One of the most iconic sights in the Netherlands are the tulip fields that bloom every spring. You’ve likely seen them yourself: the perfect rows of red, yellow, purple, white, and pink flowers stretching to the horizon to create a sea of vibrant color. Even as residents of the Netherlands ourselves, the view never fails to take our breaths away. It’s an absolute must-see for anyone traveling here, and in our opinion, one of the striking backgrounds you can give to a photo album.
Whether you’re a tourist looking to photograph your travels, a couple planning an engagement photoshoot in Amsterdam, or a family looking for a souvenir, tulips are the perfect backdrop to take your photos to the next level. Today, we’ll go over a few of the necessities for you to have the best tulip photoshoot and create memories that will last a lifetime here in the Netherlands.
What Types of Tulip Photoshoots Can I Get in the Netherlands?
So you’re looking to capture an unforgettable experience during tulip season in the Netherlands. As a pair of professional photographers situated in Amsterdam, we are familiar with all the local tulip fields and offer a number of different photoshoots to capture you in the way that best suits you.
Solo Photoshoot
In this tulip photoshoot, you’re the star. We’ll shoot you in a number of different ways according to your specifications. Once we finish up our photoshoot, we’ll retouch the photos to bring out their full potential before sending you the final version.
Couple Photoshoot
There are few things more romantic than a field of beautiful, blooming tulips. Tulip photoshoots are a perfect way to celebrate a special day between you and your partner, such as an anniversary or birthday. But don’t worry if you have nothing to celebrate! You can create new memories with your partner, starting with a photoshoot in a tulip field. We daresay that looking back upon this photo album will leave you smiling each time!
Family Photoshoot
One of the most important things in life is your family. In this tulip photoshoot, we will capture you and your entire family to the backdrop of countless tulips. This is a broad topic, and we offer a variety of shoots depending on who you want us to photograph. For instance, if you have a newborn, we can do a baby photoshoot. Simply wrap your baby up in a blanket and we will photograph them in the field surrounded by tulips. It’s simple, safe, and adorable! Alternatively, if you are expecting, we offer a pregnancy maternity photoshoot to celebrate you bringing precious new life into this world.
Pre-Wedding Photoshoot
A wedding is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and one you will undoubtedly want to preserve. What better time to do an engagement photoshoot while tulips are in full bloom? With our expertise and experience, we will help you create a photo album to capture this precious moment.
Tips for the Best Netherlands Tulip Photoshoot Experience
When you come to a tulip photoshoot, you can rest assured that we will handle the heavy lifting, but there’s a few things we recommend everyone do to get the most of your experience.
What Time Should We Schedule a Shoot?
While it can be tempting to schedule a tulip photoshoot during the brightest time of day, the position of the sun at noon causes a lot of glare, washing out most of the colors and features of a tulip field. Due to this, we recommend scheduling a shoot during the mid-to-late afternoon instead, when the rays of the sun are gentler but it hasn’t gotten dark yet.
What Should I Wear?
Whatever you want! We will capture you in the way that best suits your features, but one recommendation we make is that you avoid short skirts. The Netherlands is a relatively flat country, and many tulips fields here are especially windy. This means that skirts can easily be blown up, sometimes even over your heads if you’re unlucky! We don’t want anyone to be uncomfortable in our shoots, so please keep this in mind when selecting your outfit.
In addition, it can be difficult to find a private place to change out in the field, so we encourage you to come to the photoshoot wearing the clothes you wish to be captured in.
Be Prepared for the Weather
As a country close to the coast, the weather in the Netherlands can be quite unpredictable and change quickly, going from sunny to raining in a matter of minutes. To prevent any unpleasant surprises, it’s a good idea to come prepared for a drizzle even if the weather forecast tells us otherwise.
How to Pose for Photos in a Tulip Garden
If you’re unsure of how to pose during a tulip photoshoot, don’t worry, we can help you find the angles that best capture your features. It’s worth noting that a fully grown tulip only comes up to your knees, so unless the tulip field we are shooting in is especially large, we may ask you to kneel or squat in order to capture you fully surrounded by tulips.
Where Can I Go to See Tulip Fields in the Netherlands?
