Yesterday, I heard a phrase on a TV show that stayed with me: “People need to understand your vision.”

And it made me pause.

As photographers, is that really the goal? Do we want others to understand our vision, or do we want to show people and places in a way that feels honest and meaningful to them?

I think about this often while walking around Amsterdam.

Most weeks, you’ll find me wandering the city with my camera, without a clear purpose. No shot list, no deadline. Just walking, observing, and enjoying the city. Amsterdam is perfect for that. It’s a city that invites you to slow down, to walk without a mission, and to turn observation into something playful.

Sometimes this kind of wandering is incredibly productive. I come home with hundreds of photos. Other times, almost nothing. I never fully know why. What I do know is that I’m deeply drawn to stillness. I love photographing the city when it feels quiet, when streets are empty, when there’s space to breathe. I’m always looking for those moments in between, where silence briefly takes over.

Then there is the other side of my work.

When I’m working as a vacation photographer in Amsterdam, I suddenly look for the opposite. Movement. Connection. Interaction. The same places where I once searched for stillness become the backdrop for people walking, laughing, and discovering the city. This is often when postcard-like images appear, not because they are staged, but because something aligns naturally in the frame.

I love bright colours. I love clean horizons. I’m always searching for a timeless image, something that still works years later. Vacation photography, for me, is not only about portraits. It’s about memory-making. The city becomes an extra character in the story. You should feel that it’s Amsterdam, even before anyone tells you it is. The image should quietly say: we were here, and we were enjoying it.

This is why I love the different stages of vacation photography so much.

The first stage happens on my own. Walking, exploring, observing patterns, learning how light behaves in different areas, and understanding how the city moves throughout the day. This is also why I believe it’s so valuable to work with a local photographer. Living in the city you photograph changes everything. You don’t just know the landmarks, you know the rhythm.

The second stage is the part I value just as much, and it can’t happen without you.

I may be a photographer, and I may know Amsterdam well, but I don’t know you. I don’t know how you like to see yourself in photos, what makes you feel comfortable, or what kind of memories you want to take home. That’s why I ask questions. Your preferences matter. They guide the session, the pace, and the final result.

Vacation photography is teamwork. It’s a dialogue between my experience of the city and your experience of being in it. That balance is what makes the work meaningful for me, and it’s what keeps my daily work feeling alive.

Maybe it’s not about people understanding my vision.

Maybe it’s about creating space for their own.

Until the next time in Amsterdam.

Joanna

Your Photographer in Amsterdam