Take our 24-hour photo challenge – and shoot a fresh portfolio of creative pictures in just one day!

By Jon Adams and Andrew James

Shooting in the ‘golden hour‘ allows you to capture low, raking light on a landscape, which adds an evocative mood to any scene.

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With a long day and a clear night, summer gifts us with 24 hours of photo opportunities – if you’re up for a challenge! For the energetic photographer, the extended shooting time offers a host of fun photo projects to tackle.

You’re going to have to burn your creative candle at both ends of the day, but it really is possible to shoot a new and diverse portfolio in one mega session within a single day. If you go for it, we’ll allow you a quick siesta in the middle of the day to recharge your personal batteries, while giving your camera’s battery a quick boost too. But the rest of the day, it’s shoot, shoot, shoot!

Early and late in the day will deliver some warm, evocative light, allowing you to shoot atmospheric images that are always going to catch the eye. But with a change of direction and some considered technique, you don’t have to put your camera away when the sun climbs high in the sky – or even disappears below the horizon. You just need to know how to work with the light and set up your camera accordingly.

Over the following pages we’ll go through the techniques you need to employ to capture some stunning summer images. Tackling different subjects across a range of photo disciplines, from the moment the sun rises to long after it has set, is a tough but rewarding mission that will arm you with a raft of camera skills along the way.

1 DAWN Capture the sunrise

Golden hour is really early in the summer, so the only way to embrace it is to set the alarm to horrible o’clock. When it comes to capturing the beautiful warm light of a sunrise, don’t set your white balance to its Auto setting: this neutralises the colours. Set it to Daylight for the most natural look, but also try Cloudy or Shade if you want to give those warm colours a boost. Of course, by shooting raw, you can adjust the white balance to taste in post-processing, too.

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2 EARLY MORNING Bugs for breakfast

Get out your telephoto or macro lens, pull on a pair of boots and head to the river just as the damselflies are warming up

We all know it’s the early bird that catches the worm – and it’s the early photographer who gets great shots of damselflies. They will be around later in the day, of course, but as the temperature climbs, they become hyperactive and harder to shoot. Damselflies are present around rivers and ponds throughout the summer, and are a fast-moving but colourful target for keen nature photographers.

Approach them with either a telephoto lens or, if you want really close-up detailed shots of their amazing bodies, a macro lens. Search among the riverside reeds where they warm their wings, in readiness for a busy day flitting about.

Getting close to damselflies is relatively easy but requires stealthy stalking – perhaps with wellies or waders on, if you need to get in the water for the best spots. While warming up, they’re likely to be half-hidden: this is the perfect time to get a macro lens just a few centimetres away. Use a single autofocus point and lock onto the eye, with a shutter speed that’s fast enough for hand-holding.