lightandshadowjourney Loc: Virginia

Hope to be there in Amsterdam during blossoming time and would like to hear suggestions on shots that are not the same as everyone else's. I tend to shoot a wide shot, landscape and portrait, then find items of interest and finally go for shots as close up as I can get. Shooting a Sony A65 with Tamron 18-270. We'll do a river cruise after on the Rhine with lots and lots and lots of photo ops, ending in Basel and Zurich.

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

Can I carry your equipment?

lightandshadowjourney Loc: Virginia

Hmmmm--looks as if I need to carry some of yours! That is some inventory.

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

My wife started it! I'm just being supportive. :roll:

G Brown Loc: Sunny Bognor Regis West Sussex UK

When we were there, about 2011, there was lots of art installations. You can catch the groundsmen putting wires down the flower stalks to keep them upright! There is a single high spot at the far end which overlooks flower fields outside of the main grounds. If you stop at the roadside cabins selling bulbs there are often unusual wooden 'garden ornaments' that are worth shooting. If you have a point n shoot it will make close-ups soooo much easier, The flower beds are tightly packed and people get annoyed if you squat down and squash the odd one. It can get very crowded so tight shots work better than landscapes EXCEPT for the lake....That has to be taken. There are several glasshouses and halls that don't allow dogs so we didn't get in but take your flash. Buy a map of the site....it is huge and it also gives you a good idea of what to cover around where you are walking...It is sooo easy to miss things and soooo far to walk back to them later. People watch....it is totally multi-cultural and often they are in national costume. The whole gardens make people happy, so they are pleased to be in your shots. Plus there are so many people taking photo's that you cease to worry about it

As you can tell we were totally unprepared for the scale of the place. It is not somewhere to 'Do' in an afternoon.

Have fun

Uuglypher Loc: South Dakota (East River)

Gotta compliment you on your choice of equipment; that Tam 18-270 is the absolute top value in a traveler's "walk-around" lens I've ever used in my 65 years in photography!
Bon voyage!

Dave

PixelStan77 Loc: Vermont/Chicago

Have fun and create some outstanding images. Your equipment should beable to support your creative ability.

brow3904 Loc: Upstate South Carolina

Was there in April with the same equipment and it worked very well. I would suggest you get there when they open. One thing I learned from going to Disneyland is to go to the farthest spots first because everyone coming into the place are so taken with everything that they immediately stop right at the entrance. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Morning Star Loc: West coast, North of the 49th N.

Hope you realize that Keukenhof is NOT in Amsterdam, it is in the town of Lisse, and about 1 1/4 - 1 3/4 hour train ride away from Amsterdam - depending on the connection.
Also hope you have the dates checked out and verified: Keukenhof opens on March 24 and closes on May 16.

Beyond that: Look for "artistic plantings" - bands of colour, different designs in the plantings.
Through the two months of opening, the colour of the park changes here and there by layered plantings: different bulbs planted at different depth and blooming at different times. If you keep any eye open, you can probably find where the "new colour" is already developing while the "old colour" is still there.
Wear comfortable walking shoes: The park is 80 acres large!

If you should happen to be there between April 20-24, and especially on April 23, the "Bloemen Corso" (flower parade) is a must-see.

http://www.bloemencorso-bollenstreek.nl/en/

http://www.bloemencorso-bollenstreek.nl/media/44604/bloemencorsobollenstreek-folder-2016.pdf

Don't feel sorry for the flowers, if it wasn't for this parade, they'd end up on the compost heap a week earlier: The business of the area is to grow bulbs and sell them, not to grow flowers.

If you're staying in Amsterdam, there is a tourist information office in front of the Central Station, look for the letters VVV. They can tell you everything you want/need to know about Keukenhof and the Bloemen Corso - and then some!

lazyjt1 Loc: Potter Valley, CA

The Blue River, iconic but beautiful. I spent four days there and wished for more. Loved shooting in the pavilion. One of my favorite shots from my trip.

lightandshadowjourney Loc: Virginia

Would you mind posting some of your images?

lightandshadowjourney Loc: Virginia

Now that is beautiful! Great shot. It appears to me an early morning shot?

lightandshadowjourney Loc: Virginia

Thank you, morning star, for the great information. That is the kind of thing I was hoping to garner from the skill sets of the hog. It is very much appreciated.
Rick

lightandshadowjourney Loc: Virginia

Thank you, morning star, for the great information. That is the kind of thing I was hoping to garner from the skill sets of the hog. It is very much appreciated.
Rick

Morning Star Loc: West coast, North of the 49th N.

It's usually the first thing I think about when I see the name "Keukenhof" (some Kitchen Garden, that is)!
I was born about a 5-minute walk away from the route the Bloemen Corso takes, in a barn that was used for processing and storing of the flower bulbs. Inside, an area was partitioned off for office space, it was the only place my parents could find to rent, just before I was born!
So I have a legitimate excuse for leaving doors open behind me!