See 18 of the Most Incredible Pictures Taken at the Paris Olympics So Far

Getty photographers reveal the secrets behind some of the most breathtaking images from the Paris Olympics

From the beach volleyball court under the Eiffel Tower to the fencing stage within the Grand Palais, the 2024 Paris Olympics have been nothing short of photogenic.

Luckily for fans watching from home, Getty has been on the ground capturing match after match and game after game. With more than 140 photographers and editors snapping more than 5 million images across the span of the Games, they’ve seen it all, from Katie Ledecky’s record-breaking swims to France’s dramatic rugby sevens win.

Here, Getty photographers share with PEOPLE their favorite images from the Games, and reveal the tricks they used to capture picture-perfect, once-in-a-lifetime moments.

Swimming Stars

Photographer Maddie Meyer snapped this shot of Turkey's Kuzey Tuncelli with an underwater camera during the heats for the men's 800-meter freestyle on July 29.

"I love how the bubbles trail behind the swimmers as they dive into the pool, showing the power generated from their push off the blocks," she says.

Though bubbles can sometimes block the view of the athletes when it comes to snapping photos, Meyer points out that this one shows Tuncelli's face clearly.

"I like the precision in which his hands are stacked and how he and the other competitors create shapes that run parallel to the lane ropes," she explains.

Golden Boy

This is how a gold medal feels!

Ka Long Cheung of Team Hong Kong (R) reacted with an epic celebration as he won gold against Italy's Filippo Macchi on July 29.

Louvre by Light

Though the Olympic cauldron may look like it's lit, it's actually not. The cauldron, seen here with the Louvre, as shot by Julian Finney on July 26, is 100% electric thanks to a combination of a cloud of mist and beams of light.

In all, there are 40 LED spotlights in use to light the mist cloud, which is being created by 200 "high-pressure misting nozzles" as a means of avoiding the use of carbon fuels, since the cauldron needs to be "lit" for nearly three weeks.

Aerial View

A remote camera set up over the indoor volleyball helped snag this shot of Turkey taking on the Netherlands on July 29.

"During the match I was using a remote trigger to capture the action and editors picked it out and made a fantastic crop," says photographer Christian Petersen, who worked with staff photographer Richard Heathcoat on this one. "I love the simplicity of this as the setter puts the ball in a perfect spot for Eda Erdem to open up and hit it. It's clean, well balanced, colorful, and as a team, we nailed it."

Hep, Hep, Hooray

Pictures of gymnasts on the rings are typically tight, close-up shots. But photographer Jamie Squire opted to shoot Team Great Britain's Harry Hepworth wider, and from below, on July 27 during men's gymnastics qualifications.

"I realized I could line up the athletes with the lights and also show how high they are off the ground," he says. "The fact that he is upside down and has let go of the rings along with the low angle might be what makes the image a bit different from traditional images of an athlete competing on the apparatus."

Rushing Waters

Adam Burgess took home a silver medal for Team Great Britain in the men's C-1 final on July 29.

This photo, captured by Justin Setterfield, shows Burgess's joy as he floats at Vaires-Sur-Marne Nautical Stadium.

Lights Galore

It's not called the City of Light for nothing!

On July 26, the Olympics rings were illuminated on the Eiffel Tower during the opening ceremony, while spectators looked on from beneath an umbrella. This shot, showing off the spectacular display of light, was captured by photographer Ryan Pierse.

Soaring Success

Photographer Clive Brunskill says he thought that Spain's Carlos Alcararez could beat his first opponent, Lebanon's Hady Habib, with ease on July 27.

Brunskill says he didn't think Habib "would make Alcaraz stretch," but he ultimately did, leading to this shot.

"After waiting countless balls, a ball went super wide, which Alcaraz normally would let go," he says. "But he lifted off the clay and threw himself at the ball, resulting in the image you see here, with the ball compressed against the bracket strings at point of contact."

Field Hockey Foes

When photographer Alex Pantling shoots field hockey games — like this one on July 27 — he makes sure to shoot from an elevated angle, as it "increases your chances of getting an interesting picture," he says.

