Helios Sun Position Calculator – iPhoneography App – Major Update
Helios is a Sun Position Calculator that graphically represents the position of the sun from dusk to dawn, on any given day, in any given place. Designed as an aid to Cinematographers and Stills Photographers working in natural light, Helios is essential to anyone who needs to plan a day around the constantly changing character of sunlight. Helios works without a network connection, though some functions are enhanced when connected to the internet.
This app retails for $29.99/£20.99 and you can download it here.
Gaffers, Grips, Location Managers, Production Designers and First Assistant Directors will already be aware of the value of this information. Other professionals, from Architects and Surveyors to Electricians and Landscape Gardeners can now predict sun exposure in the field, without the need for complex tables or graphs. This information can be emailed and then printed from within the application.
Helios operates in 6 modes:
HelioMeter – representing the direction of the sun on a compass dial, also indicating elevation and shadow length.
Virtual Sun View – showing the sun’s path overlaid onto the camera image
Map View – showing the direction of the sun overlaid onto a map of the location
Sky View – a representation of the sun’s path across the sky
Inclinometer- determines at which times the sun will be at a certain elevation.
Compass – showing the azimuth of the sun in both degrees and time of day
While the accelerometer (inclinometer) and magnetometer (digital compass) of your iPhone are reasonably accurate, we think it wise to keep a high quality analogue device like the Suunto Tandem on hand for critical readings of elevation and azimuth.
What’s New In This Update
Major update. New Virtual Sun view allows you to see the sun path over the camera.
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Joanne Carter
Joanne Carter is a British photographer, photography journalist, editor and curator and the founder and editorial director of TheAppWhisperer.com, an independent international photography publication established in 2009.Her journalism, criticism and commentary have appeared in The Times, The Sunday Times, The Guardian, Financial Times, BBC, Vogue Italia, LensCulture, Popular Photography, Android Magazine, NikonPro, DPReview, Which Digital Camera and Which Camera. She has lectured internationally on photography and mobile art, served as a juror for international photography awards, and exhibited her own photographic work across the UK, Europe, South Korea and the United States.Alongside her editorial work, Joanne's photographic and postgraduate research explores death, grief, memory, representation and social inequality through contemporary photography, participatory practice and visual research methods, with the longer-term aim of developing this work through doctoral research.Through TheAppWhisperer, she continues to publish independent photography journalism spanning contemporary photographic practice, mobile imaging, photographic apps, computational photography and emerging imaging technologies.Joanne is available for editorial commissions, photography projects, judging, curatorial work, speaking engagements, consultancy and selected collaborations.
