Trocadéro at sunrise

The esplanade of the Trocadéro is the one place where the Eiffel Tower fills the frame head-on: the tower dead centre across the Seine, the fountains of the Jardins du Trocadéro stepping down toward it. Stand on the marble parvis for the classic symmetrical shot, then work down the garden staircases — each landing gives a slightly different balance of couple, fountains and ironwork.

Sunrise is not a suggestion, it is the shot. Before 7am the esplanade is close to empty and the first light comes in low from the east, side-lighting the tower and warming the stone. By 8 the tour buses, the vendors and a dozen other photoshoots have arrived, and by mid-morning you queue for the centre line. The fountains are not always running at dawn — compose the wide frames so they hold up with still water too.

One honest caveat: everyone has seen this photograph. It earns its place at the start of a session — ten minutes for the icon, then walk. The lamp posts of Pont d'Iéna, the side streets of Passy and the tower-at-the-end-of-the-street view from Rue de l'Université are all close by and far less contested.