Tonight · 4:45 pm EST · $95 · Book Book tonight
A steel arch bridge and the lit Pittsburgh skyline reflected in the river at blue hour

Twenty-six minutes of blue.

Pittsburgh · 5:21 pm · f/8 · 15s · ISO 100 · 35mm

  1. 14Light trails on a highway interchange below the lit city14A
  2. 15The city lights and rivers from a high overlook at night15A
  3. 16A wet cobbled street under streetlights at dusk16A
  4. 17Two people at a railing looking at the lit skyline across the river17A
Tonight · 4:45 pm EST · $95 · Book

Tonight in Pittsburgh · Tuesday, November 10

The light, 26 minutes of it

Worked out for today from where the sun sets over Mount Washington. We meet about 23 minutes before sunset, so your camera is on the rail before the blue begins.

Meet Sunset
Meet
4:45 pm
Sunset
5:08 pm
Blue
5:21–5:47 pm
Spots
3 of 6 left

All times Eastern (EST).

The walk, frame by frame

One roll, ninety minutes

  1. 18 A tripod ball head and a cable release on a frosty stone railing 18A

    4:45 pmEST

    Meet at the incline

    The lower station of the Duquesne Incline on West Carson Street. Desmond hands out tripods and a cable release to anyone without one.

    f/2.8 · 1/60 · ISO 800 · 50mm

  2. 19 The wooden incline car climbing the hill above the lit rivers 19A

    4:55 pmEST

    Up the hill, in an 1877 car

    Four minutes up the face of Mount Washington in a wooden cable car. Sit on the right side, by the window.

    f/4 · 1/15 · ISO 1600 · 24mm

  3. 20 Four photographers with tripods at a stone overlook above the lit city 20A

    5:05 pmEST

    The overlook

    Tripods along the stone rail, the three rivers below. The sun sets at 5:08 behind you and the towers catch the last of it.

    f/8 · 1/4 · ISO 100 · 24mm

  4. 21 Gloved hands bracing a phone on a stone wall above the city 21A

    5:14 pmEST

    Settings, once

    Manual, f/8, ISO 100, and a shutter that gets longer every minute. Phones: brace on the stone and use night mode.

    Phone night mode · 3s · braced

  5. 22 The city and its rivers lit from above under a deep blue sky 22A

    5:21 pmEST

    The blue

    Sky and city at the same brightness. This is the twenty-six minutes everyone came for. Fifteen-second frames, one after another.

    f/8 · 15s · ISO 100 · 35mm

  6. 23 Long red and white light trails on a highway below the city 23A

    5:30 pmEST

    Light trails

    Point the lens down at the parkway. Every car you hear becomes a red line.

    f/11 · 25s · ISO 100 · 24mm

  7. 24 Three people with tripods walking away along a wet brick sidewalk at night 24A

    5:38 pmEST

    Along Grandview

    A slow walk east on the brick sidewalk, stopping at each overlook as the sky deepens.

    f/2.8 · 1/30 · ISO 3200 · 35mm

  8. 25 The lit skyline across the river after dark 25A

    5:47 pmEST

    Blue turns black

    The sky drops below the city lights. Last frames up top, then the second incline down.

    f/8 · 20s · ISO 100 · 50mm

  9. 26 A lit steel bridge over a smooth river with light trails and the skyline 26A

    6:00 pmEST

    Over the river

    Across the Smithfield Street Bridge with the traffic on one side and the water on the other.

    f/11 · 15s · ISO 100 · 24mm

  10. 27

    End of roll

    27A

    6:15 pmEST

    End of the roll

    Station Square. Downtown hotels are ten minutes back over the bridge; Desmond walks you to the light.

Walks

Three ways to catch it

  • Blue hour walk

    Every evening · 90 minutes · 6 people at most

    Blue hour walk

    The walk on this page: the incline, the overlook, the twenty-six minutes of blue, light trails and the bridge. Tripod loan and incline fares included.

    $95a personBook

  • Private blue hour

    Any evening · 90 minutes

    Private blue hour

    The same walk for your group alone, at your pace, with time for a portrait of you against the skyline at the end.

    $280up to fourBook

  • Gold to blue

    Fridays and Saturdays · 2½ hours

    Gold to blue

    Meets an hour earlier for the warm light on the bridges, then the blue, then night on the North Shore by the yellow bridges.

