LightPlan

The LightPlan Guide

Know where the light will be

How LightPlan works, in pictures. Search, pick a task, or start with the three steps below.

I want to…

Your first plan, in three steps

  1. Put the marker on your subjectSearch for a place, or tap the map on what you want to photograph.
  2. Pick the day and timeTap Date for the day, then drag the timeline to the hour.
  3. Read the lightThe lines point to the sun and moon. A chip on the map says when it's golden or blue hour.

1The basics

2See the shot

3Plan ahead

4Keep and share

5Good to know

1

The basics

The screen, the lines on the map, time and the light.

Start here

The main screen

Everything starts at the red marker. Put it on the spot you want to photograph, pick a time, and the map shows where the sun and moon will be.

07:15 18:55 2D Golden Hour 18:46 – 19:25 1.9° 18:55 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
  1. 1MenuSwitch between Sun & Moon, AR Sky View and Shadow Map, and open the Milky Way Planner, Moon Calendar, 3D Compass, Alerts and Help.
  2. 2SearchFind a place by name, or type its coordinates.
  3. 3AddSave the marker's spot, with the current view, as a location.
  4. 4Saved LocationsYour places. Current Location, at the top, takes you to where you are.
  5. 5CompassTurns the map back to north. At your current location, it turns the map as you turn (heading-up).
  6. 62D / 3DFlips between a flat map and the 3D map.
  7. 7Observer View PROLook from where you'll stand, at eye level.
  8. 8The markerYour subject. Tap the map to move it.
  9. 9Sun and moon linesWhere they rise and set, and where they are at the selected time.
  10. 10Light chipShows during golden hour and blue hour. Tap it for the times and the colour of the light.
  11. 11ToolbarQuick Actions, Date, Camera, Settings and Reset (below).
  12. 12TimelineThe sun's height through the day. Drag it to change the time.
  13. 13Selected timeThe red playhead. Its date and time sit on the left, in the location's own time zone.

The toolbar

Move around the map

TapMoves the marker there
PinchZooms in and out
TwistTurns the map
Two fingers up or downTilts the 3D map
Touch and holdPlaces or moves the observer pin
Tap the marker itself to Save or Share the spot. Lost? Reset brings back the marker and the current time.

MacScroll or pinch on the trackpad to zoom, and click to move the marker. See LightPlan on Mac.

The map

Read the lines

Each line starts at the marker and points the way you'd face to see the sun or moon. The red line follows the time you pick. Try it:

Zermatt, 26 August. Drag the time: the red line follows the sun, or the moon when you track it. The moon rises during the evening golden hour.
  1. SunriseWhere the sun comes up.
  2. SunsetWhere the sun goes down.
  3. MoonriseWhere the moon comes up.
  4. MoonsetWhere the moon goes down.
  5. The selected timeToward the sun or moon you're tracking. It turns faint while that body is below the horizon.
The Eiffel Tower on the Photorealistic 3D map, with the sunrise and sunset lines and their times
On the 3D map, the lines carry their times. A filled label marks the selected time.

Also on the map

  1. Tracking pathThe whole day's path, from rise to set. In 3D it climbs as high as the sun or moon does.
  2. Golden Hour On MapFans that cover the sun's directions during the morning and evening golden hour. Turn them on in Settings.
To follow the moon instead of the sun, open Quick Actions and set Track to Moon. The red line, the timeline and the tracking path all switch to the moon.

In Settings, Rise & Set Labels shows or hides the times on the lines, and Tracking Path Distance sets how far out the path is drawn (Auto grows it as you zoom out, up to 500 km).

Time

Move through the day

The timeline under the map is a clock you can drag. The lines, the light and the shadows all follow it.

3.4° 19:55 26 Aug 06:0012:0018:00 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
  1. 1The day arcThe sun's height through the day, coloured like the light: gold by day, rose at sunset, violet and blue into the night.
  2. 2The horizonAbove the dashed line the sun is up; below it, it's down.
  3. 3Rise and setSunrise and sunset, marked where the arc crosses the horizon.
  4. 4Golden and blue hourGold and blue bands under the scale mark each window.
  5. 5PlayheadThe selected time. The map shows this moment.
  6. 6ElevationHow high the sun or moon stands at that time, in degrees.
  7. 7Date and timeAlways in the location's own time zone, wherever you are.

