Sunset at Cromer

[Mike Farley]

In his proposed itinerary for the forthcoming Norfolk trip, Tom suggested the possibility of a sunset shot at Cromer. I decided to investigate whether such a shot was feasible, using tools which are available on the Internet. My main objective is to demonstrate how some planning can help in getting a shot.

Norfolk is unusual in that both sunrise and sunset can be observed within a realtively small area, as it has both east and west facing coastlines. The coast mainly faces east, but around Hunstanton it faces west across the Wash. Cromer is at the top of the county, and looks more or less north, which means that a sunset is a possibility.

The first applicatiuon I looked at is The Photographer's Ephemeris, which gives times and directions of sunrise, sunset, moonrise, moonset, phases etc. There are free web based and desktop versions, as well as paid for iOS and Android apps for £8.99.

http://photoephemeris.com/

The screenshot below shows that the sun will set at 19:44, but will not be over the sea. I suspect that we will be at Cromer a few days before sunset shots become a viable option.

Sunset time and direction

Cromer Sunset.JPG (116.27 KiB) Viewed 1877 times

To get the sun behind the pier, it might be necessary to venture onto the beach. What will the state of the tide be at that time? Tide tables are published free by the Admiralty for the current day and up to six days in advance. All other future and historical dates can be obtained on payment of a fee. The screen shot shows that high tide will be at 18:33, just over an hour before sunset. It is quite a high tide, so I do not expect much of the beach to be uncovered at the time the sun is going down.

http://www.ukho.gov.uk/easytide/EasyTide/index.aspx

Tide times

Cromer Tide.JPG (143.76 KiB) Viewed 1877 times

Finally, the weather conditions have to be right for there to be some colour in the sky at sunset. The long range weather forecast is always a hoot. Whatever it says a few days beforehand invariably is not will actually occur. For a while, it claimed the day would be overcast, but at present has gone to the opposite extreme and it is saying it will be clear. Some cloud will be necessary from which the rays from the setting sun will be reflected so that there will be a colourful sky. That is something which will only become apparent on the day.

Weather forecast

Cromer Weather.JPG (77.25 KiB) Viewed 1877 times

Overall, it is worthwhile keeping an eye on conditions during the day, but there are a number of factors working against getting a successful shot.

[Paul Heester]

Although I wont be present in Norfolk I can confirm that a Cromer sunrise can be really good. Below was a few years back in September (the sunrise angle very similar to April). Hope you all have a great trip!

Cromer sunrise by Paul Heester, on Flickr

[Mike Farley]

So how did the sunset turn out? Well, it set in the position predicted by The Photographer's Ephemeris. After a very sunny and unseasonally warm day with clear skies, cloud formed as dusk approached. Potentially that is good news, although there have to be gaps through which the sun's rays can shine. In this instance, there was rather too much, with only a limited amount of colour as a consequence and an afterglow which lasted around 30 minutes. The group observed all this through the windows of the restaurant where we were having our evening meal. At no time was there sufficient going on in the sky to tempt anyone outside with their camera.

The shot below was taken around 20 minutes after sunset through the restaurant window, which accounts for the various artefacts caused by reflections. The tide had turned by then but, as can be seen in the shot, most of the beach was still covered by water. Had anyone ventured out to take a photo, that would have limited the compositional options.

[Mike Farley]

Although I wont be present in Norfolk I can confirm that a Cromer sunrise can be really good. Below was a few years back in September (the sunrise angle very similar to April).

Being on the east cost, Cromer is a better sunrise location as Paul's shot illustrates. Sunsets are a possibility, but the sun needs to set further west than we experienced. It means that the best period is for a few weeks either side of mid-summer.