Frequently Asked Questions

Click "Add Location" on the dashboard, search for your city or area, and select it from the results. You can also enter coordinates manually.

Go to Rules → Add Rule. Start with a template for common photography scenarios (like "Golden Hour" or "Fog"), or create a custom rule using the rule builder.

Check that: 1) Your locations are active (green toggle), 2) You have rules assigned to your locations, 3) Your rules are realistic for current weather conditions. The system predicts up to 3 days ahead for free accounts (7 days for Plus, 14 days for Pro), so if your rules require very specific conditions, you might need to wait for suitable weather.

On the Locations page, click on "Manage Rules", or use the bulk assignment feature on the Rules page.

Templates are pre-built rules for common photography scenarios (golden hour, fog, dramatic clouds). They're perfect for beginners and can be customized after creation.

Use the rule builder to combine conditions with AND/OR logic. For example: "Temperature > 5°C AND Cloud cover 30-70% AND Golden hour period".

Weather data updates daily for free accounts, every 3 hours for Plus, and hourly for Pro. The system continuously evaluates your rules against forecasts.

PhotoWeather shows opportunities up to 3 days ahead for free accounts, 7 days for Plus, and 14 days for Pro, based on weather forecast accuracy.

Go to User Profile > Notification Settings to configure email preferences. Choose immediate alerts, daily summaries, or weekly digests.

Go to Calendar → New Subscription, copy the iCal feed URL, and subscribe to it in your calendar app (Google Calendar, Apple Calendar, Outlook).

Check: 1) Email notifications are enabled in Settings, 2) Your email is verified, 3) Check spam folder, 4) Test your email configuration using the test feature.

Free accounts include: 1 location, 3 active rule assignments, daily weather data updates, 3-day weather forecasts, email notifications and calendar integration, and access to all advanced conditions.

Go to your Profile page and click 'Manage Subscription' to upgrade to Plus or Pro.

You can't create new locations or rules beyond your tier limits, but existing ones continue working. Upgrade to add more.

Try: 1) Using different search terms (city name, region), 2) Check spelling, 3) Try coordinates if the location is remote, 4) Refresh the page.

Weather forecasts become less accurate beyond 3-4 days. Also, very localized conditions (like fog) can vary significantly within a few kilometers.

Try: 1) Refresh the page, 2) Check your internet connection, 3) Clear browser cache, 4) Try a different browser.

PhotoWeather uses Open-Meteo high-resolution data from national weather agencies. Accuracy is highest for 1-3 days ahead, good for 4-5 days, and less reliable beyond that.

PhotoWeather tracks both separately since they can have different weather conditions. You can create rules for either or both periods.

Fog probability is an advanced condition based on humidity, temperature, dew point, and wind speed. It's most reliable for the next 24-48 hours.

All weather data comes from Open-Meteo, which aggregates forecasts from national weather agencies worldwide: ECMWF, DWD (Germany), UK Met Office, Météo-France, MET Norway, KNMI (Netherlands), DMI (Denmark), MeteoSwiss, ItaliaMeteo, NOAA (US), ECCC (Canada), JMA (Japan), KMA (Korea), and CMA (China). PhotoWeather automatically selects the best available model for your location, ranging from 1km high-resolution local forecasts to 25km global coverage.

Directional Weather Intelligence (Plus/Pro) analyzes weather from multiple directions around your location instead of a single point. This dramatically improves rainbow detection (~70% fewer false alerts), golden hour quality predictions, and aurora forecasting by checking conditions where they actually matter—like rain opposite the sun for rainbows, or clear skies in the direction you're looking for auroras.

Trend Rules (Pro) let you create alerts based on weather conditions happening over time, not just at a single moment. For example: 'Snowfall of >5cm within 6 hours' or 'Fog persisting for 3+ hours'. This helps you know if conditions will hold long enough to be worth the drive.

PhotoWeather stores: 1) Account info (email, password hashed with bcrypt, timezone), 2) App content (locations, rules, preferences), 3) Technical logs (forecast queries, error logs), 4) Payment status via Stripe (no card details stored), 5) Communications (support emails, opt-in marketing). We do NOT store personal location data beyond what you add, browsing history, or tracking data.

No, all your data is private. Only you can see your locations, rules, and opportunities.

Calendar tokens are secure, randomly generated URLs. You can deactivate and regenerate them anytime from the Calendar page.