Planning for Better Images with Tools for better Sunset Photography
To give you all the advantages that good planning can add to great sunset photography, here are a few of the free specialized tools I use.
Plus, as an added benefit, I find that these resources also help inspire me to get out and take more sunset photographs more often, because by using them I know that I have a better chance at capturing a unique moment.
Give them a try, and if you do use them, please let me know what you think.
Best Free Tools for Sunset Photography
To predict the best times for outstanding sunset photography, I use a great Web site that creates customized tables showing you exactly when sunrise and sunset occur – anywhere in the world (even Winnipeg!) 
From your own back yard to the ice caps of Antarctica, you can now plan your sunset photography outings to maximize those surreal scenes! Now you don’t have to get up too terribly early, because you know EXACTLY when the light will be right for your shot!
1) Check out the free sunset tables here. Most major global cities are included on the Web site, and if you know the latitude and longitude of just about any place on earth, you can create similar tables. Google Earth adn Google Maps can give you the lat/long which you can then type into the tables.
2) Steve Edwards, the creator of the site, also has a great free downloadable tool that you can run directly from your from your PC. Good if you are traveling with your laptop and won’t have Internet access.
Best Resource for any Photography involving the Sun or the Moon
If you are really into sunset photography you can make some highly unusual images by including the moon, stars and planets in your composition. The easiest way to do this is to uncover when the heavenly bodies will be aligned in your part of the world. I highly recommend a cool little application called Heavenly Opportunities.
For just about any location in the world, this software will help you find the best places and times for sunset and sunrise photos, as well as moonset and moonrise photos. It will even help you determine the best times and places for capturing rare events like sunset combined with moonrise!
You can download a free trial of Heavenly Opportunities here.
For example, here’s are a few images from the Heavenly Opportunities Web site.
How would you feel if you were visiting here the day after this happy conjunction occurred? As my old friend Maxwell Smart would say “Missed it by that much!” 🙁 If you`re too young to know about Max, think of Homer Simpson – d’oh!
So, never miss another opportunity like this again. Now you can plan your photo expeditions around perfect sunset photographs and moon and sun events, to really maximize your photography time!
HO lets you choose the angle of the sun at sunset, position on the horizon and the times of day or night for that perfect combination of WOW and technical photographic composition. Plus the documentation is some of the best I have seen. Download the free trial for better sunset photography. I know you’ll love it.
After using this software a few times, I couldn’t believe how many more great sunset photos I was able to take. And I was so motivated to get outdoors and shoot more often. Remember what a wise person said, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail!” 🙂
For more details about how to photograph stunning sunsets, get my new digital photography e-book – it will help you get a great start on you digital photography path!