Portuguese Centre of Photography — Attraction in Porto

FREE ENTRY

If you’re visiting Porto you will definitely visit the Clérigos Church and Tower so while you’re there; why not visit this “Hidden Gem”which is a hundred yards further up the hill . I call it a “Hidden Gem” because I walked past it twice before I spotted it. (In my defence there was no signage on the building). This was formerly a prison and dates back to 1767 so it’s worth visiting even if you’re not interested in photography just to see the massive walls and iron gates that kept the inmates inside.

There are a number of small exhibits and collections on the ground and second floors including a very interesting one on the part photography played in criminal investigation and also cataloguing prisoners.

The icing on the cake for me though, was the very impressive collection of cameras and photographic equipment on the top floor ranging from the earliest of equipment to more...

This museum is free to enter, and it's located in a building that used to be the local prison. So, even if you're not totally intrigued by photography, navigating the museum space is an adventure of its own. There were a few different photography exhibits, a lot of which called for community involvement in portraying their neighborhoods and interpersonal relationships, which often lacks in many other art museums. On the top floor, there is a quite exhaustive collection of all different sorts of cameras, which is interesting if you're intrigued by the subject material, but otherwise, only really worth a few minutes of your attention. It was quite an effective...

Four excellent things about this place:

1. Contains interesting photographic exhibitions and an extensive museum of camera equipment.

2. Architecturally fascinating, a former prison atop courts below, all with a massive scale.

3. The history of the prison, including a few “famous” prisoners, and the exhibition reflecting on the dehumanising use of photography are fascinating.

4. The top floor has magnificent views of Porto.

All this AND IT’S FREE!!

It’s close by the church (Dos Clerigos) and the bookstore (Livraria Lello) that both frustratingly charge entry and are overrun with visitors and queues. This museum was a...