Sunset photos get even better with Pixel.

In a moment, photographer Paul Reiffer looks over his shoulder, notices bright pink hues streaking across the sky, and knows he’s found his picture. “When you’re done clicking,” he says, “you just turn around and have a look. You might find something even better behind you.”

Getting a great photo of the setting sun is challenging for even the best photographers: The light and the colors are in constant flux. The contrast of the bright sun against the dimming sky creates an environment ripe for overexposure, which can make everything around the sun too dark to make out. The “white balance,” the way your camera interprets the color white in your photos, is completely out of whack. 

“The worst-case scenario for any camera is huge contrast,” says Reiffer, a UK-based landscape photographer. “If you’re shooting that bright ball of flaming gas, that’s exactly what you’ve got.” Because most cameras are designed to make the color white look neutral, this warmer light can wash out other colors at sunset, wiping out valuable details. 

The light does most of the work for you at sunset. As the sun drops, it passes through more air and scatters across moisture and tiny particles. That’s what creates those stunning bands of orange, pink, and purple. Clouds act like reflectors and spread the color, giving you more shades to work with.

For the best results, take pictures during golden hour – about 30 minutes before sunset or after sunrise – when contrast drops and colors deepen. After the first burst of color, wait a moment. The sky often looks even more stunning a minute or two later.

Keep the composition simple. Leave some open space so the sky stands out, and anchor the scene with a clean shape in the foreground (like a tree, shoreline, or ridge). A leading line, like a road or pier, can help guide the eye.

Set your exposure before you press the shutter. Tap the bright horizon to focus, then slide the exposure down a bit to retain the detail and sky texture. Hold the phone steady with two hands or lean on a surface so features like HDR+ or Night Sight can blend frames cleanly. In Google Photos, edit lightly – a touch more contrast, small color tweaks, and modest saturation – to help the photo more accurately depict what you saw.

• Timing

  • Photograph during golden hour

  • Wait a minute for the light to settle before tapping the shutter

• Framing

  • Turn on the 3×3 grid (Camera → Settings → Grid) to help compose your photo

  • Add a foreground silhouette and leave some negative space so the sky stands out

• Exposure

  • Tap to focus on the bright horizon

  • If the light is changing, long-press to lock (AE/AF Lock)

  • Enable quick access controls (Camera → Settings → Fast Access) 

  • Use the exposure slider (sun icon) to lower exposure slightly to highlight detail and sky texture 

  • Avoid harsh, direct light

  • If it’s getting dark, switch to Night Sight for cleaner detail in low light

• Steadiness

  • Hold a steady two-hand grip or lean on a surface so HDR+ / Night Sight can blend frames cleanly

  • With Pixel 10 Pro Fold, you can set the phone in tabletop mode for extra stability

• Editing

  • Start in Google Photos

  • Make small adjustments to contrast, color, and saturation to keep a natural look

If you plan on making heavy edits to your sunset photos, you can turn on RAW + JPEG (Camera → Settings → Advanced) before you start shooting. This optional step will give you the best quality pictures, but the files will be much larger.

Sunsets are fleeting. Pixel makes documenting the rapidly changing nature a snap by balancing bright skies and dark foregrounds for you, right in the viewfinder. On Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro Fold, HDR+ and Night Sight work together to hold color in the highlights and keep detail in the shadows, so the image looks the way the moment felt.

When light gets low, Pixel silently takes a burst of frames and chooses the best information from each one. That’s how Night Sight keeps photos clear, colorful, and free of harsh digital noise. With Live HDR+, you see a preview of the result before you press the shutter, so you can adjust framing or exposure with confidence.

Afterward, open Google Photos for quick, natural edits. Small tweaks to contrast and color usually do the trick. For example, you can make the oranges and reds of the glowing sun really pop by adding a little warmth and fine-tuning tint. Google Photos can remove distractions like errant passersby, or help you move objects like a tree or boulder to refine the scene. Thanks to on-device Tensor chip processing, everything happens right on your phone – no waiting for the cloud.

Users across Pixel models are enjoying how simple it is to get top-quality photos of the setting sun. Here are some of their pics and tips.

Use HDR+ and tap to expose for the highlights so sky texture and tones stay rich, as in this photo from Pixel user @_rifat_07.

“I focused on balancing the silhouette of the trees against the dynamic colors in the sky,” says @_rifat_07. A steady two-hand grip and a slightly lower angle add depth to the foreground, and light edits in Google Photos keep a natural look.

Often, the best sunset photo is the one you didn’t plan. Open Camera on your Pixel, watch the Live HDR+ preview, and press the shutter when the scene feels right. No gear, no setup – just steady hands.

That’s how Pixel user @_mobilephotographyofficial turned this unexpected rooftop sighting into a stunning image. “I reached for my Pixel – no planning, just a real moment. You don’t have to be overly serious about photography; it’s everywhere. Take out your phone, have fun, and enjoy the moment,” says @_mobilephotographyofficial.

Try the exposure slider in the Camera app to get great pictures like this one from Pixel user @Juggernaut0201, who lowers the brightness and increases the shadows on an image for dramatic effect. 

“Sunsets have a dynamic range that’s tricky for most cameras,” he says. “By dialing down the highlights a bit, increasing the shadows, and letting Google HDR do its magic, a great sunset photo can be obtained.”

The Night Sight feature helps Pixel user @iamwaynegilbert make the most of the low light at the end of the day. “One of my best tips when capturing a sunset is to always know where the light will fall,” he says. “Natural light is so much fun to work with.”

Turning on advanced editing features on your camera allows you to do everything from erasing a photo’s distractions to changing its color, light, and blur. Just make sure you set your images to save as RAW files instead of JPEGs. For even more editing options, @iamwaynegilbert also likes to use Google’s Snapseed app, which offers a complete set of professional editing features. 

Pixel user @White_Kouki says he used his Pixel on the way home from work one day to preserve “one of the most beautiful sunsets I’ve ever seen.” His trick for capturing the beautiful light and details of a sunset: Think about the composition of the photo when deciding how to frame the image.

In this case, he tried to adhere to the rule of thirds, placing the subject in the bottom third of the image, while leaving the other two-thirds more open with sky and clouds. “The best way to capture a photo is having a great setup before the shot,” says @White_Kouki. Then, let Pixel do the rest.