Moody in Paris

Paris can be moody, or perhaps it is just the way I photograph it. This past Summer seemed especially quiet in the city and I went out often to take photos, usually being the only person on a street. Maybe it is in part due to the financial situation, but tourists seemed to stay away this year, all but other Europeans, most noticably Italians and Germans. Parisians fled the city as if to escape an impending doom. Summer is probably not the best time to come to Paris as a tourist. So much is closed and hours for attractions are changed, sometimes shortened, but for natives, it can be quite nice. Parks stay open later. People stay out late, prolonging going back to cramped and heated apartments. Picnics spring up in unexpected places, like sidewalks and the banks of the Seine, or the metro. Still, the heat! The quiet streets in the mornings. The sun casts long shadows and Paris can take on a feel of a German Expressionist film. There could be something around the next corner. Nothing menacing, but just the promise of a surprise. I love these moments.