Musée Rodin

Behind a high wall on rue de Varenne, a few minutes from Les Invalides, the Musée Rodin is an amazing gem that shouldn't be missed. This graceful 18th-century mansion sits surrounded by a large sculpture garden. Auguste Rodin rented studio rooms in the crumbling house from about 1908, and when the state moved to demolish it he fought to save it. In 1916 he left his whole life's work to France on one condition, that it be shown here, and the museum opened in 1919. The garden is where you'll want to linger. Rodin's bronzes stand among the hedges, rose beds and tree lined lanes. You can circle each one and shoot it from every side. The Thinker broods on his pillar. Across the lawn, the vast Gates of Hell rises. The ornamental pool gives you a spot to experiment with reflection using the pale mansion as a soft backdrop through the roses. The museum is a short walk from the Varenne metro on line 13 or from Invalides. There is an admission fee but there is free entry on the first Sunday of the month from October to March. There is an option to only visit the sculpture garden. It closes on Mondays and the paths fill up on weekends, so it is best to plan ahead to come early and on a weekday to give yourself space to work. Give yourself an unhurried hour in the garden and let the city fall quiet behind the hedges. (Paris, Île-de-France, France)