In the teaching of natural science, field trips are a means of bringing students directly into contact with the biological and geological aspects of the environment. The present study explored French students' views of fieldwork and the relationships they establish with the natural environment as a result. We analyzed the responses of 293 primary and secondary school students to a questionnaire administered immediately before and after a fieldwork. Students' interest in fieldwork was based on their affinity for nature and desire to learn, as well as their sensory experience of the natural world and the sense of wellbeing they derived from it. The relationship between affinity, self-interest and situational interest is discussed in terms of how a fieldwork can help to reinforce students' relationship with nature.