Tulip season in the Netherlands starts mid-March and lasts until mid-May. During this time, tulip fields are blooming across farms in the Netherlands. Here are two places you can go to see these flowers in their full, picturesque glory.
The Tulip Barn
A stunning tulip garden located in the Bollenstreek, a region full of tulip fields located just south of Amsterdam. The Tulip Barn is home to over 1 million tulips and 200 varieties that you can view, complete with a greenhouse restaurant offering both food and drink for visitors. In addition, if you’re artistically inclined, you can even join in their weekly painting workshop and bring home a painting of a tulip to commemorate your trip!
You can purchase tickets online during the tulip growing season to see these flowers in full bloom and catch a glimpse of one of the Netherlands’ most iconic sights!
The Tulip Experience
Like the Tulip Barn above, the Tulip Experience is a beautiful tulip garden located in the Bollenstreek region in the town of Noordwijkerhout, close to the town of Lisse. They offer a variety of services for visitors, including scavenger hunts for children and a tour guide of their gardens, complete with a lesson on history of the tulip in the Netherlands and how they’re cultivated. You can also book a time for a tulip photoshoot in their show garden at specific times, or use one of the private fields in their nursery, though you’ll have to bring your own photographer (like us!) to take your photos.
Tickets for the Tulip Experience come in single visit passes or a season pass which lasts until the end of the tulip season.
A note: while these tulip fields here are gorgeous, please remember that, unless you have the farmer’s direct permission (like in the Tulip Experience), you are not allowed to take photos inside them, but we thought you’d at least want to know these locations if you’re looking to take a look at some tulips in the Netherlands yourself before committing a tulip photoshoot!
The Best Locations for a Netherlands Tulip Photoshoot
There are countless fields ideal for a tulip photoshoot across the Netherlands. If we took the time to list them all, we’d be here all day, but if you’re thinking of doing a tulip photoshoot, here are two locations that we think are great to get you started.
Keukenhof
If you’re not already familiar with Keukenhof, it is a massive flower garden located in Lisse and one of the biggest tourist hotspots in the Netherlands, receiving over 1 million visitors each year. More than 7 million flower bulbs are planted here each year to flower in the spring, with 800 different varieties of tulips on display. With over 32 hectares of flowers on display across its various gardens, Keukenhof possesses one of the widest selections of locations for a tulip photoshoot in the Netherlands.
Poldertuin – Anna Paulowna
This free tulip garden is located in the small town of Anna Paulowna located in North Holland, and can be considered an excellent budget option for a tulip photoshoot in the Netherlands. While not nearly as large as Keukenhof, you don’t have to deal with pesky ticket fees, and the garden boasts much less foot traffic, making it far easier to find that perfect spot to take photos without having to deal with a noisy crowd.
A (Very) Brief History on the Tulip in the Netherlands
As the iconic flower of the Netherlands, the history of the tulip stems back several hundred years. It is a vital part of the country’s culture, but it may surprise you to know that tulips did not originate here. They were first cultivated in Persia (modern day Iran) around the 10th century, and were an important symbol during the time of the Ottoman Empire.
The tulip reached Europe in the 1500s, where botanists discovered it could survive in harsher northern climates, and spread as a status symbol among the Dutch. They were so enamoured by the flower that it caused the Tulip Mania, causing prices of tulips to skyrocket and creating one of the first financial bubbles in the world before it finally burst in 1637.
Nowadays, the Netherlands has a far more healthy relationship with the tulip and is the world’s largest producer and exporter of the flower. And as a bonus, each year in spring, beautiful, sprawling fields bloom across the country, giving us the perfect opportunity to create memories in a field of dazzling flowers, all captured through the lens of a professional photographer.
Conclusion
A tulip on its own is pretty, but add in millions of them stretching as far as the eye can see, you get something truly unforgettable. A sea of flowing color, blowing in the wind. The perfect backdrop to capture the perfect moment.
So if you’re looking for a professional tulip photoshoot in the Netherlands, look no further than us. No matter your vision—solo shoot, engagement photos, or a lovely couple photoshoot—we will be happy to assist you in creating an album of photos that will leave you smiling each and every time you look back on it.
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