Timeline gestures

Drag sidewaysChanges the time. Flick to glide.
Swipe up or downSwitches between the chart and Rise & Set
Double-tapBack to now
Touch and holdOpens Quick Actions
ScrollOn a Mac, scroll over the timeline to change the time

Rise & Set: the day in numbers

Swipe the timeline up or down for the day's times instead of the chart. You can choose which one shows under Settings › Infographic.

Sun

Sunrise06:42
Sunset20:20
Golden Hour06:23–07:22
19:40–20:39
Blue Hour06:10–06:23
20:39–20:51

Moon

Moonrise19:42
Moonset04:24
Illumination96%

Pick another day

Tap Date in the toolbar and choose a day. The map, lines and times all move to it. Free plans cover today and the next two days; PRO opens every date, years ahead or back.

Times are always shown for the place on the map, in its own time zone. Planning a trip abroad from home? The sunrise you see is the local sunrise there.

The light

Golden hour and blue hour

LightPlan times the light by how high the sun is, not by the clock. That's why the windows stretch and shrink with the season and the place.

+6° 0° −4° −6° Golden hour ≈ 3500 K → 2500 K Golden hour Blue hour 10 000 K+ HORIZON
Angles drawn three times larger so you can see them. Golden hour: the sun from 6° above the horizon to 4° below it. Blue hour: from 4° to 6° below.

An evening, start to finish

19:40 20:20 20:39 20:51
  • Day
  • Golden hour
  • Sunset
  • Blue hour
  • Twilight, then night
The same evening as the map above. In the morning it runs the other way: blue hour first, then golden hour around sunrise.
Far from the equator, summer golden hours can last well over an hour, and in some places the sun never sets. Near the equator they're short. Check the chart rather than going by a rule of thumb.
2

See the shot

Choose a map, frame it, and stand where you'll shoot.

Maps

Choose your map

Two maps, each flat or in 3D. Pick the one that suits the scene; the sun and moon follow you between them.

Photorealistic 3D

Google's 3D city and landscape: real buildings, streets and trees.

Best for cities, architecture and people.

Satellite 2D

A flat, top-down satellite view. Quick to read, and where the weather layers live.

Best for scouting and checking clouds and rain.

Terrain 3D

A topographic map on real 3D relief, lit by the hour, with the moon in its sky and peaks labelled.

Best for mountains, valleys and open land.

Terrain 2D

The same topographic map, flat. Weather layers work here too.

Best for reading the land at a glance.

  1. Settings › MapChoose Satellite or Terrain.
  2. 2D / 3DTap the button on the map to flip between flat and 3D.

AndroidIn Settings, Map lists Photorealistic 3D, Satellite 2D and Terrain 3D; the 2D/3D button flips between them.

Heading-up: the map turns as you turn

North upTap the compass to turn the map back to north.
Heading-upAt your current location, tap the compass and the map turns with you. It fills in while it's on; moving the map turns it off.
Place Labels in Settings shows or hides place names. On the Terrain map they name peaks with their heights, passes, lakes and huts.

The view

Frame the view

The map's camera circles the marker. Tap Camera in the toolbar to place it exactly, or pick a preset.

0° 90° N ↑ 1 2 3 4
  1. 1Camera AngleWhich way the camera faces, all the way round (0–360°).
  2. 2Camera Tilt0° looks straight down; 90° looks out level with the ground.
  3. 3RangeHow far the camera is from the marker, from 75 m to 400 km.
  4. 4AltitudeRaises the point the camera looks at above the ground, to frame a summit or a rooftop.

Presets, in one tap

Top Down0° · 2 km
Bird's Eye45° · 5 km
Closeup80° · 200 m
Distant80° · 25 km
Custom A88° · 180 m
Custom B70° · 10 km

The camera sheet has three tabs: Angle, Distance and Presets. On a flat 2D map you only need angle and range, so it shows just those.

A saved location remembers its view. Save a spot with the framing you like, and it comes back that way every time you open it.

New in 3.0

Observer View PRO

Stand where you'll shoot. Drop a pin, and LightPlan puts you there at eye level to watch the sun or moon cross the real skyline.

