Photography (developed in the mid-nineteenth century) offered a new level of veracity and realism and soon became the preferred medium for depicting tourist sites. Seen as a technical craft rather than an art, photography was also used to document the Haussmannian transformations of Paris, as in the images by Charles Marville and Jean Pierre Philippe Lampué. As the new medium developed into an art, important twentieth-century French photographers were inspired by the beauty of Parisian rooftops, such as André Kertész (1894-1985), André Fage (1883-1948), and Willy Ronis (1910-2009). To this day, contemporary artists such as Bruno Réquillart (1947-) and Michael Wolf (1954 -) continue to explore the aesthetic qualities of the Parisian cityscape.

Paris has also figured in countless movies. Inspired by its unique architecture, directors have made Paris the backdrop for thrillers [Frantic (1988) The Da Vinci Code (2006)], romantic comedies [Under the Roofs of Paris (1930) An American in Paris (1951) or Midnight in Paris (2011)] and children fantasy films [The Aristocats (1970), Hugo (2011)], to name but a few. These films showcase the city’s slippery slate and zinc roofs, helpful attic windows, romantic balconies, and connecting walls, where these elements convey a dangerous, nostalgic, or romantic atmosphere at will. Paris offers something to everyone; as Cole Porter so eloquently put it in his 1953 song, “I love Paris every moment of the year…”

十九世紀中期發明的攝影技術讓捕捉景物更為便捷，因而面世不久就被用來記錄城市的風光。最初攝影被視為一門技藝而不是藝術，早期有關巴黎的攝影也主要作記實或存檔的用途。展覽所見馬維爾和林佩埃的攝影作品都是當時奧斯曼的現代化工程的檔案紀錄。隨著攝影的藝術性被大眾認可，二十世紀有幾位攝影師都嘗試捕捉巴黎屋頂之美，其中就以柯特茲（1894-1985）、法格（1883-1948）和羅尼（1910-2009）為表表者。到今天，這股吸引力並未稍歇；攝影師如赫基亞（1947年生）或沃爾夫（1954年生）等仍繼續用鏡頭發掘巴黎景觀的美。

巴黎也在無數的電影出過場。對導演們來說，巴黎犬牙交錯的建築就是萬能的佈景。驚悚片如《亡命夜巴黎》（1988）、《達文西密碼》（2006）；浪漫喜劇如《風月今宵》（又譯

《巴黎屋簷下》，1930）、《花都艷舞》（又譯《一個美國人在巴黎》，1951）、《情迷午夜巴黎》（2011）；兒童片如《貓兒歷險記》（1970）及《雨果的巴黎奇幻歷險》（2011）等，都以巴黎為背景。這些電影把巴黎的屋頂、閣樓、陽台、毗接的外牆整合在鏡頭裡，營造出一股危險而懷舊的浪漫氣氛。說到底，任何人彷彿總可以在巴黎獲得一點甚麼，就像高爾波特1953年的歌曲《我愛巴黎》所唱道，我「熱愛巴黎，一年每個時刻都愛她......」