You Won’t Believe How the Iconic ‘Most Viewed Photo’ Location Has Changed Over Time

Ah, the nostalgia! Unless you’ve popped onto this planet in the last decade, you’ve definitely locked eyes with that serene image of rolling green hills beneath a perfectly clear blue sky every time you booted up the family PC. But have you ever stopped to wonder—was that picture just a Photoshop dream, a digital daydream designed to distract us from endless loading bars and those maddening dial-up noises? Turns out, this iconic photo—known as ‘Bliss,’ snapped by Chuck O’Rear back in ’96—is not only real but holds the crown as arguably the most viewed image ever. When Microsoft snapped up the rights, it became the default Windows XP wallpaper, embedding itself in our collective weird and wonderful memories of downloading dodgy MP3s and accidentally unleashing a virus or two. But here’s the kicker: what looks like an eternal, emerald wonderland no longer exists as we remember it. The once-lush hill near California’s Napa–Sonoma border has since morphed into… a vineyard. Yep, dreams do change shape, sometimes quite literally. Ready to unravel the story behind the world’s most famous digital pasture? LEARN MORE.

It’s the image which all of us – unless you were born within the last 10 years – will have grown up looking at every time we logged on to the family computer.

But have you ever stopped and wondered about the story behind the famous rolling, green hills sat in-front of a crisp blue sky?

We are, of course, talking about the image ‘Bliss’ snapped by Chuck O’Rear by 1996, which has since gone on become arguably the most viewed image of all time.

After Microsoft obtained the rights to the image at the turn of the millennium, Bliss – then titled ‘Bucolic Green Hills’ – would become the default screensaver of every computer which used Windows XP after it was introduced in 2001.

Take a look at the very image below and reminisce about simpler times when you riddled the your parents’ PC with viruses playing Flash Games and downloading music from dodgy sites.

Ah, the good old days… (Charles O’Rear/Microsoft)

If you’d ever spent your afternoons wondering if this hill was a real place you could run up and down while waiting for the computer to finish booting up, then you’ll be relieved to know it is in-fact a real place.

The hill can be found near the Napa–Sonoma county line in California, but expect to be a little disappointed if you ever visit.

Images taken at the location over the years have revealed the bright green hill exists only in our imaginations (and computer screens) with more recent photographs showing a very different environment.

One image, taken in 2006, showed the landscape looking significantly dryer and less inviting, while more recent reports state the location is now a vineyard.

The comparison images have been shared numerous times over the years and every time receiving the same disappointed reaction from viewers discovering a key part of their childhood is no more.

The location is now a vineyard (By Simon Goldin – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1633984)

“So it’s ruined. Nice,” commented one person underneath a post made by insidehistory on Instagram.

“I used to stare at this for minutes and would wish I was there… it’s sad now,” a second person added.

Others had a more measured reaction, with a third commenter saying the location still looked ‘breathtaking’ if you visited in person, while another noted the image was taken in November, so the landscape would understandably appear duller.

“Everybody’s reacting like it’s a grey brick apartment building there now,” a fifth user joked.

The image was officially retied in April 2014, when Microsoft ended support for the operating system.

O’Rear has since reflected on taking the iconic image explaining how his chosen camera and decision to use ‘a film that had more brilliant colours’ allowed the image to be created.

“The size of the camera and film together made the difference and I think helped the Bliss photograph stand out even more. I think if I had shot it with 35 millimetre, it would not have nearly the same effect.” he said.