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Rule Golden Hour

Sydney - Golden Hour - Australian Coast

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

That magical warm light just after sunrise or before sunset

No opportunities right now
Here’s what usually blocks matches

No Golden Hour opportunities in the next 14 days

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Rule requirements (key thresholds)
Golden Hour · Any Golden Hour Potential · ≥ 80.0% Precipitation Chance · ≤ 5.0% Visibility · ≥ 1000.0m

Tip: Scroll down to the 72-hour table to see exactly which condition fails hour by hour.

Most common blockers (next 72 hours)
Golden Hour Potential 97% failing
Golden Hour 88% failing
Precipitation Chance 72% failing

Currently

Real-time conditions
Low Cloud Cover2%
Mid Cloud Cover100%
High Cloud Cover100%
Sun Elevation61.3° (Daylight)

Upcoming Opportunities

When all conditions match, PhotoWeather marks an opportunity window.

Times shown in Australia/Sydney

No opportunities in the next 10 days

See the blocker timeline below to understand which conditions are preventing matches.

What this forecast looks for

Plain-language explanation from the rule

This forecast identifies when the Australian east coast will catch spectacular sunrise light—the golden hour that makes icons like the Sydney Opera House and coastal landscapes glow. We track sun angle, cloud cover, and atmospheric conditions to predict when warm light will illuminate the coast at its finest.

Australia's east-facing coastline means sunrise is the premier golden hour opportunity. The Sydney Opera House catching first light is one of photography's iconic shots, while the Great Ocean Road's limestone formations take on golden warmth. The subtropical north offers year-round warm weather, while the temperate south brings seasonal variation.

What makes Australian coastal golden hour exceptional:

  • Sydney Opera House sunrise - World-famous architecture catches first light over Pacific horizon
  • Great Ocean Road glow - Twelve Apostles and London Bridge limestone turns warm gold at sunrise
  • Byron Bay lighthouse - Australia's most easterly point catches the nation's first light
  • Year-round accessibility - Mild climate means golden hour photography in every season

Best conditions occur during clear winter mornings (June-August) when atmosphere is crisp and sunrise happens at reasonable hours (6-7am). Summer brings very early sunrises (5am) but offers warm swimming weather as bonus. The Great Ocean Road faces south, so golden hour works better for overall scene illumination rather than direct sunrise shots. Classic locations include Mrs Macquarie's Chair for Opera House sunrise and Gibson Steps for Twelve Apostles access.

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72-hour requirements breakdown

What passed or failed, hour by hour
0matching hours in the next 95 hours
AND logic: all conditions required
Meets requirement
Misses requirement
Time
Australia/Sydney
Golden Hour
Any
Golden Hour Potential
≥ 80.0%
Precipitation Chance
≤ 5.0%
Visibility
≥ 1000.0m
Sun, Feb 22
12:0010%15%24135m
13:0018%30%24134m
14:0018%45%24135m
15:0012%49%24134m
16:0013%53%24135m
17:009.1%57%24134m
18:007.6%30%24134m
19:0048%21%24134m
20:0052%12%24135m
21:007.5%13%21226m
22:007%14%24135m
23:007.8%15%24134m
Mon, Feb 23
24:008%16%24135m
01:007.9%11%24135m
02:007.8%4.9%24135m
03:008.2%16%24135m
04:008.2%28%24135m
05:007.8%39%24135m
06:0055%17%24135m
07:0055%33%24135m
08:009.6%50%24134m
09:0011%43%24134m
10:0011%36%24135m
11:008.9%28%24134m
12:008.4%26%24134m
13:007.3%24%24135m
14:008.1%22%24134m
15:009.3%24%24134m
16:009.3%25%24134m
17:008%26%24135m
18:008.4%17%24134m
19:0067%8.7%24050m
20:0069%0%22855m
21:008.4%0%19634m
22:0012%0%15070m
23:0012%0%23955m
Tue, Feb 24
24:0016%0%24134m
01:0013%0%24135m
02:0011%0%24135m
03:0011%0%24135m
04:008.8%0%24135m
05:008.9%0%24134m
06:0053%0%24135m
07:0061%0%24134m
08:0015%0%24134m
09:0017%0%24135m
10:0018%0%24135m
11:0017%0%24134m
12:0016%0%24135m
13:0016%0%24134m
14:0016%0%24134m
15:0015%17%24135m
16:0015%33%24135m
17:0015%50%24135m
18:0015%33%24135m
19:0091%17%24135m
20:0087%0%24135m
21:0015%17%24134m
22:0015%33%24135m
23:0017%50%24135m
Wed, Feb 25
24:0016%50%24135m
01:0015%50%24135m
02:0015%50%24134m
03:0016%67%24134m
04:0015%83%24134m
05:0015%100%24134m
06:0059%74%24135m
07:0062%48%24135m
08:0013%22%24134m
09:0018%25%24134m
10:0017%29%24135m
11:0017%32%24134m
12:0017%42%24135m
13:0018%53%24135m
14:0016%63%24134m
15:0016%69%24135m
16:008.6%75%24134m
17:008.7%82%22532m
18:008.4%76%23066m
19:0055%70%23601m
20:0053%65%24135m
21:008.4%64%24135m
22:009.4%64%24135m
23:009.4%63%24135m
Thu, Feb 26
24:009.4%69%23029m
01:009.5%76%21924m
02:009.5%82%20818m
03:009.3%85%21476m
04:0011%88%22135m
05:0014%92%22793m
06:0067%84%22402m
07:0057%76%22011m
08:009.5%69%21620m
09:009.3%71%20808m
10:008.9%73%19996m
How to read: colored cells show whether each predicate requirement is met; highlighted rows mean the full rule matched (an opportunity).

What does Golden Hour Potential mean?

