Lady Bird Lake — a lake in Travis County, Texas — is a classic subject for landscape photographers. It sits roughly 3.4 km (2.1 mi) ESE of Austin.
Lady Bird Lake (formerly, and still colloquially referred to as, Town Lake) is a river-like reservoir on the Colorado River in Austin, Texas, United States. The City of Austin created the reservoir in 1960 as a cooling pond for a new city power plant. The lake, which has a surface area of 416 acres (168 ha), is now used primarily for recreation and flood control. The reservoir is named in honor of former First Lady of the United States Lady Bird Johnson. Lady Bird Lake is the easternmost lake of a chain of reservoirs on the river, which is completely located in Texas, and should not be confused with the larger Colorado River located in the Southwestern United States. This chain, known locally as the Texas Highland Lakes, also includes Lake Buchanan, Inks Lake, Lake LBJ, Lake Marble Falls, Lake Travis, and Lake Austin.From the Wikipedia article “Lady Bird Lake”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Lady Bird Lake the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 62° (ENE) at the June solstice and 117° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 298° (WNW) in June to 243° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 83° in summer but only 36° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:36 AM | 90° E | 7:43 PM | 271° W | 60° | 12h 07m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 6:30 AM | 62° ENE | 8:36 PM | 298° WNW | 83° | 14h 06m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 7:20 AM | 89° E | 7:29 PM | 271° W | 60° | 12h 09m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:24 AM | 117° ESE | 5:35 PM | 243° WSW | 36° | 10h 12m |
Azimuth is measured clockwise from true north (90° = east, 270° = west). Computed for 2026; values change by less than a degree from year to year.
Golden hour & blue hour by month
Lakes reflect best in calm air — usually the first hour after sunrise, before breezes ripple the surface.
| Month (15th) | Blue hour starts | Sunrise | Golden hour ends | Golden hour starts | Sunset | Blue hour ends | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7:03 AM | 7:29 AM | 8:04 AM | 5:18 PM | 5:53 PM | 6:19 PM | 10h 24m |
| February | 6:47 AM | 7:12 AM | 7:45 AM | 5:47 PM | 6:20 PM | 6:44 PM | 11h 08m |
| March | 7:18 AM | 7:42 AM | 8:13 AM | 7:08 PM | 7:40 PM | 8:04 PM | 11h 58m |
| April | 6:40 AM | 7:04 AM | 7:36 AM | 7:26 PM | 7:59 PM | 8:23 PM | 12h 54m |
| May | 6:12 AM | 6:38 AM | 7:12 AM | 7:45 PM | 8:18 PM | 8:45 PM | 13h 40m |
| June | 6:02 AM | 6:30 AM | 7:05 AM | 8:00 PM | 8:35 PM | 9:02 PM | 14h 05m |
| July | 6:13 AM | 6:40 AM | 7:14 AM | 8:00 PM | 8:35 PM | 9:02 PM | 13h 55m |
| August | 6:34 AM | 6:59 AM | 7:31 AM | 7:41 PM | 8:14 PM | 8:39 PM | 13h 15m |
| September | 6:52 AM | 7:16 AM | 7:48 AM | 7:06 PM | 7:38 PM | 8:02 PM | 12h 22m |
| October | 7:09 AM | 7:33 AM | 8:06 AM | 6:29 PM | 7:01 PM | 7:25 PM | 11h 28m |
| November | 6:32 AM | 6:57 AM | 7:32 AM | 5:01 PM | 5:35 PM | 6:01 PM | 10h 38m |
| December | 6:54 AM | 7:21 AM | 7:57 AM | 4:57 PM | 5:33 PM | 6:00 PM | 10h 12m |
Local time (America/Chicago), including daylight saving time. Golden hour runs from about −4° to +6° solar altitude, so the morning golden hour begins during blue hour, before sunrise.
Milky Way & night sky
From Lady Bird Lake, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from February through October. June gives the longest window (about 6.7 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 31° above the southern horizon. Our light-pollution model puts the sky at about Bortle 7 (suburban / urban transition), so expect visible sky glow; drive away from towns for better results.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | 1° | — |
| February | 4:51 AM – 5:51 AM | 1.0 | 19° | SE → SE |
| March | 3:59 AM – 6:19 AM | 2.3 | 28° | SE → SSE |
| April | 2:02 AM – 5:32 AM | 3.5 | 31° | SE → S |
| May | 11:59 PM – 4:59 AM | 5.0 | 31° | SE → SSW |
| June | 10:12 PM – 4:52 AM | 6.7 | 31° | SE → SW |
| July | 10:09 PM – 3:19 AM | 5.2 | 31° | SSE → SW |
| August | 9:40 PM – 1:20 AM | 3.7 | 31° | S → SW |
| September | 8:59 PM – 11:19 PM | 2.3 | 28° | SSW → SW |
| October | 8:21 PM – 9:21 PM | 1.0 | 19° | SW → SW |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | 4° | — |
| December | Below 10° in darkness | — | -18° | — |
Window when the galactic core is at least 10° high during astronomical darkness on the 15th of each month. Pick nights within a few days of the new moon. Plan exact nights with the Milky Way planner.
Estimated sky darkness: 7 Bortle 7 — Suburban / urban transition. The whole sky has a grey-white glow; the Milky Way is invisible to the eye. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 18.62 mag/arcsec².
Weather & best season
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show August as the clearest month (about 38% average cloud cover) and February as the cloudiest (60%). August is the warmest month and January the coldest, which matters for gear, snow access and how long batteries last at night.
Average cloud cover (%)
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High °F | 85 | 90 | 92 | 101 | 105 | 110 | 112 | 112 | 108 | 101 | 89 | 84 |
| Low °F | 17 | 17 | 21 | 34 | 43 | 61 | 65 | 65 | 50 | 33 | 23 | 21 |
| Precip. (in) | 2.3 | 1.9 | 2.9 | 2.5 | 4.3 | 3.1 | 2.3 | 2.4 | 3.5 | 3.7 | 2.4 | 1.9 |
Monthly climatology for the surrounding 1° grid cell from NASA POWER (MERRA-2). Mountain sites can be colder and cloudier than the cell average.
Photography tips for this lake
- Include shoreline rocks, reeds or a log as foreground to give the reflection depth.
- Expose for the brighter sky; reflections are typically half a stop to a stop darker.
- After sunset, long exposures smooth wind ripples into glass.
- For mirror reflections, get low and close to the water; the reflection grows with a lower camera.
- A polarizer can remove reflections to show the lakebed — or keep them, depending on rotation.
- Check road and trail conditions with the managing agency before you go.
Season: Autumn mornings bring mist and fall color; high-elevation lakes are usually ice-free only from early summer to mid-autumn.
Suggested gear: Tripod, Circular polarizer, Wide-angle lens, Waterproof boots. Work out exposures with the depth of field, ND filter and NPF rule calculators.
Nearby photo spots
Other locations within 25 km of Lady Bird Lake, closest first.
Botanical Garden
Cave
State Park
Lake
Mountain Peak
Botanical Garden
LakeFAQ
When is the best time to photograph Lady Bird Lake?
What time is golden hour at Lady Bird Lake?
Where does the sun rise and set at Lady Bird Lake?
Can you see the Milky Way from Lady Bird Lake?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Lady Bird Lake?
How far is Lady Bird Lake from Austin?
Sources
Location data: Wikidata, Wikipedia. Sun, moon and Milky Way times are computed by LWPhoto Atlas for 2026. Climate: NASA POWER. Sky darkness is a population-based estimate (Walker's law), not a measurement. See data sources & licenses.