Discover the magic of perfect skylight with Helios - your essential companion for capturing stunning outdoor photos and videos. Whether you're a professional photographer, an avid hiker, a traveler seeking the perfect shot, or just someone who loves taking photos with your phone, Helios helps you find those magical moments when natural light transforms the ordinary into the extraordinary.
WHAT ARE MAGIC HOURS?
The golden hour casts a warm, glowing light shortly after sunrise or before sunset, perfect for portraits and landscapes. The blue hour bathes everything in a serene, twilight blue just before sunrise or after sunset, ideal for moody and atmospheric shots. These magic hours are when your photography truly shines, and Helios makes sure you never miss them. The app works anywhere in the world, even without an internet connection, making it an indispensable tool for anyone who cares about lighting.
BEAUTIFUL DESIGN
Helios embraces modern design with its refined liquid glass aesthetic that feels right at home on your iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac. The interface is intuitive and elegant, featuring a sophisticated dark theme that's easy on the eyes while planning your shoots. Every detail has been carefully crafted to make exploring light and time as beautiful as the moments you're planning to capture.
EVERYTHING YOU NEED
Helios brings together everything you need in one streamlined experience. The main screen shows you a complete outlook of today's sun and moon events with a stunning realistic visualization, alongside a built-in calendar for planning ahead. Your current location and all your saved places live together in one convenient view, so you can quickly check conditions anywhere you've bookmarked.
The integrated Map Explorer lets you search for new locations and explore sun and moon positions anywhere in the world at any time. See exactly where the sun will rise or set, track golden hour and blue hour times, and plan your shoots with precision using detailed line-based visualizations.
For real-time guidance, the Live View provides a spatial experience that overlays celestial information directly on your camera view, so you can track the sun and moon's path through the sky in augmented reality. The Light Meter tool helps you nail the perfect exposure with detailed information right alongside your camera feed.
When you're checking out the outlook for a place, you'll see helpful information cards including map views and Look Around (subject to availability), giving you a better sense of the place and helping you plan the perfect spot for your shot. Set up personalized notifications to stay informed about upcoming magic hours, so you're always ready when the light is just right.
TRUSTED BY THOUSANDS
With over 50,000 downloads and a 4.7 average rating worldwide, Helios has been featured on the App Store Today page and recognized as one of the best iOS apps by TechnoBuffalo and Apple User. Join the community of photographers, travelers, and outdoor enthusiasts who rely on Helios to make the most of natural light.
Helios is more than an app - it's your guide to mastering time and light, ensuring you're always in the right place at the right moment.
I love everything about the app and regularly use it to plan ahead or even day of for shoots. My only request would be if it’s possible to select a specific date for the map feature without having to hold the scroll bar. When planning for weddings or other similar shoots it’s helpful to know ahead of time where the sun will be throughout the day ahead of time when working with a set timeline.
Good app, but interface needs work
PoolhallJunkey
This is a good app, but I find that the interface, while very pretty, is a bit difficult to understand. A vertical layout for the Blue/Golden Hour times would be easier to read, rather than the horizontal scrolling layout that exists now. The developer already has a vertical layout via the peek/pop 3D Touch function on the saved locations tab; please allow users to set this as their default layout :-) The app would also be easier to read if the dates were always at the top of a given day, rather than the Today/Tomorrow labels that exist now. Please also ensure that the times given honor the time format set for the phone, i.e., either 12-Hour time or 24-Hour time. Right now there’s some inconsistency here.
Developer Response
Thanks for your feedback. We'll be addressing the interface issues soon.
The simple tool I use most.
Dr. LebronFisherCurry
As an aspiring photographer there are lots of apps that will help, heck I spent about $20 on different ones. This is the only app I still use however, it does a few things really well and that is a good app. I personally will tip $20 is you can truly make this the only app I use by adding the moonrise and moon set (maybe even the moon “golden hour”?) to available data. Astrophotographers need to know!
Developer Response
Hi! We’re glad you enjoy the app and really appreciate your support. Thanks for the suggestion, we’ll add it to the to-do list for sure.
You need this app
RecoNoceR
I am a professional portrait photographer and this app has helped me plan my photoshoots SO much. Seriously. I use it all the time during my photography season because the sun obviously changes so much during the year. I think I remember paying a cheap amount for this app a few years ago but it was totally worth it. Thankful!
What's new in 5.2.0
- Fixed an issue with the new trends section where the times would behave incorrectly on the day of DST change.
- Small UI tweaks
Version 5.2.1
The developer, Matic Conradi, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .
Data Not Collected
The developer does not collect any data from this app.
Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More
Accessibility
The developer has not yet indicated which accessibility features this app supports. Learn More
Information
Seller
Matic Conradi
Size
132.9 MB
Category
Photo & Video
Compatibility
Requires iOS 26.0 or later.
iPhone Requires iOS 26.0 or later.
iPad Requires iPadOS 26.0 or later.
Mac Requires macOS 26.0 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip or later.
Apple Vision Requires visionOS 26.0 or later.
Apple Watch Requires watchOS 26.0 or later.
Location
This app may use your location even when it isn’t open, which can decrease device battery life.