After walking for ages and feeling that my trip might have been a waste of time, I turned a bend in the road and saw these three mills on the horizon.
If you have signed up to my newsletter and read my story about the photo I call 'Dutch Escape' in my e-book, you might be interested to know that I took this photo during the same trip.
This beautiful place is called Molendriegang, just outside The Hague. It is a pretty location with three windmills in a row alongside a canal and fields full of sheep (flat fields, of course!) On this day (an October Saturday afternoon), it was quite a trip to reach it; I had to take three trams and then a long walk. But it was so worth it! After walking for ages and feeling that my trip might have been a waste of time, I turned a bend in the road and saw these three mills on the horizon. I could have spent hours and hours taking pictures there.
I took this photo from the edge of the main road before walking along the small lane that ran alongside the mills. This is the first mill you come to. I wasn't ambitious about the shot at the time, but was very happy later with the sharpness in the foreground and distance and the reflections in the water that give it a kind of symmetry. Not to mention the great sky and colours, as the sun started to get lower.
It was a wonderfully peaceful day with hardly anyone around and no traffic on the small roads and lanes nearby. It really was a 'reflective moment,' and for those minutes of admiring this scene, it was all mine and no one else's (well, I only had the sheep for company!) To me, this is definitely an example of a very Dutch countryside scene. It is incredible that such an idyllic place exists just a short distance outside of the city.
In these lockdown times, I really long for more opportunities to capture images like this. But while that is not possible, I find this picture a calming and brightening one to have on display in my lounge and a reminder that one day we will not only escape the pandemic, but that we will also be able to explore new and beautiful places once again.
I hope this image also helps you escape for a moment to a quieter and more tranquil place, and to reflect on the positives that we have (and have yet to come). Sometimes a photo can transport you away, and these are the moments I look for in my photography.
Maybe I have also inspired you to visit The Netherlands, The Hague or even Molendriegang itself? 😊
If you'd like to hear more about Molendriegang and my adventures there on that day, you can read the story in my e-book '9 of My Favourite Photos and the Stories Behind Them' when you sign up to my newsletter. It is still one of my favourite photo trips to date.
You can buy this photo in a variety of formats and as different products on my 'Dutch Landscapes' gallery page! (Hint: it's available as a phone cover!) And if you think others would enjoy it, then I would be so happy if you would share it on social media 🙂
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