Magic Hour – Best Time to Film Nature and Wildlife

When I’m out in the field filming nature and wildlife, I’m usually the first and only one there and the beginning of the day and more often than not at the end of the day.

I think I can count the number of times I’ve shared a sunrise with someone on the tallgrass prairie of Indian Creek Nature Center like zero times. In the summer when the prairie is at its peak beauty, the sun rises pretty early and climbs very quickly once it appears on the horizon.  So to film a sunrise I’m often up at 4am which is way too early for most people.

Likewise, the summer sun sets so late, most people are home thinking about dinner or going to a movie but I have shared a few sunsets with people.

Filmmaking is all about light. The better the light, the better your footage looks. There’s no better light than what is called magic hour light. That’s the first and last light on a clear day. The shadows are long, the light is golden and for those few minutes the light is truly magic.

In the summer, magic hour lasts only a few minutes because the sun rises at a much steeper angle than it does in the winter so you have to be out and ready to go long before the morning newspaper is delivered.

Once the sun rises higher above the horizon, the magic is over. The color of the light changes because the suns rays don’t have to penetrate as much atmosphere, the shadows get shorter and the light looks much harsher.

It’s common for me to wrap up a morning of filming at eight or nine in the morning just when other people are starting to show up to walk their dogs or to shoot some photographs.

I often joke that when I see people, I know it’s time to go and that has been true more often than not.

I was filming before the sun rose on Porcelain Basin in Yellowstone National Park and filmed the suns first peek above the horizon surrounded by the swirling steam of they geyser basin. Once the sun rose high enough to make the landscape flat and harsh, I packed up my gear and headed down the boardwalk to my truck. Only then did a couple of tour buses show up and within minutes, the boardwalks were full of people taking selfies and not having a clue how amazing the light was just a few minutes earlier.

Sometimes magic hour light doesn’t happen but if it does, you need to already be in place where you intend to film because it will be over before you know it and believe me, you will regret missing it if you’re not out and set up before it happens!
And as always, shoot the ordinary and make it extraordinary!