During a hot summer week, my wife and I decided to go up North to the Netherlands. We found cooler temperatures on the Wadden Island of Ameland. Since the Ameland islands have some restrictions on cars, I packed light and simple. I only brought a lightweight tripod and the versatile Tamron 28-200 all-around zoom lens, which delivers stunning quality on Sony A7R-type cameras.

As I tend to do while travelling, photography is always a part of the trip. I set the alarm very early, as the sunrise was around 6:35 a.m. In the dark, I grabbed my camera gear, took the dog with me, picked up my bike and dog car, attached the tripod to the roof, and started bicycling towards the Lighthouse, which is on Ameland. Besides its lovely nature, it is also the biggest eye-catcher.

As a landscape photographer, I first made some blue hours elsewhere, not from the Lighthouse, having the Lighthouse from a different angle. But as this footpath almost formed a perfect leading line, I had to rush to reach this point. Climbing on a dune just before the summer sun peaked over the horizon, I could benefit from the last soft golden light on the grass and the subtle colouring of the slowly drifting out clouds.

It was a perfectly calm morning with some lovely warm tones. Afterwards, Doug and I cycled back to the hotel, where we caught up on some sleep before enjoying a nice, rich breakfast. It is these mornings that make landscape photography an extraordinary gift in life.