High Country Life

The term golden hour refers to the period between sunrise and sunset when sunlight appears redder and more diffuse than usual – making for an invaluable moment that photographers and cinematographers cherish.

Kacey Musgraves’ 2018 album Golden Hour is an ambitious statement against Nashville’s outdated perceptions of what country music should sound like. The record successfully breaks away from those expectations to craft something truly original.

Location

Light is essential when it comes to photography. The period just after sunrise or before sunset is often known as the “golden hour”, as its warm golden-hued lighting softens shadows for more dramatic results.

Kacey Musgraves’ shocked expression at the 61st Grammy Awards became viral after she won Album of the Year for Golden Hour, an ambitious project about new love that pushed country music’s limits by exploring both life’s simplicity and complexity simultaneously.

Daniel Tashian and Ian Fitchuk’s 13-track production sees Musgraves exploring her most experimental territory yet while remaining instantly identifiable; from its opening psychedelic guitar strums of “Slow Burn” to its stoned delicate jam “Space Cowboy”, Musgraves remains as curious and inventive as ever.

Golden Hour was released to showcase the underrated slipperiness of country music, which encompasses disco songs like Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton’s “Islands in the Stream,” murder ballads such as Marty Robbins “Big Iron,” or even Neil Young’s After the Gold Rush. By welcoming new sounds and ideas into its fold, it ensured everyone–from rap stars to traditional country singers–had an equal place at its table.

Time

Photographers often refer to this period between sunrise and sunset as “the golden hour”, when the sun is low in the sky and emitting an attractive, soft glow that makes for dramatic images. Furthermore, temperatures tend to be lower at this time of day which helps avoid images appearing overexposed or harsh – hence why photographers regard this time period as their optimal time for taking photographs.

Golden hour provides many other advantages for photographers beyond its soft lighting, such as reduced shadows and natural-toned light that makes landscape photography and outdoor scenes easier. Furthermore, with less shadows to worry about during low sun angles photographers find it much simpler to capture their subjects.

Musgraves’ debut album “Space Cowboy,” shows her talent for employing cutting word play and wistful twang to explore heartbreak and loss, without shying away from pushing country music to its boundaries further by including Daft Punk-esque vocal modifications as well as pop and electronic elements in her music – thus producing an album with broad appeal to new listeners interested in country.

She explored themes of acceptance and finding beauty amid life’s ups and downs throughout the album, from “Rainbow” to the melancholy “What Don’t Kill You”. These songs proved her ability to handle joyous as well as dark emotions equally well; cemented this work as a country classic.

Over time, Musgraves’ revolutionary sounds and lyrics have helped change the face of country music. Lil Nas X released their 2019 rap-country debut and Rina Sawayama released her 2022 pop-country single; artists are now exploring all the elements explored by Musgraves in Golden Hour and expanding what country can be. This expansion speaks volumes for Musgraves songwriting talent as she transcends genre constraints through song.

Light

As the sun dips lower on the horizon, its light creates a soft golden glow known as the “golden hour.” This occurs between sunrise and sunset when natural daylight is less harsh than other times during the day. Since lower-hanging sunrays must travel through more atmosphere that scatters them and diffuses their color spectrums into reddish hues that produce warm tones for daytime illumination; weather conditions such as clouds and mist can further soften and warm this sunlight effect.

Golden Hour by Kacey Musgraves explores complex themes of loss, longing and self-discovery without departing from its essential values that make country music so endearing. From “Slow Burn”‘s minor key opening strums to its bubbling lust on “Lonely Weekend”, her songs celebrate ordinary beauty while simultaneously balancing simplicity with complexity.

Musgraves’ 13 tracks demonstrate her dedication to exploring new sounds and hybridization – from Daft Punk-esque vocal manipulations on “Oh, What a World” to danceable disco beats on “High Horse”, Musgraves defies expectations about what country should sound like while staying true to tradition.

Golden Hour has received widespread acclaim since its release last year, earning critical and listener acclaim alike. It topped the Billboard 200 chart, appearing on numerous “best albums of 2018” lists and earning Musgraves multiple Grammy awards at this year’s ceremony, including Album of the Year honors.

Golden Hour was an essential milestone in Musgraves’ career and established her as one of Nashville’s leading artists. Her genre-bending style and revolutionary take on country music appeal to listeners of all generations; her Grammy win for Album of the Year underscores this. Musgraves has introduced country music to an entirely new audience through Golden Hour.

Equipment

Golden hour photography requires a camera that allows for precise exposure control of each scene, whether a digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) with a large image sensor is best, but even point and shoot or compact cameras may suffice. Depending on the scene you may also require additional equipment like tripods and reflectors.

Low on the horizon, when sunlight passes through a wider portion of atmosphere and becomes softer, its light creating more beautiful lighting, giving photos an authentic and vibrant appearance.

Additionally, warmer and dimmer lighting makes it easier to achieve proper exposure as shadows are less dark and highlights don’t appear so prominently.

The golden hour is an invaluable window of opportunity, occurring between sunrise and sunset when treatment can be provided to maximize survival rates of trauma patients. This term was popularised by R. Adam Cowley, an American military surgeon.

Photographers often utilize the golden hour to capture dramatic landscapes, but you can take great photos at any time of the day when the light is right. Planning ahead and knowing the ideal places for taking the kind of photographs you want is the key to taking stunning images.

Start by deciding on what kind of landscape you wish to photograph, then conduct some research about it, especially how it looks during golden hour. There are various resources online which can assist in this regard – you might even want to try searching Wikipedia’s list of lighthouses!

PhotoPills makes it simple and efficient to plan photo trips during golden hour photography opportunities. Simply open up the app, navigate to Planner, tap twice on the Center Time Bar Time Bar (tapping twice will set current date and swipe forward or back) until it reaches when you wish to take your picture and set current time as the date/time setting for you photo trip.