5:04 PM | 10 hr 6 min | 4:27 PM · 54 min | 296° WNW |
| August | 6:36 AM | 5:26 PM | 10 hr 50 min | 4:51 PM · 51 min | 286° WNW |
| September | 5:56 AM | 5:47 PM | 11 hr 51 min | 5:14 PM · 48 min | 273° W |
| October | 6:15 AM | 7:08 PM | 12 hr 53 min | 6:35 PM · 49 min | 259° W |
| November | 5:45 AM | 7:36 PM | 13 hr 51 min | 7:01 PM · 52 min | 247° WSW |
| December | 5:39 AM | 8:02 PM | 14 hr 23 min | 7:26 PM · 54 min | 241° 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 Australia · Sydney, including any daylight-saving change.
Full light and twilight schedule
Midnight to midnight
| Phase | Time |
|---|---|
| Astronomical dawn | 4:57 AM |
| Nautical dawn | 5:26 AM |
| Blue hour (morning) | 5:55 AM |
| Golden hour (morning) | 6:05 AM |
| Sunrise | 6:20 AM |
| Solar noon | 11:58 AM |
| Sunset | 5:35 PM |
| Golden hour (evening) | 5:01 PM |
| Blue hour (evening) | 5:50 PM |
| Nautical dusk | 6:29 PM |
| Astronomical dusk | 6:58 PM |
Seven local days in Sydney
The week ahead
| Date | Morning golden | Sunrise | Sunset | Evening golden |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri, Aug 28 | 6:05 AM – 6:54 AM | 6:20 AM | 5:35 PM | 5:01 PM – 5:50 PM |
| Sat, Aug 29 | 6:04 AM – 6:53 AM | 6:19 AM | 5:35 PM | 5:02 PM – 5:51 PM |
| Sun, Aug 30 | 6:02 AM – 6:52 AM | 6:18 AM | 5:36 PM | 5:02 PM – 5:52 PM |
| Mon, Aug 31 | 6:01 AM – 6:50 AM | 6:17 AM | 5:37 PM | 5:03 PM – 5:52 PM |
| Tue, Sep 1 | 6:00 AM – 6:49 AM | 6:15 AM | 5:37 PM | 5:04 PM – 5:53 PM |
| Wed, Sep 2 | 5:59 AM – 6:48 AM | 6:14 AM | 5:38 PM | 5:05 PM – 5:54 PM |
| Thu, Sep 3 | 5:57 AM – 6:46 AM | 6:13 AM | 5:39 PM | 5:05 PM – 5:54 PM |
Moon and candidate vantage points
Context to verify
Moon on the selected date
The moon over Sydney 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 281° W. 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 Sydney, the evening golden hour window runs 49 min on the selected date and approaches from 281° W. 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 Sydney
- When is golden hour in Sydney?
- Whenever the sun is between +6° above and −4° below the horizon — a band that wraps around both sunrise and sunset. For Sydney, the representative monthly window is 48 minutes in March and 55 minutes in June; 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 Sydney?
- Roughly west, but the useful number changes with the season: 241° WSW in December versus 298° WNW in June in Sydney. That 57° difference decides whether a street or shoreline actually faces the light on your date.
- How much does day length change in Sydney?
- In Sydney, between 9 hr 55 min (June) and 14 hr 23 min (December). The month-by-month table above lists every month.
- Does Sydney 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 Sydney's horizon; the instant it passes −4°, blue takes over until −6°. Stay in position after a June golden window (55 min at its longest) and the blue phase arrives without you moving a step. Exact times for both are in the panel above.