This black-and-white photograph, taken by Henri Cartier-Bresson in 1952, shows a foggy morning on Île de la Cité. The Pont Neuf bridge spans the Seine, framing the island’s landscape with its bare trees and the faint outlines of the city’s historic buildings in the background.

This image is one of my favorite works by Cartier-Bresson, probably because I’m drawn to this view of the Île de la Cité, where the mist creates a quiet, timeless scene. I’ve photographed this same spot many times myself, but in present-day Paris, I’ll never capture a photo as sparse as his, with the modern city’s clutter always in the frame.

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