1 2 3 4 5 6
  1. 1Observer pinThe blue pin: where you'll stand.
  2. 2Eye HeightYou see from standing height. Raise it for a tripod on a wall, a balcony or a drone.
  3. 3Line of sightA dashed line from you to the marker. It turns red where the land blocks the view.
  4. 4MarkerThe red marker is your subject. The view opens facing it.
  5. 5Sky pathThe day's path of the sun or moon, drawn far away so ridges hide it just as they will on the day.
  6. 6Your lensWhat fits in the frame. Pinch, or set Focal Length, to zoom.
  1. Tap the eyeOn the Photorealistic 3D or Terrain 3D map.
  2. Tap where you'll standThe pin drops and you fly in to eye level.
  3. Look aroundDrag to look, pinch to zoom the lens, and move through time on the timeline.
  4. Tap the eye to leaveBack to the map, with your pin kept for next time.
Blue hour: the moon above the Matterhorn in the terrain Observer View Sunrise: the moon nearing the summit Golden hour: the moon sitting on the summit
The Matterhorn from the Riffelsee, 25 January 2027, as the Terrain map draws it: the moon settles onto the summit as blue hour turns to golden hour. Plan a shot like this weeks ahead.

The Lens sheet

In Observer View, the toolbar's Camera button becomes Lens.

The longer the lens, the narrower the view, and the bigger the moon looks against the ridge.

The observer pin

Line up the moon behind a peak: put the marker on the summit, your pin where you'll stand, switch Track to Moon, then drag the timeline (and the dates) until the moon sits on the top.

MacClick the eye in the toolbar, or press ⌥⌘O. Click where you'll stand to place the pin.

The sky around you

AR Sky View

Hold up your phone to see the sun's and moon's paths across the real sky, hour by hour, from where you're standing.

MacAR Sky View needs a camera you can hold up to the sky, so it's on iPhone, iPad and Android. The 3D Compass below works on the Mac too.

16:00 17:00 18:00 20:00 21:00 248° · 31° ±3° 1 2 3 4 5
  1. 1The sun's pathA dot and a time at every hour.
  2. 2The sun nowOr at the time you pick on the timeline.
  3. 3The moon's pathWith its hours, in blue.
  4. 4Compass accuracyHeading, tilt and how far off the compass may be. Smaller is better.
  5. 5Orientation arrowsPoint the way to a sun or moon that's off screen.

If the paths look off

Phone compasses drift near cars, rails and metal. Move the phone in a figure-8 until the paths settle. For a precise fix, with the sun or moon in view: in AR the toolbar's Camera button becomes Calibrate. Tap it, start the calibration, centre the real sun or moon in the crosshair and tap Calibrate.

Never look straight at the sun, with your eyes or through a camera. Line it up from the edge of the frame.

AndroidCalibration lines up on the sun when it's up, otherwise on the moon.

3D Compass

From the menu, 3D Compass draws the day's sun and moon paths (and the Milky Way's core) on a dome over a compass. Drag it, or use Time of Day, Tilt and Heading, to see where everything stands at any hour.

Light and shade

Shadow Map PRO

Buildings and terrain cast real shadows from the sun at the selected time. Drag the timeline and watch them swing round.

1 2 3 4
  1. 1Shadow objectA box at the marker, standing in for a person, a tree or a building you're planning.
  2. 2Object HeightSet its height and width in the Shadow Map's settings.
  3. 3Shadow LengthHow far its shadow reaches at the selected time, from its height and the sun's.
  4. 4The sunAt the selected time. Below the horizon there are no shadows, just the night's blue light.
  1. Open itQuick Actions › Shadow Map, or from the menu.
  2. Drag the timeThe shadows move with the sun.
  3. Tap the mapMoves the marker and its object.

iPhone · iPadIn the Shadow Map, Rise & Set shows the Shadow Ratio and the Shadow Length.

Find when a garden, a terrace or a street gets sun, when a facade is evenly lit, or where to stand for open shade at a portrait session.

On iPhone Duo, opened out and turned sideways, Split View shows the Shadow Map beside the main map.

3

Plan ahead

Clouds, the night sky, the moon, and reminders so you don't miss it.

The sky

Cloud cover and rain PRO

The forecast, drawn on the map and tied to the timeline. Find a clear night for the stars, or a few high clouds to catch the sunset.

