Parisian Street Photography

Paris, France, is probably one of the most-photographed cities in the world. From the Haussmann façade buildings to the monuments that liberally dot the land, Paris is one of those places where there's an opportunity for photography as well as a story. Having stood witness to everything from the Roman invasion of Gaul before the common era to the dawn of the digital age, Paris and cities like it (such as Rome, Madrid, London, and Edinburgh) has a certain je ne sais quoi in the air that gives it a vital but timeless feel as if to say that it won't sweat the small stuff because it knows that it has innumerable days ahead of it. Over at Stuck in Customs, Trey Ratcliff has a great shot of a street corner in Paris. If this is the place I think it is, then this is a place I walked past quite frequently when I lived in Paris for a while. It's a surprisingly quiet area on the border of a larger more commercial zone. Nestled in between the Latin Quarter and the Tour Montparnasse, this place is one that is utterly forgettable until you leave and see it in a photograph. Nearby, there's a lovely restaurant that specializes in seafood. I used to stop there to pick up oysters and ask after shrimp and various fresh water fish they might have in. Just a few blocks away is the market at the Place du Edward Quinet which becomes a veritable neighborhood of tarps and tents every Wednesday and Saturday as people set up shop under a temporary construct offering goods from t-shirts and trinkets to spices and gourmet ingredients. There's a Monoprix nearby as well which is where I would go shopping when the ED near my home didn't have what I was looking for. Sure, plenty of people spend their time getting photographs of the great monuments or famous buildings in Paris: Notre Dame de Paris, the Luxembourg Gardens and the old Sénat, the Eiffel Tower, the Arc du Triomphe, the Champs Elysées, or even the grandes marchées over near Chatlet-Les-Halles (one of the most crowded and noisy venues in the city). And, in the surrounding area, there are plenty of places to visit: Versailles being the most popular I can think of. So many cities in Europe have so much beauty tucked away in little corners like this one. Which ones have you managed to capture with your camera? -- da Bird Camera used: Nikon D800.