Okay, cats maybe. But cities come to life when the sun goes down. And above all, they change their character completely. The gray concrete and glass facades turn into sparkling figures of light. Construction cranes, garbage cans and other unsightly things of big cities fade away into the darkness.
In the right place at the right time
City views are most exciting at dusk just after sunset, when the sky takes on a cobalt blue color and the lights come on in the office towers. The mixture of remaining daylight and artificial lighting in the offices and apartments is what makes them so appealing.
However, the famous twilight hour is only about 30 to 40 minutes long, depending on the season and latitude. So you should be there in time and explore your subject in advance if possible. Above all, don’t be too late. Because when the sky has turned completely black, the pictures are much less attractive than at an earlier time. Here are two photos from Rothenburg ob der Tauber in Germany.
When the sky has turned untextured black, the beautiful color contrast between the blue sky and the yellowish illumination of the buildings is simply missing. My favorite would therefore be (almost) always the photo taken during the twilight hour.
But not only the time of day, but also the season must be considered. For big cities, the seasons with the short days are best. After all, even North Americans rarely work until late in the evening. In other words: In summer, there is hardly any light in the offices when the sun has finally set. In winter, on the other hand, the office towers are already illuminated in the late afternoon.
And the day of the week?
You might think that the day of the week doesn’t matter at all for the shot. But that’s not true either. Because there are far fewer offices occupied on the weekend than during the week. You can see this clearly in the two photos of downtown Calgary. The first photo was taken on a Thursday, the second on a Sunday:
In large German cities, the difference is even more pronounced. Must be the work ethic…
The right timing is therefore important when shooting at dusk. If in doubt, it’s better to be there too early than too late. And June 21 is not at all a good time for photos like these. At least if you, like me, like to be in bed at halfway decent hours.
As always, I’m looking forward to your comments and thoughts.
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