A summer’s night at Esbjerg Industrial Harbour in Denmark by Silva Wischeropp

This long-exposure photograph was taken on 27 August 2016 during the blue hour (photography) using a NIKON D90 camera (lens: NIKKOR 18.0–50.0 mm f/2.8) whilst on my summer photography trip.

The port of Esbjerg attracts visitors above all for its gigantic scale, its rugged industrial charm and its role as a global epicentre of offshore wind energy.
The area’s appeal lies in the combination of technical superlatives and maritime culture:
The driving force behind the energy transition
Offshore giants:
Visitors can watch at close quarters as skyscraper-high components for wind turbines and massive foundations are loaded onto specialised vessels.

Esbjerg is the world’s largest port for the unloading of wind turbines.
Oil rigs:
Huge North Sea oil platforms are regularly moored directly at the quay in the harbour basin for maintenance and repair.
Mega-cranes: The port is home to the Liebherr LHM 800, one of the world’s largest mobile harbour cranes, standing 48 metres tall.

People by the sea:
Right on the coast, not far from the harbour entrance, stand the world-famous, 9-metre-high white sculptures. They gaze intently out to sea and at the passing industrial vessels.
Fisheries and Maritime Museum:
Situated directly behind the sculptures, this museum sheds light on the harbour’s historical transformation from what was once Denmark’s largest fishing port to a modern energy hub.