Picture taking in Paris - Best Spots!
Jul 24th, 2000, 04:16 AM
#1
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Picture taking in Paris - Best Spots!
Going to Paris in October. Have been there once before & have pictures from top of Eiffel Tower/Arc of Triumph. <BR> <BR>Open to suggestions about other great places within the city that one can take great pictures of the city from high vantage points. <BR> <BR>What is your favorite picture from Paris & from where was it taken? <BR> <BR>Welcome all your comments. <BR> <BR>Bob <BR> <BR>
Jul 24th, 2000, 04:26 AM
#2
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It is hard to beat the view of the Eiffel Tower from the Palais de Chaillot across the river. You may already have that one. I have not been to the roof of La Samaritaine department store, but a lot of people think that is the best one. I will hit it next time. The towers of Notre Dame are superb. You get a Quasimodo view of the ground below, the gargoyles, the Left Bank, Eiffel Tower, Ile-St-Louis, Ste-Chapelle, etc. These would be my top two choices for you. There are others too. There is a balcony on the Pompidou Center that offers decent views of rooftops and Sacre Coeur; it is pretty good, but I prefer the other views. Haven't been to Montparnasse tower, but some like it. The view from Sacre Coeur itself should be pretty good. You might want to go up in the church itself. I didn't find the view from the hill all that great.
Jul 24th, 2000, 04:51 AM
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The view from LaSamaritaine is great, also I liked Sacre Couer and top of Arc de Triomphe. There is a large ferris wheel near the Seine that my young traveling companion really wanted to go on so we went- the view was nice but not good for pictures because you are behind plexiglass.
Jul 24th, 2000, 05:59 AM
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My two favorite pictures of Paris are a top Notre Dame. One is of the Eiffel Tower if the background and a gargoyle in the foreground, and the other is of Sacre Couer in the background and another gargoyle in the foreground. Be prepared for a wait to get up to the bell towers of Notre Dame, but believe me, it is well worth the wait. After being up there I have added the Hunchback of Notre Dame to my reading list. <BR> <BR>My other favorite view of Paris is from the Samaritaine department store. Not only is the view free, but you don't have to climb lots of spiral staircases to get up. While up there, enjoy a cup of coffee or a glass a wine at the top. Great place to relax and take in Paris.
Jul 24th, 2000, 06:08 AM
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Probably my favorite photo from Paris is one we got someone to take for us when we took our teenagers a year ago -- we were standing on Pont Alexandre, with the river, the rooftops, a steeple and the Tour Eiffel at our backs, the beautiful bronze cherubs just above our heads. I'm sure this will remain forever one of my favorite family photos -- and will remind me (and my kids) never to be shy about asking someone else to take a photo for you so that you're actually IN some of them! We've done this everywhere we've traveled, and I'm always quick to offer to do the same for others.
Jul 24th, 2000, 08:19 AM
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The Tour Montparnasse is a little cheesy (thnk empire State Building), but is good for *looking* at Paris--you see a wide swath, you don't miss out on seeing a monument because you're in it, and since it's so tall, you can really pick out all the the little places. Pretty at night. That said, it's not good for photos, because everything's too far away.
Jul 24th, 2000, 08:25 AM
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Forgot to say: my favorite photo from Paris was taken from the sidewalk next to a garden outside les Invalides. It was a gray day, and the foreground is lush green grass and foliage in the garden; the top of the shot is framed with the branches of a weeping willow or similar tree (whole tree outside frame), and in the background is the Eiffel Tower in the mist. A framed enlargement is on our wall.
Jul 24th, 2000, 11:34 AM
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In June we took several very interesting photos in the first floor sculpture area of the Musee D'Orsay. Each member in our group chose his sculpture "companion" for the picture--one a polar bear, another the Ugolino and his sons sculpture, etc. Incidentally, does anyone know who the sculptor is for Ugolino? There's another Ugolino and his sons sculpture in the Rodin museum. It's in the middle of the pool in the rear garden, so you can't see it up close, to my regret. The Ugolino story is one of my favorite parts of Dante's Inferno.
Jul 24th, 2000, 05:30 PM
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I would ditto the recommendation of the rooftop of La Samaritaine. In addition to those mentioned above, you may want to check out: Rooftop terrace at Galleries Lafayette, far corner of the terrace of Patachou (a restaurant in Place du Tertre - see www.paris-hotel.com, then restaurants, then Montmartre for a good glimpse), AND from the top of the L'Opentour buses in the nice weather - I got a lot of fabulous shots riding around...
Aug 1st, 2000, 12:14 PM
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In Dante's Inferno, Count Ugolino can be found in the deepest circle of hell, being punished for the sin of treachery. He and his sons had been walled up in a prison and left to starve to death. Dante's description is vivid and sorrowful, telling of Ugolino's youngest son's offer to let their father eat them. Dante says in grief Ugolino began to gnaw on his hands, which is easily seen in the sculpture in the Musee D'Orsay. The sons also look quite young, but I later read that actually Ugolino was sealed in his prison with his sons and grandsons, and that the youngest was 22 (I think). <BR> <BR>Enjoy the sculpture. It's dark stone (marble?), large (lifesize?), right in the middle of the sculpture area. If anyone knows who sculpted it, I'd love to know.
Aug 3rd, 2000, 08:30 AM
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here are a few; <BR>1) a picture of the Arc de Triumph from avenue Carnot on Nov 11, 1999. There were no cars in the way and all one can see is the empty street, the Arc, the trees, and in the distance several policemen's white hats and dk colored uniforms. <BR>2) A picture of the Thinker taken on a rainy day just before dusk. The sun came out for a couple of minutes, illuminating the building and the statue, but the sky is just as dark as could be.
Aug 3rd, 2000, 08:46 AM
#18
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3) go to pere LaChaise cemetary. Plenty of neat statues. <BR>4) a view of a Monmartre stairway looking up, in it there is a small child with a smile on his face trying to slide down the sides of the stairs. <BR>Don't wait for people to clear out of your "perfect shots of buildings, monuments, fountains, etc. Often they add interest to your photos. <BR>I got kicked off before so I'm signing off. Good luck. Take 1 24 roll of film for each day you're there and add an extra.
