My country is known for Amsterdam, its windmills and, of course, the tulips every season. Photographers usually come during that season to shoot the endless flower fields. What a lot of people don’t know is that we have heather plants all over the country. All of the plants start blossoming in mid August. Think of it as sakura season in Japan or the Lavender season in France. They only blossom for a short period of time, usually around 3 weeks. When they turn purple it’s like walking inside a dream. Especially when there is a morning mist involved. In August the cold nights with warm days start making morning fog very possible in combination with high humidity.
In this series I’m showing the beauty of the month August in the Netherlands. You do not only have to come here in April/May (which is the tulip season). August is perfectly fine too! All of these shots were taken on early morning. Yes, you do have to wake up early! But you’ll completely forget that you’re tired once you’re walking around in this dreamy scenery!
You can also see my previous post here, where I photographed my country at its best.
Mystery Morning
But the hills are not the only place to photograph this purple beauty. As most people know, my country is mostly flat which can gives some beautiful feeling of emptiness when the fog separates the trees from the foreground.
Serenity
When the sun gets higher the light gets harsh but it makes the possibility for some nice silhouet shooting with the mist separating the different layers.
Trees Of Silence’
There are some beautiful characteristic trees in the heather landscapes. The mist perfectly separates them for the tree line and the purple heather on the foreground.
Purple Heaven
When the sun just rose early morning casting a beautiful glow on the mist.
Dutch Africa
Sometimes these scenes looks to be coming straight out of the African Savannah with very empty moods and unique trees. This shot has a moon setting in it.
Rising Layers
When the sun is just up and the fog is thick it’s a joy to photograph with a telezoom to make use of layers in the composition.
Mushroom
A storm cell in the distance that looks like a mushroom. It gives an unreal feeling with the combination of the purple heather landscape.
The Old Hag
This tree is iconic. It’s dead since forever but still standing. It is always a great challenge to shoot it the right way as it is very difficult to compose.
Purple Hills
These hills are called ‘the Posbank’ in an area in the Netherlands. They are probably the most popular place for photographers to shoot the sunrise in August.
Character
Even way before sunrise with the first light coming above the horizon the atmosphere on the heather fields is magical with great characteristic trees everywhere around.