Where does the Sun Rise? - DPChallenge Forums

Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR II

02/01/2009 05:33:44 PM · #1

In the east! Ok that thatâ��s the easy answer but itâ��s not quite correct. On two recent outings I arrived very early in the morning at a spot I knew would make a great sunrise shot only to find that the sun didnâ��t rise where I expected it to.

On this shot:

I was sure that the sun would rise to the right of the pier but alas it did not. Iâ��m not complaining I like this shot but the ones after it werenâ��t what I expected them to be because the sunrise was behind the pier from this angle.

On this one:

The sun was far to the right of where I thought is would be. In fact it was out of this frame when it peeked above the horizon.

So to plan my outdoor photography a bit better Iâ��ve been doing some research to know where the sun will be. We all know that the tilt of the earth effects the position of the sun depending on the time of year. The variation is different depending upon your geographic location. The compass position where the sun rises and sets is called the azimuth. Here in the notheast US the sunrise azimuth can vary from NE to SE (56 Degrees to 122 Degress). There are several web sites where you can get this information including:

US Naval Observatory
NOAA
and my new favorite:
TimeandDate.com

The last one is easy to use:

And it provides a wealth of Sun and Moon data by the month:

I took the data from this site and used Excel to plot the sunrise and sunset azimuth for my latitude throughout 2009:

I was also able to plot:

The time for the Beginning of Civil Twilight* and Sunrise:

The time for Sunset and the End of Civil Twilight*

Similar info for the Moon as well

* Civil twilight is limit at which twilight illumination is sufficient, under good weather conditions, for terrestrial objects to be clearly distinguished - USNO
Photographers and painters refer to it as the "blue hour", after the French expression l'heure bleue.

This is just the begining of the data available. You could even plot the position of the sun throughout the course of the day but even I'm not that crazy. Hope this helps some of my fellow outside photographers out there. If anyone is interested in my spreadsheet send a PM and I'll send it along.

Message edited by author 2009-02-01 20:41:59.

dacrazyrn

Nikon D300

02/01/2009 06:11:57 PM · #2

I use my GPS

JulietNN

Canon EOS R7

Tamron 16-300mm Di II VC PZD MACRO w/Canon Nikon mount

02/01/2009 06:26:06 PM · #3

Thanks for that, I have booked marked it

karmat

Apple iPhone 7

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4.0L USM

02/01/2009 07:15:16 PM · #4

hehe sunrise? i would have to get up early. can i take a sunset picture and just call it a sunrise?

:)

Nikon AF Nikkor 20mm f/2.8D

02/01/2009 07:20:08 PM · #5

Originally posted by dacrazyrn:

I use my GPS

Yes I can do the same, for the present time.

However, if I'm at a spot today and the sun is wrong position I can use the chart to determine when in the future it will be in right position.

This is all a part of my desire to plan my landscape shooting instead of just stumbling across the good conditions.

Scholten

Nikon D700

02/01/2009 07:36:10 PM · #6

Interesting! Thanks! And in Maine and Oregon, along with many other places, we need to be aware of magnetic declination?

Nikon AF-S Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G DX VR

02/01/2009 07:59:40 PM · #7

Originally posted by karmat:

hehe sunrise? i would have to get up early. can i take a sunset picture and just call it a sunrise?

:)

The data even works for you late risers too :-)

limerick

Nikon D60

02/01/2009 08:06:41 PM · #8

Originally posted by karmat:

hehe sunrise? i would have to get up early. can i take a sunset picture and just call it a sunrise?

:)

hahah. This is funny. I cant see why not!

I am up very early every morning but how I do it is when I feel like going out for a sunrise picture I just look outside. If I see it I go. If I dont I stay home. hahah. Night time is harder for me. I am afraid of the dark and would only go if I wasnt alone. :=(

cpanaioti

Canon EOS-40D

Canon EF 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 DO IS USM

02/01/2009 08:13:25 PM · #9

Originally posted by limerick:

Originally posted by karmat:
hehe sunrise? i would have to get up early. can i take a sunset picture and just call it a sunrise?

:)

hahah. This is funny. I cant see why not!

I am up very early every morning but how I do it is when I feel like going out for a sunrise picture I just look outside. If I see it I go. If I dont I stay home. hahah. Night time is harder for me. I am afraid of the dark and would only go if I wasnt alone. :=(

In the northern hemisphere, do your sunrise shots on Dec 21 (shortest day). On that day, sunrise is at around 9:30 am here.

02/01/2009 08:22:18 PM · #10

Originally posted by Scholten:

Interesting! Thanks! And in Maine and Oregon, along with many other places, we need to be aware of magnetic declination?

That's a valid question and declination should be considered. I know that TimeandDate.com takes Daylight Savings into consideration for it's time calculations perhaps it considers declination as well. I guess a good way to test would be to use the data and compare it to a local observation to confirm.

I'm tempted to say that if you use GPS with true north setting it wouldn't be a problem but if they have factored declination already it would contradict that :-)

ETA: I sent a question to TimeandDate.com to clear this up for us. Another factor to consider is that the times for sunrise and sunset are based on the ideal situation, where no hills or mountains obscure the view and the flat horizon is at the same altitude as the observer.

ETA2: The answer back from TimeandDate.com is that they use True North so declination for your location should be considered if you are using a magnetic compass

Message edited by author 2009-02-02 20:49:24.

Tamron SP AF 28-75mm f/2.8 XR Di for Canon

02/01/2009 08:26:34 PM · #11

Keep in mind that this information can be helpful for more than just the sunrise and sunset itself.

We love that golden light of morning and evening. Have you ever been in a spot where that light just wasn't oriented to you subject? Maybe you're in a narrow valley with a NE to SE orientation. This data can help determine what time of year would be best to visit in the morning and when to best visit in the evening.

PGerst

Canon EOS-20D

02/01/2009 09:23:54 PM · #12

This is obviously due to the tilt of the earth at 23.4Â°. If the earth had no tilt, the only place that the sun would rise due east would be at the equator, and calculations from any latitude would simply be a matter of simple math, as seasons do not play a role.

However, since earth does have a tilt, a nonzero inclination (rel sun) and therefore a defined LAN, you have the problem you described.

Two good online resources are:
//www.calsky.com
where you can print out an ephemeris for any location
and
//sunposition.info

The first link I have used regularly, but I have not compared the results from the second link to the first.

I know you posted a couple links, I thought these two offered some good alternatives.

Message edited by author 2009-02-01 21:26:37.