4 Nights in Paris

We were long overdue for a family vacation. Between COVID, some health challenges for my wife, and the kids growing up and keeping us busy, it had been far too long. Like many photographers, I do a lot of my shooting on trips that have nothing to do with photography. This one was a chance for an epic family adventure, squeezed into August before my son went back to university and my daughter started her sports season. The plan: four nights in Paris.

The purpose of the trip wasn't photography. It was making sure the kids had a fantastic time and saw the bucket-list spots Paris has to offer, and there are a lot to pick from. My job was to tag along with a camera around my neck, take the targets of opportunity as they came, and sneak out on my own when the light got good.

That meant packing light. I didn't want to be without a camera at any point, so I brought my Fujifilm X-T30, one lens (the XF 16-50mm f/2.8-4.8 R LM WR), a variable ND filter, and a tiny $40 tripod I grabbed at a shop in the airport. It holds the camera about 10 cm off the ground, which turned out to be the right height for half the shots in this article. Add a few spare batteries, lens cleaner and a backup card, and I was ready to go. Every photo below came out of that kit.

We looked at a variety of places to stay, but for price and proximity to great locations, Montmartre, a short walk from Sacré-Cœur, won out. Three Métro stations sit within a few minutes of each other on different lines: Lamarck–Caulaincourt on line 12, Blanche on line 2, and Barbès–Rochechouart on lines 2 and 4. Between them, the whole city was within easy reach. Montmartre also put La Maison Rose, Sacré-Cœur and the Moulin Rouge close enough for quick solo evening photo runs, which matters when the family is back at the hotel and the light is going.

The only challenge is the hills. Explore Montmartre and you will get a workout. My son loved the area because the long staircase up to the basilica is the one from John Wick: Chapter 4, one of his favourite movies.

Keep in mind that this is one of the more affordable tourist areas of the city, which also means some rougher streets nearby. Don't stray too far off the beaten path with expensive camera gear around your neck after dark.

We arrived mid-morning Paris time, which was the middle of the night for our internal clocks, so the mission on day one was to stay awake as long as possible. We were too early to check in, so we dropped our bags at the hotel and set out to explore. We climbed and strolled through the arts district, loved its bohemian vibe, and eventually made our way up to the Basilica of Sacré-Cœur.

Inside, we marvelled at its sheer size. The central area is for parishioners and no photos are permitted there, so don't step between the pews or point a lens at the altar. We wandered the outer aisle quietly, respectful of the solemnity, and shot from there. That is all you get, and it is enough. Using the ambient light and nothing else, I came away with a shot of the dome I'm happy with.

Honestly, it was one of the harder spots of the trip. I didn't like most of the exteriors I tried, partly the weather and partly because we were running on fumes. There was also the option to buy a ticket and climb the roughly 300 steps into the dome for a view over the city, but I decided that view, while undoubtedly stunning, would show Paris from too far away to really give a sense of it. We left it for another trip and went looking for dinner and a bed.

After settling in a bit early, we woke with the dawn ready to explore. I had booked tickets to one of my real bucket-list destinations for the trip, the Catacombs of Paris. We started the day with a lovely breakfast at Immersion Montmartre (Brunch & Coffee). The Salty Mood and the Crispy Benedict were my favourites.

After breakfast we hopped on the Métro to the 14th arrondissement and the Catacombs. What can be said about this place? It was by far the most amazing destination of the trip. Don't get me wrong: the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower and the usual spots are impressive. But I have travelled a fair bit, and while other ossuaries exist, I doubt many come close to the experience the Catacombs gave us. It was so fascinating that I wrote an entire guide just about it:

Book ahead, read the first, and turn off your AF assist lamp before you go down.

Next was the Champs-Élysées. We took the Métro to Champs-Élysées–Clemenceau, beside the Grand Palais, and wandered up the boulevard of high-end shops. Maybe I'm a bit cynical, but this part of Paris is a bit gaudy to me and certainly not photogenic. The kids visited a shop or two, declared it overhyped commercial excess, and we carried on to the Arc de Triomphe.

This did not disappoint. We walked all the way around it looking for the best angles as the sun began to set. The crowd bunches up on the Champs-Élysées side and mostly stays there, so go where they aren't. The sunset forecast in PIXEO Pro put the odds of colour pretty low, so I looked for an angle that would throw whatever colour I could get against the arch. I settled in on the south-east side, between Avenue d'Iéna and Avenue Marceau, with the mini tripod on the pavement and the ND filter on the lens, and started taking long exposures to pull light trails out of the traffic as blue hour set in. We shot until dark, laughing at the pedestrians risking their lives to cross the roundabout, then headed back to the hotel.