3D
Cloud Cover0255075100%
Precipitation01020304050 mm/h
Magenta is cloud: the stronger it is, the thicker the cover. Rain runs from light blue and green through yellow and red to purple for a downpour.
  1. Go flatWeather layers draw on Satellite 2D and Terrain 2D.
  2. Tap LayersThe button under 2D/3D. Choose Cloud Cover or Precipitation.
  3. Drag the timeThe forecast steps hour by hour, about five days ahead.
For the Milky Way, look for no magenta at all over your spot. For a fiery sunset, some cloud overhead with a clear gap toward the sunset line lets the light reach under it.

Night sky

Milky Way Planner

A great Milky Way night needs three things at once: real darkness, the galactic core above the horizon, and the moon out of the way. The planner finds where they overlap.

  1. 1Dark windowAstronomical night: the sun at least 18° below the horizon.
  2. 2The coreWhen the galactic core rises, peaks and sets, with the direction to face.
  3. 3MoonlightHow bright the moon is, and whether it's up during the dark.
  4. 4Shoot windowDark, with the core up, and, if the moon is half lit or more, with the moon down.

What makes the score

8.4Excellent
40%40%20%
  • How long the real darkness lasts (best at 6 hours or more)
  • How high the core climbs (best at 50° or higher)
  • How little moonlight there is

Best Milky Way Nights

Tue 8 Sep21:12 · 22° · 196°8.6
Wed 9 Sep21:08 · 22° · 197°8.5
Sat 12 Sep20:56 · 21° · 199°7.2
Sun 13 Sep20:52 · 21° · 199°7.0PRO

View best nights ranks the next 30 nights at your location, with when and where the core peaks. Tap one to plan it. The first three are free; PRO shows them all.

Milky Way season runs from about February to October. From November to January the core is too close to the sun to see, and the planner tells you when it returns.

The month ahead

Moon Calendar

Every day's moon at a glance, month after month. Tap a day for its full story.

August 2026

August 2026: a total solar eclipse on the 12th and a partial lunar eclipse on the 28th, outlined as the calendar marks them.

28 August 2026

Full Moon100% illuminated
Moonrise20:19
Moonset06:44
Partial Lunar Eclipse

Visible at your location

Plus golden hour, blue hour and every stage of twilight.

Sun & Twilight, decoded

How far the sun is below the horizon. Civil twilight is still bright, nautical brings out the stars and the horizon fades, and astronomical twilight ends in full darkness. Day Detail lists each one's dawn and dusk.
When you track the moon, its phase sits in a corner of the map. Tap it to open that day in the calendar.

Without opening the app

Alerts, widgets and Siri

Let LightPlan tell you when the light is coming.

Alerts

Open Alerts from the menu, pick an event, then choose When: at the moment it happens, or from 5 minutes to a day before. Choosing a time turns the alert on; None turns it off. Alerts follow where your phone is.

Sunrise Sunset Golden HourPRO MoonrisePRO MoonsetPRO Full Moon · New MoonPRO Great Milky Way NightsPRO

Free alerts repeat every day. With PRO, Repeat picks the days of the week.

Widgets

Countdowns to the next sunrise, sunset, moonrise or moonset, golden hour, the moon, the Milky Way and a month of moon phases, for the Home Screen and, on iPhone, the Lock Screen. Add them from your Home Screen's widget gallery.

iPhone · iPadHome Screen widgets are free to try for 14 days, then part of PRO.

Ask Siri

“When is golden hour in LightPlan”

“When is sunset in LightPlan”

“What is the moon phase in LightPlan”

Siri answers for where you are, or for a saved location by name. You'll find the same actions in the Shortcuts app.

4

Keep and share

Your places, and plan links for friends.

Your spots

Saved locations

Save the places you shoot, and each one comes back exactly as you left it: the view, the zoom and the observer pin.

  • Save a spotTap + at the top, name it and pick a folder (or make a new one). The marker's spot and the current view are saved.
  • Open oneTap the arrow at the top right, then a location. Current Location takes you to where you are.
  • Swipe left on a locationTo edit, move it to another folder, share or delete it. Touch and hold to reorder.
  • AndroidEdit the listIn edit mode, each location's menu renames it, moves it to a folder, shares or deletes it.
  • Its own observer pinPlace a pin for Observer View once; it's there whenever you come back.

