Is it true that Eiffel Tower is forbidden to take pictures at night?

It is common that the main attraction of Paris can be removed only in the daytime. We checked whether this conviction of reality corresponds.

The warnings for travelers who want to capture the details of their trip to the French capital are actively replicated on the Russian -speaking Internet. They are transmitted, in particular, Travel agencies And the thematic portal "Rambler / Travel". There is a similar statement in several publications of the British tabloid The Sun, with reference to which were shared by "news" in different years "RIA Novosti", Baltic Internet portal DELFI, TV channel "Star" And the site "Vesti.ru" - Part of the state holding of VGTRK.

The 324-meter tower in the center of Paris was built according to the project of Gustav Eiffel to the World Exhibition of 1889. According to the French Intellectual Property Code, Eiffel Tower (like any other structure) Can To photograph without any restrictions regardless of the time of day, if the pictures are not subsequently used for commercial purposes. This confirms And the information published on the official website of the company, which is engaged in the use and preservation of the famous monument.

However, in the dark, the backlight, which was installed in 1985, on the Eiffel Tower, on the Eiffel Tower. Unlike the attraction itself, the illumination is not considered a public treasure, so photography at night You can do it Only with the permission of the management company. At the same time, there is an important reservation on her site: “Types of the Eiffel Tower taken by private individuals for private use do not require preliminary approval.” In turn, “professionals” who want to capture the illuminated tower and subsequently use the image, for example, on souvenir products or advertising, are required to coordinate the shooting.

In the era of social networks, “private use” of photographs often implies their publication on the Internet. In this regard, ordinary tourists can also not worry. First, how noted The authors of the 2014 article in Art Law Journal, it is almost impossible to track all tourists with night photos of the Eiffel Tower on Instagram, and suing them is simply unprofitable. Secondly, and the main management company in 2020 on its website reportedthat you can share photos without any restrictions. Moreover, according to judicial practice, even professional photographers Not obliged To request permission if the image of the illuminated tower is just part of the landscape and is “auxiliary”.

Photo: Société d’ Exploite de la Tour Eiffel

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Read on the topic:

1. IS it Illegal to Take Photographs of the Eiffel Tower at Night?
2. 10 Urban Legends About The Eiffel Tower Debunked
3. S. LipovetSky & E. de Dampierre. The Protiation of the Image of a Building undr french Law: Where Judges Create Law