Welcome! Thanks for using TPE Web.
Note: we’re busy building out all new documentation for v4. In the meantime, you might also wish to visit the v3 documentation.
Sunlight, Moonlight, Starlight
TPE is software to help you plan photography in natural light. That includes sunlight, moonlight, and starlight. The Sun, Moon, or another celestial object may be the subject of your photos, or you may be relying on their light to capture your scene. Often, you may combine both approaches.
TPE also accounts for the so-called ‘golden’ and ‘blue’ hours, better described using the standard twilight phases, as well as both solar and lunar eclipses.
Weather for Photographers
Photographers are keenly interested in weather conditions, as they determine what can and cannot be achieved and what lighting conditions may arise. TPE includes comprehensive weather data for photographers to help you combine light and clouds, and much more, in your work. Astrophotographers will appreciate astronomical seeing, transparency, smoke, and visibility forecasts.
Understand the Terrain
An understanding of the surroundings in which you’ll be photographing is critical. TPE provides access to a wide variety of high-quality map sources, with customizable map styles, 3D buildings, and an extensive array of map overlays, many of which help solve particular photographic planning questions, such as “ From where is the Moon visible at this time? ” or “ Where should my camera be to align the Galactic Core behind this mountain summit? ”
Build your Photo Gear Collection
You’ll want to make plans using the photo gear you expect to use on your shoot. TPE allows you to define your camera bodies and lenses, with the option to add gear quickly and efficiently from our photo gear knowledge base. Once the gear is added, you can check the effective field of view on the map for any combination of camera and lens, and also visualize your shot through our virtual viewfinder.
Celestial Target Planning
For lovers of the night sky, TPE includes access to a comprehensive catalog of celestial targets, with curated collections of popular deep-sky objects for nightscape and deepscape photographers. Check local visibility for your planned shooting location against criteria that you choose, such as minimum altitude, Moon altitude, illumination, and separation. Optional position window constraints are ideal for deepscape planning, where the position relative to your foreground scene or landmark must be captured in camera rather than composited later.
We hope you enjoy exploring the tools in TPE and that you’ll consider starting a subscription to support the continued development of the site.
Happy Photographing!
Stephen, Alison, and Annaka