Free plans keep up to 5 locations; PRO keeps as many as you like.

On iPhone, iPad and Mac, your saved locations stay in step through iCloud, signed in to the same Apple Account.

Search by name or coordinates

Type a place in Search places, or paste coordinates in either form:

37.7749, -122.4194 37° 46' 29.6" N, 122° 25' 9.9" W

Decimal degrees use minus for south and west. Degrees, minutes and seconds need N, S, E or W.

Together

Share a plan

Send a friend the exact place, time and view in one link.

  1. 1YouTap Share and choose Share Link.
  2. 2A short linkSend it any way you like: Messages, mail, a group chat.
  3. 3Friends with LightPlanIt opens at the same spot, time and camera angle. Shared from Observer View, it opens in that view.
  4. 4Friends without itThey see the plan on the web, on a 3D map, with the day's light windows and directions.

In the Share sheet

Find Share in Quick Actions, by tapping the marker, or in Observer View's bottom bar.

Big screen

LightPlan on Mac

The whole planner side by side: your places, the map and every control, with your saved locations synced from iPhone.

LightPlan on a Mac: the sidebar, the 3D map of the Matterhorn, the timeline and the inspector 1 2 3 4 5 6
  1. 1SidebarSun & Moon, Shadow Map, Milky Way Planner, Moon Calendar, 3D Compass and Alerts.
  2. 2Saved LocationsBy folder. Right-click one to edit, share a plan link, or delete it.
  3. 3ToolbarSearch, Add, the map, 2D | 3D, Sun | Moon, Layers, Observer View, Settings and Share.
  4. 4MapClick to move the marker. Scroll or pinch to zoom.
  5. 5TimelineScroll over it to change the time; a trackpad flick keeps it gliding.
  6. 6InspectorThe date, the Camera (or Lens) controls and Rise & Set, and day details from the planners.
5

Good to know

What's free, what's Pro, and quick answers.

Plans

Free and Pro

LightPlan is free to use, every day. LightPlan Pro opens every date and the tools for serious planning, and starts with a free trial.

FreePRO
Sun and moon lines, times, timeline, golden and blue hour✓✓
DatesToday and the next 2 daysAny date
Saved Locations5Unlimited
Photorealistic 3D, Terrain and 2D maps, camera presets✓✓
Observer View—✓
Shadow Map—✓
Cloud cover and rain—✓
AR Sky View, 3D Compass, Moon Calendar✓✓
Milky Way PlannerAny free date, and the 3 best nightsThe 30-night forecast, alerts, and the core in AR
AlertsSunrise and sunsetEvery event, on the days you choose
Widgets14-day trial on the Home Screen✓
Share plans✓✓

To start, tap the LightPlan Pro card at the bottom of the menu, or any PRO badge.

Answers

Questions

Why can't I see the eye button for Observer View?

It's on the 3D maps only: Photorealistic 3D and Terrain 3D. On a flat map, tap 2D / 3D first.

Why won't cloud cover turn on?

Weather layers draw on the flat maps. Switch to Satellite 2D or Terrain 2D; if you pick a layer on a 3D map, LightPlan offers to switch for you. The forecast reaches about five days ahead.

Which time zone are the times in?

The location's own. Plan a sunrise in Iceland from Japan and you'll see Iceland's clock time, just as you'll live it there.

Why is the red line faint?

The sun or moon you're tracking is below the horizon at the selected time. The line still points to it, so you can see where it will come up.

My times are a little different from another app's. Why?

Apps treat the horizon and the air's bending of light differently. LightPlan's sun and moon are tested against the U.S. Naval Observatory and NASA JPL. If you're up high, raise Marker Distance From Ground in Settings: from a height the horizon drops, so the sun rises earlier and sets later.

What's the difference between the marker and the observer pin?

The red marker is what you're photographing; every line starts there. The blue observer pin is where you'll stand, for Observer View. You can use the marker alone.

How do I get back to the current time?

Tap Reset in the toolbar. Double-tapping the timeline does it too.

Does a plan link stop working?

Links are kept for a year after the plan's date.

Why does it say the sun doesn't rise (or set)?

Near the poles there are days when the sun or moon stays up, or down, all day. LightPlan shows those days as they are.

How do I see the tips again?

Tap Product Tour at the top of this Help screen, and the tips play again on the real controls.