"That was proven here in the men's match between Australia and Argentina as the two players [Eddie Ockenden and Agustin Mazzilli] stretch to control the ball and win possession for their team," he says.

Flying High

The setting sun provided the perfect backdrop to the Olympic cauldron on July 28.

Photographer Maja Hitij says she purposely stood back in order to show the large crowds — and their iPhones capturing pictures of their own.

"At 10 p.m. when the Eiffel Tower started sprinkling, they lifted the cauldron, and everyone started cheering," she says. "It was a special moment to be part of."

Hometown Hero

Team France's Antoine Dupont "doesn't show too much emotion" on the rugby sevens field — so when he does, "you need to react pretty quickly," says photographer Hannah Peters.

Lucky for Peters, she was ready, and grabbed this epic shot of Dupont celebrating on July 27 after scoring a try against Fiji in the match that would eventually bring Team France a gold medal.

"The crowd was so loud in this moment and the adrenaline kicks in," she says. "It was a fantastic event to be at and a great start to the Olympics for France."

Ooh La La

Artist Peter Spens opted to capture his view not with a camera but with a paintbrush.

Photographer Michael Reaves snapped this shot of Spens painting the Eiffel Tower as Team Sweden took on Team Australia during the men's preliminary phase - pool A match on July 27.

Vault Queen

Photographer Dan Mullan says this shot — taken of Brazil's Rebeca Andrade on July 28 during qualifications — is "one of my favorite images" that he's taken so far at the Games.

Mullan used a robotic camera from above that he controls from the stands to catch Andrade performing her vault routine.

"I framed this image to include the colorful spotted floor and pink edges to the mat," he says. "I was waiting for an athlete to perform this type of vault as you get to see their face pointing toward camera as Rebeca Andrade arches her back into the vault."

En Garde!

Paris's Grand Palais provides a stunning backdrop for fencing events — and photographer Al Bello spent two days trying to get the lighting just right, as it is in this photo of Ka Long Cheung of Hong Kong and Filippo Macchi of Italy on July 29.

"The light was not right, the judges kept walking in the way. I could not get to the position I wanted," says Bello. "Then for a very short time span all the elements lined up. All I needed to do was wait for the athletes to do their fencing dance on stage and fall in the right spot. When I saw them in the spot I wanted to be in, I captured the moment."

Parisienne Projections

Though gymnast Simone Biles captured her four medals inside Paris's Bercy Arena during the Olympics, her athletic feats were projected for all the city to see on big screens as part of a project called Parisienne Projections.

"The idea of the project is to tell the story of profound Olympic moments, as well as its profound host city," says photographer Carmen Mandato, who captured this shot in Montmartre on July 28. "There is no better canvas than the streets of Paris to display the story of the Olympic Games."

Silver Smooch

A seemingly stunned Tom Daley showed off his new hardware (a silver medal in the men's synchronized 10-meter platform final) as Great Britain teammate Noah Williams gave him a kiss on the cheek.

This photo, showing the joy the competition can brings, was captured by Clive Rose on July 29.

City of Light

The Eiffel Tower is an iconic symbol of Paris, and during the Olympics, it's also host to the venue for beach volleyball.

Photographer Hector Vivas says this shot, taken on July 27, is part of a photo series called Layers of the Games, in which a fixed camera shoots the most important moments of a game or competition, and Vivas then layers the photos together in post-production to achieve a special effect.

"In our minds, we had visualized a great sunset that day, and the day was cloudy and rainy," he says of this shot. "Luckily, in the last moments of the afternoon, the sky cleared and allowed us to do what we already had in our minds."

Fathoms Below

Photographer Adam Pretty was looking forward to this July 27 heat race "for a long time," as it featured Team USA's Katie Ledecky and Ariarne Titmus of Australia going head-to-head in the women's 400-meter freestyle.

"I wanted to capture the start so that I could also capture the finish," he says. "I set my camera up just after the dive to try and frame the athletes symmetrically, and just before or right as they hit the water."

Pretty then triggered the underwater robotic camera, capturing the race's finish — and telling the "whole story."

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