How to Use the Planner

A practical guide for planning waterfall photographs around sun angle, viewpoint, and field timing.

Why Use It

Waterfalls are shaped by light. The same falls can look flat at noon, glow with mist when backlit, show rock texture with side light, or become easier to expose when the sun is behind the camera. This planner helps a photographer decide when to go, where to stand, and what kind of light to expect before spending time on a hike or scouting trip.

It is especially useful when a waterfall is remote, shaded by a gorge, or only worth visiting when the sun is in a narrow part of the sky.

Basic Workflow

Enter the waterfall name if you want it on the plan. The gray label is only a prompt and disappears when you type.
Enter the waterfall latitude and longitude in decimal degrees.
Set the water flow azimuth, which is the direction the water travels from upstream to downstream.
Set the camera azimuth toward the falls, which is the compass direction you face from your viewpoint. You can type the value, use the slider, or drag the viewpoint circle on the diagram.
Choose the date, local time, and time zone.
Check sunrise and sunset for that selected date, GPS location, and time zone.
Use the time slider to test how the sun changes through the day on that date.
Review the diagram, readouts, and same-day scouting sweep to choose the best arrival window.
Use Print or Make PDF on the main page to keep a field copy of the plan.

What the Main Fields Mean

Waterfall location: The latitude and longitude of the waterfall or the main drop you plan to photograph.
Date and time zone: The local date and time zone used for sun position, sunrise, and sunset calculations. Change the date to plan a different scouting day.
Water flow azimuth: The compass direction water travels over or away from the falls. East to west is 270 degrees. North to south is 180 degrees.
Camera azimuth: The compass direction from your standing point toward the waterfall. If you stand west of the falls and look east, enter 90 degrees. You can edit it manually, use the slider, or drag the viewpoint circle.
Reverse azimuth: An information-only reference showing the opposite direction from the camera azimuth. It does not drive the diagram.
Sun azimuth: The compass direction of the sun for the selected date, time, and location.
Sun elevation: How high the sun is above the horizon. Low elevations often create warmer light and stronger shadows.
Sunrise and sunset: The first and last direct-sun times for the selected date, waterfall GPS coordinates, and chosen time zone.

How Sun Direction Affects Waterfall Photos

Backlight The sun is generally in front of you as you face the falls. Mist, spray, and water edges may glow, but exposure can be harder.

Side light The sun is off to one side. This often gives the best texture in rock, foliage, water spray, and gorge walls.

Front light The sun is mostly behind you. The falls may be easier to expose and document, though the scene can look flatter.

Low sun Early or late light can be warm and dramatic, but ridges, gorge walls, and tree canopy may block it before it reaches the falls.

Finding GPS Coordinates

The planner works best when the latitude and longitude are placed on the main waterfall drop or the part of the falls you plan to photograph. Use decimal degrees when possible, and remember that longitudes west of Greenwich are negative in the United States.

Map pin method Open Google Maps, Apple Maps, Gaia GPS, CalTopo, OnX, AllTrails, or a similar map. Drop a pin directly on the waterfall, then copy the latitude and longitude from the pin details.

Satellite view Use aerial imagery to place the pin on the actual plunge, cascade, or visible whitewater instead of the trailhead, parking area, or generic place label.

Topo map method Use a topo map to find where the stream crosses steep contour lines, cliffs, or marked waterfall symbols. This is useful when tree cover hides the falls in satellite view.

Guide and park sources Check park maps, official trail pages, waterfall guidebooks, and reliable hiking sites. Confirm whether the listed coordinates point to the falls, trailhead, overlook, or parking lot.

Phone GPS in the field Stand as close as safely practical to the main drop or viewpoint and save a waypoint in a GPS app. Let the phone settle for a minute or two before recording the point.

Photo metadata If your camera or phone records GPS, review the photo's location data later. This works best for viewpoint coordinates, then you can adjust the waterfall target on a map.

Best practice

Cross-check at least two sources. A named waterfall point in a mapping app may be slightly misplaced, and some published coordinates refer to trailheads or overlooks instead of the actual falls.

Getting Coordinates from Online Maps

For the waterfall location, place the map point on the main drop or the section of water you plan to photograph. For flow direction, use one point just upstream of the drop and another point just downstream of it.

Google Maps

Open Google Maps and search for the waterfall or nearby trail.
Switch to satellite view when tree cover, rocks, or whitewater help identify the actual drop.
Right-click on the exact spot you want to use.
Click the latitude and longitude shown at the top of the menu to copy them.
Paste the values into the planner. Keep the comma, and keep west longitudes as negative numbers.

OpenStreetMap

Open OpenStreetMap and search for the waterfall, stream, trail, or nearby landmark.
Zoom in until the stream course and falls area are clear.
Right-click the map point and choose Show address.
Copy the latitude and longitude from the left-side details panel or from the map URL.
Use the same method for one upstream point and one downstream point if you want to calculate water-flow azimuth.

Quick accuracy check

If the map label is not exactly on the waterfall, ignore the label and use the visible stream, contour shape, satellite imagery, or field waypoint. For short upstream-to-downstream measurements, small GPS placement errors can noticeably change the azimuth.

Finding the Azimuths

Water flow azimuth

Use a map or satellite view to identify upstream and downstream. Estimate the compass direction from the upstream side through the falls toward the downstream side. A topo map can help confirm this because water flows downhill across contour lines.

Camera azimuth

Stand at the viewpoint and use a compass app to point toward the falls, or estimate it from a map by drawing a line from the viewpoint to the waterfall. Enter that direction in the camera azimuth field, move the slider, or drag the viewpoint circle around the diagram until the line matches your planned standing position.

Dragging the viewpoint

The diagram's viewpoint circle is another way to set the camera direction. Drag it around the waterfall marker and the camera azimuth field updates automatically. Manual entry remains available if you know the exact bearing.

Sunrise and sunset

Sunrise and sunset are calculated from the selected date, the latitude and longitude fields, and the selected time zone. If you change any of those inputs, the sunrise and sunset readouts update with the rest of the plan.

Field check

When you arrive, compare the planner with real conditions. Terrain, trees, clouds, water volume, and seasonal foliage can change the final result.