I just love to take photos of the sun setting over the horizon! Every time I go on a trip, would try my best not to miss the sunset unless the weather does not permits. Actually sunset photos are surprisingly easy to take. You don’t really need professional training or high end cameras. I am NOT a professional photographer myself but below are some points that I would like to share, the ones that I normally practice while taking sunset photos.

1)      Timing. A perfect sky will produce a great sunset but you need to know the right timing. Get to the place early so you have time to scope out the best angles. Some brilliant sunsets only appears for few minutes so get your cameras ready at your preferred location at the right time.

Moments like this only happens for a while. Photo taken near the backyard of the Taj Mahal

2)      Patience. Yes this is important too. Without patience, you might miss out some cool shots. Great moments don’t always happen everytime, you’ll need to wait for it. For example, you might have to hang around and wait for the boat sail right under the sun in order to get a unique shot.

Had to wait for the boat to sail there before snapping. Photo taken at Promthep Cape, Phuket

3)      Find a good foreground subject. A good foreground subject will make your photo more interesting. Among the subjects that might be helpful are trees, boats or maybe buildings such as lighthouse or even a jetty. I’ve taken a few shots with the subjects mentioned. Worst case, if you’re on a beach an there’s no good subjects, try asking your friend to be the subject and pose for a silhouette shot.

ask your friend to do a jumping shot. Photo taken in Perth

4)      Use the water. If you’re shooting at a location where the sun sets over the lake or the ocean, make use of the water. Lakes and oceans can produce wonderful reflections of the sun.

the calm lake provides the reflection and enhanced the photo. Photo taken in Queenstown.

5)      White balance. Try playing around with your camera’s white balance setting. Different white balance will give different color effects. Some cameras even have custom white balance which allows u customize the color temperature to make the photo look purple-ish, blue-ish or even red-ish.

adjusted  the white balance to get this blueish effect. Photo taken in Kuala Selangor

Perhaps it may not be the best tips around but I hope it gave you some idea. I’m also sharing some other sunset and dusk photos taken during my trips since 2007. Some of the photos might be published in my previous post before.

Sorrento Quay, Western Australia

Nai Yang beach, Phuket

Pantai Chenang, Langkawi

the highways of New Delhi

Melbourne City

Kuta Beach, Bali

Kuala Kedah, Kedah

Phi Phi Island

Karimunjawa

a desert nearby Jeddah

taken at a farm house in Gingin, Western Australia

the Forbidden City, Beijing