The doors of Paris: a photo essay

I spent a few days in Paris last week (to speak at USI 14). For fun I took photos of every interesting door I walked by. I didn’t seek out interesting ones with a plan. I didn’t want to be deliberate about it. Instead I chose to pay attention as  I walked through the city.

Doors fascinate me for many reasons. They’re ignored by most people walking past them, but to anyone who lives or works there this is their daily portal into another slice of their life. For many of these doors I wondered: who lives there? what are they like? What does this particular door say or not say about them?

Without any further commentary here are the doors of Paris.

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12 Responses to “The doors of Paris: a photo essay”

  1. Genevieve Howard

    Isn’t it funny how each one has a personality (friendly or formal, almost impenetrable or impressive) I can’t pick a favorite. Each one could be a seed for a tiny story! Who lives there? What happens behind it? Great idea for a post. It really spoke to me because doors is in my book title that’s coming out this summer. Thanks for the moment in Paris.

    Reply
  2. Sean Crawford

    Hi Scott,
    Neat photos.
    If you were having a Toastmasters (public speaking) Club meeting and everyone wrote a hobby on a piece of paper, and you wrote “takes pictures of doors on my travels” then I wonder if people would guess it was you?

    At my club, to my surprise, they easily guessed it was me who “takes photos of train cabooses.” …No longer part of the railroad company, the cars sit in the most amazing places, often as museum pieces.

    Reply
    1. Scott

      Abandoned train tracks and cars tell quite a story, as there was a time when they were as important and exciting to people as the Internet is today.

      Reply
  3. Terrie Monroe

    I just missed you. I’m in Paris right now and marveling again at the beauty, heft and diversity of the doors. And the complexity of French apartment entry system and locks. Each place I stay here has a completely different type of key.

    Reply
    1. Scott

      I couldn’t figure out how to use the WP Gallery and have full size images show up in the post. It only allows thumbnails it seems.

      Reply
      1. Vivek Aseeja

        You can post them on flickr and link on the blog. I believe WP imports them.

        Reply
  4. Paul Sas

    Fun to see. It’s a great idea to thematically constrain photography in a trip to a kaleidoscopically fascinating place like Paris. I’m planning to visit this summer. You’ve planted a (cacao?) seed for picking my theme.

    Reply
  5. Woody Norvell

    Wish you had included the addresses of these doors. I’m going back to Paris next year. I know where some of them are, but I would LOVE to know where that steel “Deco” doorway is!

    Reply
    1. Scott Berkun

      You’re right – that would have been helpful :( I didn’t think of it at the time.

      Reply

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