Places to Take Amazing Photos in Beyoğlu

Celebrated with various events every year, 19 August World Photography Day is a very special day for both professional and amateur photographers. For photography, we can say that recording light on a sensitive surface is a kind of recording the moment. Taking photos is a way of life for those who love this hobby. We celebrate this special day for all photography lovers.

The first city that comes to mind for photographers who want to take pictures in historical places is undoubtedly Istanbul. Especially Beyoğlu contains countless historical places that deserve to be photographed. No matter which district you go to, it is very difficult to choose among the places to take photos in this unique district, where every part of it smells of a different experience. Therefore, you may need a guide to discover the places to decorate your photo frame. We have compiled places with magical beauties that you can take photos of in Beyoğlu.

1. Istiklal Avenue

Istiklal Street is one of the first places that comes to mind when Beyoğlu is mentioned. This street has been the subject of perhaps millions of photographs so far. Istiklal Street has the distinction of being the most cosmopolitan area in Turkey. This feature has made it the main place to take photos. Istiklal Street is one of the most colorful streets where you can take wonderful photos with its nostalgic red tram, passages that are selling clothes, various jewelry shops, seafood restaurants, pudding shops, bagel shops, chestnuts, and historical buildings.

2. Çiçek Pasajı (Flower Passage)

Located on Istiklal Street, Çiçek Pasajı(Flower Passage) was built in 1876 on the land of the Naum Theater, which was destroyed by fire. The ownership of this building, which was called ‘Hristaki Passage’ at that time, passed to Grand Vizier Küçük Said Pasha in 1908. With the opening of many flower shops during the armistice years, the place, which was known as ‘Hristaki Passage’ until then, took the name ‘Çiçek Pasajı’ (‘Flower Passage’). Today, restaurants have replaced flower shops in the passage. An ostentatious facade architecture is dominant on the front of the building, the main material of which is completely stone. Çiçek Pasajı (Flower Passage), the most decorated building of Beyoğlu; The human and lion heads in the middle of the top floor, and the caryatides used on the facade, is an extremely striking structure. With its fascinating exterior architecture and interior decoration covered with elegant ornaments, it is an ideal place for those who want to take photos with nostalgic compositions.

3. French Street

The street behind Galatasaray High School is also known as Algeria Street or Algeria Dead End. French Street has an eye-catching beauty with its colorfully painted buildings, cute cafes and restaurants, and art galleries. It is possible to take photos on the street that every viewer will want to look at again.

4. Galata Tower

Galata Tower was built by the Genoese as part of the Galata Walls during the Byzantine Empire. The building, which was used as a dungeon for a while during the Ottoman period, was later converted into a fire lookout tower. Later, it was restored by the Istanbul Municipality. After its restoration in 2020, it opened its doors to visitors as a museum. In addition, Galata Tower, which is on UNESCO’s Tentative List of World Heritage in Turkey, is one of the only places that can be preferred for photography with its magnificence and beauty.

5. Pera Museum

The building, built in 1893 by Architect Achille Manoussos in Istanbul’s favorite district Tepebaşı, was completely restored by Architect M. Sinan Genim and turned into a museum in 2005. Pera Museum, which has brought many important works of art together with art lovers, is a wonderful option for photography enthusiasts who want to add artistic elements to their photographs.

6. Banks Street

Banks Street, which covers Voyvoda Street in the Karaköy district and the streets around it, is one of the most well-known districts of Istanbul. The street, which was one of the financial centers of the Ottoman Empire, still hosts many insurance companies and banks today. Banks Street fascinates everyone with its buildings that smell of history. You can take architectural and outdoor photos on the street.

7. Çukurcuma Faik Paşa Street

Located in Cihangir Çukurcuma, this street is the most popular street in Çukurcuma. When Faik Paşa Street was founded, there were rich people on one side of the street and the houses of the employees who served them on the other side. For this reason, while the architecture of some of the houses on the street is quite simple, some of them have ornate architecture. You can catch perfect frames in this historical street.

8. Adile Naşit Çıkmazı

This historical dead-end street, which you will see when you pass the famous Asri Turşucusu in Cihangir and turn right about 100 meters ahead, is one of the few original streets of Cihangir. Adile Naşit Çıkmazı, which awaits you with its buildings, each of which is made up of eye-catching colors; it is the right choice for taking admirable photos with artistic aesthetics.

9. Çukurcuma Antiques Shopping

Çukurcuma is the place where even those who come without knowing what they are looking for remember what they are looking for when they find it. Çukurcuma’s shops, which host all kinds of old goods and antiques, are one of the most beautiful places where you can take magnificent photographs with compositions where history and art are intertwined.

Pera Palace Hotel

Witnessing many historical milestones from the collapse of the Ottoman Empire to the proclamation of the Republic, Pera Palace Hotel, hosted the most important figures in history such as İsmet İnönü, Queen II. Elizabeth, Alfred Hitchcock, Ernest Hemingway, Agatha Christie, and especially Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. Pera Palace Hotel; With its splendid atmosphere, unique architecture and decoration, and traces of its deep-rooted historical past at every point, it is undoubtedly a place where your hand will go to the shutter button by itself. At Pera Palace Hotel, you can take captivating and enchanting photos.

 

These articles may also be of interest to you:

History of Yeşilçam Street and Its Contributions to Beyoğlu

Beautiful Stories About Old Beyoğlu

A Warm Glance at Beyoğlu: Activity Suggestions So That You Can Enjoy the Summer