Five Best Places To Take Pictures in Paris: Instagram Paris
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Get the best Paris photo spots for your Instagram—Eiffel Tower selfies, scenic views, and Paris photo tips that’ll impress your followers (and your mom).
Where to Take Great Paris Photos: (Jump To)
Our house is filled with memories of our travels. We like to buy a small token from each place we visit that can be on display along with our favorite photo from the trip.
Hanging above our couch is an enormous 8-foot by 5-foot black and white photo that I took on our first trip together. People often ask if it’s from IKEA. I’m not sure if that’s a compliment, but I can say for sure that it feels better to have something of meaning on display than it would to have a standard IKEA New York City scene.
Paris is one of the most photogenic cities I have ever visited. Every inch of the city is perfect for a postcard. Even things as mundane as house numbers and street signs have a uniquely Parisian charm.
I wanted to share my five favorite places in Paris to take a photo that can be proudly displayed in place of your IKEA design decor.
Under the Eiffel Tower
For dramatic Paris photo spots, stand beneath the iron lattice and shoot straight up for graphic lines and symmetry. These Eiffel Tower pictures work in color or black-and-white and make an easy Instagram Paris shot without fighting crowd clutter.
Map: Google Maps
In both shots, I took my camera under the tower. The first is looking straight up while standing in the middle of the four-tower feet. The arching beams mixed with the repeating square structure create a nice mix of curved and straight lines.
The second shot is from a few steps outside the tower looking straight up. Keep them in color or convert them to black and white, either way, a great place for an iconic photo.
Sacré-Cœur from Arc de Triomphe
Climb the Arc de Triomphe for a long-lens view of Sacré-Cœur rising over the city, one of the best views in Paris for skyline photos. Time it for clear light or golden hour to capture Montmartre’s domes with crisp detail down the Champs-Élysées.
Map: Google Maps
If you pay a few euros to climb to the top of the Arc de Triomphe you’ll be able to take a bunch of great photos. It’s a great place to get a shot down the treelined Champs-Élysées from a high angle. My favorite shot is best made on a clear day. The Sacré-Cœur Basilica sits at the top of Butte Montmartre, the highest point in the city. It towers above the city. I converted this one to Black and White.
Eiffel Tower at Night From The Seine
A Seine night cruise gives you moving vantage points for Eiffel Tower night photos—use a fast shutter and burst mode to keep shots sharp on the water. Aim for the hourly sparkle and frame the tower with bridge arches for a classic Paris at night image.
Map: Google Maps
The true magic of Paris comes at night when the lights twinkle and the city’s architectural marvels are lit from below. A night cruise on the Seine will give you the chance to snap some amazing photos of many of the riverside landmarks. I took a ton of shots of the Tower to make sure there were a few in clear focus. In the dark, on a moving boat, it can be hard to get something crisp, especially on a smartphone.
Mona Lisa Through a Lens
In the Louvre, lean into the scene by composing Mona Lisa with the crowd—phones, faces, and frames tell the story better than a tight crop. Arrive early or late, expose for the painting, and let the foreground blur for a candid, gallery-feel photo.
Map: Google Maps
It’s a pretty common mantra to hate on the Mona Lisa. People say it’s smaller than they expected, and it’s almost always mobbed by tourists. I liked the idea that people treat the painting like it was a celebrity. I wanted a photo that included the people excited to see the famous artwork.
Sacré-Cœur Skyline
From the Sacré-Cœur dome, you’ll get a sweeping Paris skyline view with rooftops leading toward the Eiffel Tower—prime for a wall-worthy panorama. Shoot a stitched series or go wide-angle and keep the horizon high for a clean, poster-ready composition.
Map: Google Maps
The photo that hangs above my couch was shot from the Sacré-Cœur dome viewing platform. From this highest point in the city, you can capture every monument in the city in a skyline view. I tried to fill the frame with the rooftops of Paris keeping the skyline and the Eiffel Tower toward the top of the frame. I ended up having to merge a few photos to get the quality I needed to blow it up to such a large size, but you can easily frame it in one shot.
Special Mention: View From the Notre Dame
When access is available, the towers of Notre-Dame offer a classic Seine river viewpoint with Île de la Cité and bridges lined up beneath you. Go early for softer light, and use the stone balustrade or gargoyles as foreground to frame the city.
Map: Google Maps
I was fortunate to visit Paris before the devastating fire at Notre Dame. The view of the Seine river from the bell tower still takes my breath away. I can’t wait to see this view again when the historic cathedral has been restored.
If you’re looking for a more spooky photo experience, check out the Catacombs of Paris.
