Wednesday 6 February 2013

Photographers Ephemeris - a must have for landscape photographers



I wanted to focus on a software program that I found out about from a fellow photographer, Gary Simmons. The software is called “photographers ephemeris”. It is a free landscape photographers software that you can download at www.stephentrainor.com
 
Landscape photography is performed on a schedule set not as much by you, the photographer but by celestial elements. A beautiful shot of the sun setting over the sea can only be shot at sunset. Similarly, the phase of the moon can turn a good mountain range picture into a spectacular vista. You can find times for sunrise and sunset and all the information you need about the phase and path of the moon from almanacs and online sources. But for information relative to, say, a topographical map of your intended shoot location, in combination with sun and moon locations and times, you need the Photographer’s Ephemeris.

This cross-platform Adobe AIR application lets landscape photographers plan the best time and location for shoots. It includes celestial data integrated with precise global positioning and satellite and terrain maps from Google Maps. It will seperate the newbie photographer from the more admired photographer.

The program has a simplistic visual appeal and an easy to use interface that allows a photographer to find vantage points for dusk and dawn photography. Want to know when the sun is rising on a specific day, and where to stand to capture the sun behind a specific object… this is as easy as 1-2-3.

Built on the Adobe Air platform, this freeware program runs on Mac, Win, and Linux, so long as the equally free Adobe Air utility is installed. I would suggest, and only if you can afford it, throw Stephen a couple dollars to help fund enhancements to this great product.

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