Photo production in Paris

With over 2 million inhabitants intra muros (and 10 million in its urban area), Paris is the capital of France and its largest city. It is also one of the fashion capitals of the world. Its streets and numerous iconic monuments are displayed prominently in numerous photo and film productions, such as "Les Enfants du Paradis" (1945) or more recently "Da Vinci Code" (2006). Crossed by the Seine river, Paris includes several hills, such as as Montmartre (towering 100m above Paris lowest parts), Montparnasse and the Buttes Chaumont. Paris has two large airports, Orly and Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle, several railway stations and is at the core of the French highway network. Goods, production teams, photographic equipment and models can therefore be moved to and from Paris easily. Moving within Paris can prove more challenging though as the number of taxis is limited by law (?) and has declined by 40% since 1925...

The iconic Paris landmarks are mostly situated along the Seine river. They include the cathedral Notre Dame de Paris (12th century), the Eiffel Tower, the Champs-Elysées with their domineering Arc de Triomphe, the Place Vendôme, the Louvre, the Conciergerie, the Invalides, the Palais Garnier... There are also many parks and gardens, either à la française (symmetrical, with big axes and perspectives) such as the Tuileries Gardens or the Parc du Champ de Mars (where the Eiffel Tower is located), or à l'anglaise such as the Parc Monceau or the Parc des Buttes Chaumont.

For productions on a shoestring, there are many studios with equipment for affordable prices (about 30 euros per hour, decreasing rate of charge), such as le Studio Perché in Montmartre, le Studio Sténopé close to Canal Saint-Martin, or Hellocost in Paris 2nd district.

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