Best time of day for taking pics from San Giorgio Maggiore

We have some pretty good pictures taken at around 1pm (sun overhead) from the campanile. We were there in June though, June 9 to be exact.

I have found September to be more hazy and dusty than the spring. I like traveling in the spring of the year for that reason. However, I have some photos in Venice from September 27th that are pretty darn clear taken around noon to 1pm. Not from the campanile but just local shots. I also have some of the Vogalonga taken in the morning (7-8 am) that I really like. They have a foggy haze across the Grand Canal but the boats in the foreground are spectacular, as are the colors.

Love that you are planning ahead to get optimal lighting for your photos! As you can see from a map, the island of San Giorgio Maggiore is south of St. Mark's and the Doges Palace, so you're going to be shooting away from the sun just about any time of day, though the angle is slightly to the west of due north.

If you're a serious photographer you already know that outdoor lighting is best about 1 hour before sunset and 1 hour after sunrise. According to RS Guide, the church doesn't open until 9 AM, which is too late for optimal morning shots (see https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/italy/venice?month=9 ). Also, if I'm not mistaken, Venice can be prone to morning fog/haze. Even though your camera angle will be slightly northwest, putting the afternoon's western sun a bit near the field of vision, you're probably better off in the late afternoon. RS Guide says the church stays open until 19:00 (7 PM) in September.

A TripAdvisor comment about photography says "From Campanile San Giorgio Maggiore, you get more city [in your photos], and because of the distance, the city looks massive and congested. Certain buildings don't quite stand out as you might expect them to." You'll need a long zoom lens and perhaps a tripod or monopod if you want tightly cropped views of St. Mark's and the Doges Palace.

Here's a nice summary of things to see on the Isola San Giorgio Maggiore https://www.theveniceinsider.com/san-giorgio-maggiore-worth-visit/

We went up a few years ago around 1pm (I remember the bell tolling once) on Sept 15. Looking over the pics, there was some light high clouds, so it wasn't super bright and sunny, but no shadows or anything...

Ed, I'll look at my photos taken from San Giorgio Maggiore and see what time of day I took them. If you're really into photography as my hubby and I are, I can make some other recommendations regarding lesser known photo ops which might interest you as I do a ton of research before our trips. I can also send you sample pics taken from each vantage point if you'd like. On one of our trips to Venice, we spent half a day with a photographer on a photo tour and found it to be helpful. I have contact info for 2 such photographers. Photography is our main reason for traveling. We were in Italy last Aug and I just started sifting through and processing my thousands of pics recently. Happy travels!