Inputs that drive the score

This derived score summarizes multiple raw weather signals. The table below shows the supporting inputs hour by hour, so you can see what's pushing the score up or down.

Time
Australia/Sydney
Golden Hour
High Clouds
%
Low Clouds
%
Mid-Level Clouds
%
Relative Humidity
%
Total Cloud Coverage
%
Wind Speed
m/s
Mon, Feb 23 Sunrise 06:38 Sunset 19:38
12:00
- 100% 2% 100% 63% 100% 6.3m/s
13:00
- 100% 1% 100% 76% 100% 7.7m/s
14:00
- 57% 0% 97% 72% 98% 8.5m/s
15:00
- 0% 0% 88% 76% 88% 8.3m/s
16:00
- 0% 16% 98% 76% 98% 7.7m/s
17:00
- 22% 24% 93% 80% 93% 7.3m/s
18:00
- 38% 43% 81% 83% 82% 6.3m/s
19:00
- 0% 32% 68% 86% 71% 5.5m/s
20:00
- 0% 51% 55% 89% 65% 5.3m/s
21:00
- 0% 40% 85% 88% 85% 4.7m/s
22:00
- 0% 26% 63% 87% 69% 4.2m/s
23:00
- 0% 17% 70% 89% 70% 3.7m/s
Tue, Feb 24 Sunrise 06:38 Sunset 19:38
24:00
- 0% 12% 44% 90% 44% 3.6m/s
01:00
- 0% 22% 49% 91% 56% 3.8m/s
02:00
- 0% 29% 68% 91% 68% 3.9m/s
03:00
- 0% 35% 72% 90% 72% 3.8m/s
04:00
- 0% 38% 86% 90% 86% 3.8m/s
05:00
- 0% 64% 100% 89% 100% 3.7m/s
06:00
- 0% 61% 100% 89% 100% 3.2m/s
07:00
- 0% 46% 79% 89% 79% 2.5m/s
08:00
- 0% 30% 47% 87% 48% 1.9m/s
09:00
- 0% 31% 32% 81% 34% 0.64m/s
10:00
- 0% 16% 10% 70% 16% 1.5m/s
11:00
- 0% 8% 4% 61% 8% 2.9m/s
12:00
- 0% 1% 1% 59% 1% 4.6m/s
13:00
- 0% 0% 0% 59% 0% 5.6m/s
14:00
- 0% 0% 2% 58% 2% 5.8m/s
15:00
- 0% 0% 0% 62% 0% 6.2m/s
16:00
- 0% 0% 1% 66% 1% 6.6m/s
17:00
- 0% 0% 2% 70% 2% 6.8m/s
18:00
- 0% 0% 5% 72% 5% 6.5m/s
19:00
- 1% 0% 5% 78% 5% 5.6m/s
20:00
- 0% 0% 5% 82% 5% 5.7m/s
21:00
- 0% 0% 3% 78% 3% 5.6m/s
22:00
- 0% 0% 4% 76% 4% 5.2m/s
23:00
- 0% 0% 31% 82% 31% 4.8m/s
Wed, Feb 25 Sunrise 06:39 Sunset 19:37
24:00
- 0% 4% 14% 87% 14% 4.3m/s
01:00
- 0% 2% 5% 90% 5% 4m/s
02:00
- 0% 1% 6% 91% 6% 3.5m/s
03:00
- 0% 2% 13% 91% 13% 3.3m/s
04:00
- 0% 0% 5% 91% 5% 3m/s
05:00
- 0% 0% 5% 91% 5% 2.7m/s
06:00
- 0% 2% 84% 91% 84% 2.5m/s
07:00
- 0% 11% 82% 88% 82% 2.4m/s
08:00
- 1% 10% 66% 81% 66% 2.6m/s
09:00
- 0% 0% 35% 73% 35% 2.3m/s
10:00
- 0% 0% 2% 63% 2% 2.4m/s
11:00
- 0% 0% 4% 58% 4% 2.8m/s
12:00
- 0% 0% 6% 57% 6% 3.6m/s
13:00
- 0% 4% 30% 59% 30% 4.3m/s
14:00
- 0% 0% 5% 62% 5% 4.8m/s
15:00
- 0% 0% 5% 65% 5% 4.9m/s
16:00
- 81% 6% 100% 68% 100% 4.5m/s
17:00
- 84% 49% 94% 74% 94% 3.2m/s
18:00
- 89% 43% 63% 79% 96% 3.4m/s
19:00
- 94% 37% 32% 84% 98% 3.7m/s
20:00
- 100% 31% 1% 89% 100% 3.9m/s
21:00
- 68% 54% 1% 90% 100% 4.3m/s
22:00
- 36% 77% 0% 90% 100% 4.7m/s
23:00
- 5% 100% 0% 90% 100% 5.1m/s
Thu, Feb 26 Sunrise 06:40 Sunset 19:36
24:00
- 5% 100% 0% 89% 100% 5.1m/s
01:00
- 5% 100% 0% 89% 100% 5.2m/s
02:00
- 5% 100% 0% 89% 100% 5.2m/s
03:00
- 3% 85% 0% 85% 85% 5.8m/s
04:00
- 2% 71% 0% 82% 71% 6.3m/s
05:00
- 0% 56% 0% 78% 56% 6.8m/s
06:00
- 0% 71% 0% 80% 71% 6.8m/s
07:00
- 0% 85% 0% 81% 85% 6.7m/s
08:00
- 0% 100% 0% 82% 100% 6.7m/s
09:00
- 0% 100% 0% 85% 100% 6.4m/s
10:00
- 0% 100% 0% 88% 100% 6.2m/s
11:00
- 0% 100% 0% 90% 100% 6m/s
How to read: these inputs help produce the derived score; they are not requirements by themselves.

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