Louis Daguerre, Boulevard du Temple, Paris, 1838. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. Image reversed to correct the daguerreotype’s mirror view.
In the spring of 1838, Louis Daguerre pointed his camera out of his Paris studio window towards the Boulevard du Temple. The resulting photograph shows an almost deserted street. In reality, the boulevard was busy: the exposure lasted several minutes, so passing pedestrians and horse-drawn traffic moved too quickly to register clearly.[^1]
Two people, however, stayed still long enough to enter photographic history. A man having his shoes polished, and the shoe shiner attending to him—possibly a child—appear near the bottom of the image. Their ordinary transaction became one of the earliest surviving photographs of human beings.[^1]
On 15 October 2026, Paris unveiled a bronze plaque marking the spot where they stood, on today’s Place de la République, in what would have been the continuation of Rue du Faubourg-du-Temple. The plaque is titled “Un détail imprévu”—“An Unexpected Detail.”[^2]
Its inauguration formed part of the Bicentenaire de la Photographie, a programme of exhibitions and events running from September 2026 to September 2027 to commemorate photography’s beginnings with Nicéphore Niépce around 1826–27.[^3]
Finding that spot took two years. Filmmakers Maximilien Van Aertryck, Axel Danielson and Kalle Boman worked with historical archives, old maps and three-dimensional reconstructions. Three surviving buildings provided crucial reference points. The photograph also had to be flipped horizontally: a daguerreotype produces a mirror image, which can make the scene misleading when compared with modern Paris.[^2]
The image itself has had a precarious survival. Daguerre gave the original plate to King Ludwig I of Bavaria in 1839. Later damaged by damp and an unsuccessful restoration, it is now barely legible. The familiar view survives through a photographic reproduction made in 1936.[^2]
Were these really the first people ever photographed? That remains disputed: another Daguerre image, a portrait known as “M. Huet”, may date from 1837. The identities of the shoe shiner and his customer remain unknown. We can now locate their small encounter in the city, but we still cannot give either figure a name.[^4]
Bicentenaire de la Photographie: browse the official programme here.
Footnotes & References
[^1]: Mairie du 10ᵉ arrondissement de Paris, “[Place de la République, l’histoire de la photographie sous vos pieds](https://mairie10.paris.fr/pages/place-de-la-republique-l-histoire-de-la-photographie-sous-vos-pieds-36948),” updated 20 October 2026. Describes the circumstances of the photograph, the exposure time and the two figures.
[^2]: Ville de Paris, “[« Un détail imprévu » fait revivre un cliché historique](https://www.paris.fr/pages/un-detail-imprevu-fait-revivre-un-cliche-historique-36437),” updated 15 October 2026. Documents the plaque, the investigation into the figures’ location and the deterioration of the original daguerreotype.
[^3]: Ministère de la Culture, “[Bicentenaire de la Photographie, 200 ans de photographie : célébrons les regards](https://www.culture.gouv.fr/presse/dossiers-de-presse/bicentenaire-de-la-photographie-200-ans-de-photographie-celebrons-les-regards),” 3 September 2026. The programme runs from 1 September 2026 to 30 September 2027. See also Ministère de l’Éducation nationale, Éduscol, “[Éduquer au regard avec le Bicentenaire de la Photographie](https://eduscol.education.gouv.fr/7074/eduquer-au-regard-avec-le-bicentenaire-de-la-photographie),” which dates Niépce’s *Point de vue du Gras* to 1826 or 1827.
[^4]: Martin Fort, “[The first man ever photographed: A 200-year-old mystery](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/m-le-mag/article/2026/10/17/the-first-man-ever-photographed-a-200-year-old-mystery_6758699_117.html),” *Le Monde*, 17 October 2026, updated 2 November 2026.