Day 3 we dedicated to the Louvre and toured its cavernous expanses. I didn't take many photography-style photos, apart from the kids. There was certainly plenty to shoot, but with a heat wave on and the knowledge that every one of those images has already been taken, I focused on the family. The plan instead was to sneak out that night and capture some of the local spots.

First up was La Maison Rose. The sunset forecast in PIXEO Pro said day three would be spectacular, and boy was it right. I hurried over and was stunned by the sky. I will admit I was disappointed to find the restaurant fully closed up with no lights on, so if you want the windows glowing, check the opening hours before you go. The sunset made up for it and created an amazing photo.

With that shot in the camera, I considered what to do after sunset and decided to wander down, quite literally, to the Moulin Rouge. On arrival I set up at street level on the central median of Boulevard de Clichy, sitting on the curb opposite the entrance with the variable ND filter on, and as the sky darkened I worked on capturing the facade and its neon with just the right length of exposure for the fan effect on the windmill. Two seconds at f/16 did it: the sails blur into a glowing fan and the buses leave red streaks across the bottom of the frame without taking it over. I spent about an hour there, from golden hour to full dark, and shot a lot of frames to get one.

The pictures turned out great, but be warned that the tourists who frequent these spots will not respect your field of view. If I had a nickel for every time, between the Arc de Triomphe and the Moulin Rouge, an Instagram hopeful stood in my shot in some overdressed number, mugged for the camera, flipped through their partner's photos with a face like thunder, delivered a lecture, and then went straight back to posing like it was the best moment of their life. Well, it happened a lot, and it was endlessly entertaining.

Day 4 was my daughter's birthday, and all she wanted to do was go shopping at the famous Galeries Lafayette and then watch the sunset and the light show at the Eiffel Tower. Happy to oblige, we had our now-routine breakfast at Immersion and headed out.

Galeries Lafayette is like no shopping place I had ever been. I was reminded of the massive department stores I had only seen in movies growing up. The stained glass ceiling is of course the draw, and there is a glass skywalk that juts out over the atrium so people can take selfies in the store. I avoided that Instagrammer trap and instead tried to capture the dome from the most dead-centre spot I could find. I think I did okay.

The rooftop is free and, oddly, nearly empty. The store below was packed, but most people either don't know the roof exists or don't bother. It offers fantastic views of the Palais Garnier, the Eiffel Tower and a good share of the city's rooftops. Quick in and out by day; I suspect it's lovely at sunset. My daughter came away with a unique charm for her bracelet that she had been saving up for.

We then had time to kill, so I splurged on a taxi and we rushed to Notre-Dame. I wanted to be sure the kids saw it even though it wasn't high on their list. They loved it after all, mesmerized by the detail of the sculpted portals and the storytelling, sometimes hilarious, carved around the doorways. I snuck a few shots, but in August there was no chance of going in without a reservation. Entry is free and the timed slots open 48 hours ahead on the cathedral's website, so book one if the interior matters to you. With the restoration still wrapped around parts of the building, clean angles are hard to find, so I shot the west front from the square and angled up to lose the crowds and the scaffolding. They are doing a fantastic job; it will be better than it was before the fire. We marvelled at the majesty of the cathedral, had a fantastic dinner, and headed for the Eiffel Tower light show.

Trocadéro is where everyone goes for the light show, and in August that means shoulder to shoulder, so we grabbed a cab at the beginning of blue hour and had it drop us at the Champ de Mars instead. We set up dead centre on the first patch of grass past Place Jacques Rueff. The sky turned a lovely magenta, the lighting on the Eiffel Tower was fantastic, and the spot was nowhere near as crowded as the square across the river. We picnicked, waited for the sparkle, which runs for five minutes at the top of every hour after dark, and I shot straight through it. The right choice.

Four nights, one body, one lens, and no shot I would trade. Paris did what Paris does. The family got their bucket list, my daughter got her Parisian birthday, and I got the sky over La Maison Rose, the sails of the Moulin Rouge, and the beauty of the Eiffel Tower, all in the hours after the family went back to the hotel. If you only take one thing from this, take the schedule. Be a tourist by day, photographer at blue hour, and let the forecast tell you which night to run for.

Every spot in this story is on the free PIXEO map, with coordinates, photographer credits and the sun tools I leaned on all week. Join free, become a PIXEO Pro user for the forecast tools, and plan your own four nights in Paris.