Works on display hail from all over the world, some 110 galleries from 30 countries showcase and sell some of their finest photography. The images tend to be of all different styles and times: from 19th Century to modern and contemporary.  There are also a dedicated space for book publishers and international specialized bookstores, various book-signing events and opportunities to talk with the artists scheduled in, so you can see what you’re most interested in.

This year there will be a special focus on African photography – of African communities of all types, by African photographers ranging from Bamako to Cape Town.  One particular programme within Paris Photo exploring this theme is Bamako Encounters, which has given the opportunity to select young African photographers, who have been invited to take part in the exhibition, to display and promote their work.

Prior to 2011, the exhibition has taken place in the Carrousel du Louvre, but this year it has stepped up in the world and has been moved to the Grand Palais, a building worth visiting in its own right.  Adjacent to the Petit Palais and the fabulously ornate Pont Alexandre III (otherwise known as the bridge with all the golden statues and curly lampposts on it), the Grand Palais was built for the 1900 Universal Exposition which would draw crowds from all over the world, and was correspondingly fabulous.  The Palais is ostentatious and flanked on all sides by stone pillars and sculptures, but the roof is the best bit – it is made of heavily domed and arched glass, throwing the interiors into the kind of light relief needed before electricity was prevalent.  If you can time a trip to the Grand Palais with the Paris Photo, you’ll be killing two wonderfully cultural birds – one old, one new – with one stone.

The Paris Photo Exhibition runs from Thursday 10th to the Sunday 3rd, in every case opening at noon but ending at 7pm on Sunday, 8pm on Thursday and Saturday, and giving a late night opening on Friday until 9.30pm.  Full price tickets at €25, but if you are the lucky carrier of a student card that drops to €12, and if you have kids in tow then know that if they are under twelve they can go for free.  If you wish to buy both a ticket and a catalogue, detailing everything in the exhibition should you be up for some purchasing, then the price for the combination of the two is €40.

For more information on the full programme and what to see and do, check out www.parisphoto.fr.