TL;DR
Everything we publish for travel photographers: when the light is good at 74 places in Europe and Japan and how long it lasts, how to take about twenty kinds of travel shot, and what the official rules say about drones, photographing people and photos at shrines, museums and military sites. Every figure is sourced or calculated.
Start with the light calendar for your dates, or pick a guide below.
Light and timing
- Light calendar: golden hour for your datesGolden light, blue hour, sunrise direction and full darkness for any dates at 74 places in Europe and Japan, with a calendar file to save.
- How long does golden hour last? Every place, every monthMinutes of golden light and blue hour on the 15th of every month of 2026 for 74 places in Europe and Japan, calculated with the NOAA solar equations.
- Golden hour is not an hour: what the term really meansGolden hour has no official definition and its length changes with latitude and season. What the twilight definitions say, with figures for Europe and Japan.
- Where does the sun rise and set? Directions by monthSunrise and sunset directions for 74 places in Europe and Japan on the 15th of March, June, September and December 2026, and how far they swing.
- Dark nights and the Milky Way: Europe and JapanWhere summer nights never get fully dark, how high the Milky Way centre rises, and the new moons of 2026 and 2027, for 74 places.
Techniques
- Travel photography: 20 shot types and how to take themTwenty kinds of travel photo, from landscapes and stars to street, food and phone shots: settings, technique and common mistakes, each from a cited source.
- Night and star photos with a phone: what makers sayHow iPhone, Pixel and Galaxy night modes work, when it is dark enough for stars, and how to keep a phone still, from the makers' own guides.
- Snow and cold-weather photography: makers' adviceWhy snow turns grey, how to keep batteries going, how to avoid condensation, and what cold does to phones and drones, from camera and phone makers' own guides.
Seasons in Japan
- Cherry blossom dates in Japan: every prefecture, in orderAverage cherry blossom opening and full-bloom dates for all 47 Japanese prefectures, earliest first, from the Japan Meteorological Agency, with record dates.
- Autumn leaf dates in Japan: every prefecture, in orderAverage dates maple leaves turn red at the Japan Meteorological Agency station in each prefecture, 1991 to 2020, earliest first.
Rules and etiquette
- Drone rules for travellers: EU and Japan comparedWhat EU drone rules (via EASA) and Japan's Civil Aeronautics Act say on registration, height, line of sight, no-fly zones and airports. Not legal advice.
- Photographing people abroad: what the law saysWhat the GDPR, France's CNIL, German law and a Japanese ministry guideline say about photographing people and publishing the pictures. Not legal advice.
- Photographing shrines in Japan: the official rulesPhoto and worship rules published by Ise Jingu, the Association of Shinto Shrines and Kyoto City, including maiko photos. Official sources only.
- Photographing military sites in Europe: UK adviceWhat UK Foreign Office travel advice says about photographing military and security sites in the European countries we cover. UK advice, not local law.
- Museum photo rules: Louvre, Rijksmuseum and morePhotography rules as published by the Louvre, Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum, Kunsthistorisches Museum and two Tokyo museums: flash, tripods, selfie sticks.
Key takeaways
- The light pages are our own calculations with NOAA's equations, checked against Japan's national observatory.
- Technique advice cites camera makers' and institutions' own guidance; we recommend no gear.
- What we would skip: any rule of thumb that does not say where it comes from.
Sources
Each guide lists its own sources. See how we research.
Each linked page states its sources and method.