In Paris with a Leica: the usual and unusual

No other city in the world has been photographed as much as the city of Paris. Since the early dawn of photography, all the way until today, it has been the subject of scores of art books and prints. Whether in the pictures of Bresson, Doisneau, Atget, or Brassaï, or snapped by today’s myriads of tourists from all over the world that fill the streets of the city – it remains immediately recognizable, and as a photographer you might soon ask yourself: what’s there to photograph in Paris that no one else has before?

Many experienced street photographers will tell you to “shoot, then think”, and to just follow your instinct. Especially if you’re seen photographs of famous folks like Bresson or Atget before, it’s almost impossible to stay “unique” and “different”. Even more so when you are carrying an instrument like a Leica, which makes you hungry for the next Bressonian shot you are hoping to catch.
At that point we should ask ourselves however: does it really matter? Too many photographic opportunities are missed by being unsure, unconvinced of the motive, or too shy or hesitant. It’s hard to “just shoot”, especially when working with film. You don’t want to waste film, after all?

Two weeks ago, I spent a couple of days in Paris, and since I was there with family and friends, I only had little time to fully immerse and isolate myself into the world of photography. Which meant that I had to be more spontaneous, less hesitant, faster while also being less confrontational. Since we also visited many iconic spots of Paris, I took more photos of locations that most people have already seen before. The Eiffel Tower, the glass pyramid of the Louvre, the Notre Dame, the Centre Pompidou, the river sides of the Seine. “Shoot, then think”.

Nevertheless, it was a very rewarding and enjoyable experience. Not only because I got to take photographs with a Leica – Paris and a Leica go together like peanut butter and jelly – but also because film makes even the most familiar subjects look excitingly different. And there is still the one or the other “random” street photograph, which we all hope to shoot and see when roaming the streets of such a city.

This was the fourth time I have been to Paris and it was, for several reasons (weather, company, camera, maturity) by far my most enjoyable. Three days are certainly not enough to explore or portray the largest city in Europe. Due to an unlucky incident, or divine intervention, maybe, light got onto my film and burnt almost all the images that I took of the Eiffel Tower. I am not mourning those, however. Paris offers an infinite amount of views, scenes and moments that are just waiting to be captured, and these were just a few glimpses I got to catch. Until next time.