    $140a personBook

Desmond, the photographer, beside his tripod at the Mount Washington overlook at blue hour
Desmond on Grandview Avenue · f/2 · 1/30 · ISO 1600 · 50mm

Your guide

Desmond Marchetti

For fourteen years my shift on the bus ended at 4:30, right at the bottom of the Smithfield Street Bridge.

I grew up in Hazelwood and drove a city bus across that bridge four times a day. Every winter evening I clocked out just as the sky over the Mon went blue, and I watched it from the bus stop.

In November 2015 I put a roll through my father’s old film camera. Thirteen frames were mud. Frame 14 was the Smithfield Street Bridge at 5:21 pm, fifteen seconds on the railing, and it was the first photo I ever made that looked like what I saw. It still hangs in my kitchen. That’s why every strip on this site starts at 14.

I started walking visitors up the hill in 2018. Most of them find me the same afternoon from a hotel room, and that’s fine: the light doesn’t need you to plan ahead, just to be on time.

  • 2015first good frame, no. 14
  • 6people a walk, at most
  • 440+bridges in town; we do three
A framed print of the Pittsburgh skyline at blue hour on a dark wall beside a leather chair

Prints

Take the hour home

Desmond’s own frames from the overlook, printed on archival paper in Pittsburgh. Walk guests get 20% off for a month after their walk.

12 × 18 in
Archival print, signed, mailed flat
$120
20 × 30 in
Archival print, signed, shipped in a tube
$260
24 × 36 in
Framed in walnut with a white mat, ready to hang
$640

Before you come

What to bring

Any camera, or a phone
A camera with manual mode is ideal. A recent phone with a night mode does surprisingly well; Desmond shows you how to brace it.
No tripod? Borrow one
Six loaners with phone clamps and cable releases come on every walk, free.
Layers and gloves
It’s windy at the overlook and colder than downtown. Thin gloves you can work buttons in.
A charged battery
Long exposures and cold air drain it. Keep the spare in an inside pocket.

Reviews

★★★★★ 4.9 · 286 walkers

  • “In town for a conference, booked it from my hotel at 2 pm, on top of the hill by 5. Best thing I did in Pittsburgh.”

    Hannah K., Munich · Blue hour walk, October

  • “I only had my phone. Desmond had me braced on the wall and my 3-second shot is now my lock screen.”

    Marcus L., Columbus · Blue hour walk, November

  • “I shoot for a living and still learned something: he knows to the minute when the towers and the sky match.”

    Renée D., architectural photographer · Gold to blue, September

Where we meet

The bottom of the Duquesne Incline

On West Carson Street, across the river from downtown. From a downtown hotel it’s a 20-minute walk over the Fort Pitt Bridge or a short ride; tell Desmond where you’re staying and he’ll send the way.

© OpenStreetMap contributors
Duquesne Incline, lower station West Carson Street, Pittsburgh. Meet 23 minutes before sunset; the incline fares are on us. Open the map

Questions

Before you book

Can I book for tonight?

Usually, yes. Most guests book the same afternoon. If tonight shows spots left, text Desmond at (412) 555-0163 before 3:30 pm Eastern and he’ll hold one; the booking form below starts from tomorrow.

What if it’s cloudy?

Clouds often make the best blue hours: they turn the color and catch the city’s light. In rain we shoot reflections from under the bridge. We only cancel for thunder or ice, and then your walk moves free or your money comes back.

Why is the meeting time different every week?

Because the sunset is. We meet about 23 minutes before sunset so you’re set up before the blue starts. Your text the morning of the walk gives the exact time.

How much walking is there?

About a mile, mostly flat, on sidewalks, with two incline rides doing the climbing. Comfortable shoes are plenty.

I’m visiting from abroad. What time zone is this?

Every time on this page is Eastern time, the time in Pittsburgh (EST in winter, EDT in summer). The light meter above also shows tonight in your own time.

Can kids come?

Ten and up, with a parent on the same booking. They’re usually the first to spot the light trails.

Book

Pick an evening

$30 holds your spot and comes off the price; the rest is paid on the hill. Times are Eastern. For tonight, text Desmond at (412) 555-0163 before 3:30 pm.

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