Paris Photo runs November 12–15, 2026, at the Grand Palais. If you have an afternoon, start with three different ways to look at a photograph: on a wall, across a curator’s route and in the pages of a book.
1. See how the Centre Pompidou groups its photographs
The invited exhibition, Révéler, brings together works from the Centre Pompidou’s photography collection. Two of its four themes, making images and identities, offer a starting point if you’re short on time. Pick two photographs from different periods and look at what each makes visible. The labels can help you separate choices made in the camera from those made afterward.
2. Follow Aldeide Delgado’s Elles route
Aldeide Delgado curated the 2026 Elles × Paris Photo route, titled An Oceanic Beginning. It uses the sea as a starting point for thinking about what makes photographs possible. Follow a few of the stops in order and see where the theme becomes tangible. The fair lists Kati Horna with Proyectos Monclova and includes Elina Brotherus’s 2026 work from In the Pines in its route material. Check the fair’s current exhibitor map before setting out.
3. Read a few spreads in the Book sector
The Paris Photo–Aperture PhotoBook Awards give you a place to begin in the Book sector. Choose one shortlisted title and spend a few page turns with it. Look at where the book changes scale, where it leaves a page empty and how a caption changes the picture next to it. Those are decisions you can easily miss when you only see the cover online.
The Grand Palais lists public hours of 1–8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and 1–7 p.m. Sunday. Check the venue’s event page for the latest hours and the fair’s ticket page for access. Leave some time at the end to return to one photograph or book that stayed with you.
