In Search Of Tulips And Windmills

Tom Mackie decides to fly out to the gorgeous Netherlands and shoot some of the thousands of windmills that can be found there.

Living in a place with windmills on my doorstep, it may seem strange to travel to another country to shoot windmills. But the mills of Holland are on a much grander scale than the ones near my home in Norfold, and many are still lived in. The Netherlands are only a 40-minute flight from me, and after driving around this compact country for a week, I wondered why I didn’t make the short hop more often! It’s packed full of photographic possibilities, but is most famous for its tulips in spring, which is why I’m here.

I spent the first few days shooting the iconic locations of Amsterdam, such as the Rijksmuseum and the Dutch architecture reflecting in the canals. One evening, I arrived early to a classic location along the Keizersgracht canal to capture the blue hour. As the light levels dropped and the illuminations came on, about a dozen other photographers assembled, all with the same idea.