After our planning meeting, please book a time that works for you. Just go Jeff's Calendar and book a time that works for you.
Midday
In San Francisco, the sun is highest at 1:30 PM PDT on June 24nd. From about two hours before until about two hours after, the sun is high enough to make the walls of narrow alleys and the pavement in front of entryways into excellent reflectors. This means the best shooting time if from 11:30 AM PDT to 3:30 PM PDT. When the sun is too low, it drops below roofs and trees and we have fewer choices for locations.
So, for May, June, July, and August, for a fifteen-foot wide alley with two-story buildings on the south side, the window goes from 11:30 AM PDT to 3:30 PM PDT.
In March, April, September, and October the noon sun is a lot lower in the sky and the time window is more narrow. From mid-March through October, when we are on daylight savings time, the window is from about 12:30 PM PDT to 2:30 PM PDT.
In November, December, January, and February the window is much more narrow and it is often cloudy, cold, and windy. So, I prefer studio work.
Golden Hour and Blue Hour
Golden Hour refers to the hour just after sunrise or just before sunset. Because the light from the sun travels through a lot more atmosphere it takes on a special yellow color and faces glow. Blue Hour is the hour just before sunrise or just after sunset. While we have enough light to shoot, everything is in the shade and the light becomes much more blue.
I have found that the Golden Hour is only about 20 minutes long. In the last 20 minutes just before the sunset, the hue is magical.
However, the location choice becomes extremely limited. If the sun is setting behind trees, buildings, hills, or mountains it does not travel through enough atmosphere to produce the special glow. We need a natural horizon. So, our locations are limited to beaches and cliffs with a view of the ocean.
If you would like a Golden Hour or Blue Hour shoot, please ask. They are fun and produce very special images.
The calculator at http://www.golden-hour.com allows one to easily find sunrise and sunset times. For example, in San Francisco, on June 24, sunset is 8:36 PM PDT so for a Golden Hour shoot, we would need to be in place and ready for our last shots at 8:16.
I have not done a photoshoot during the blue hour. I would like to try it. Here are some street shots. With some work and my newer camera, I can capture a lot more detail.
Nighttime
Night shoots can be fun, especially for black and white images. Night starts about and hour and a half after sunset. By then, one cannot see distant hills. The only light comes from street lights and windows.