From the outset, the SFP (French photography society) has held exhibitions and published catalogues. This goes back to 1855, just a year after the society was founded in Paris by a group of passionate experimental photographers.
By the end of the 19th century, the SFP had taken on an international outlook: in its reviews produced by international reporters, and in its exhibitions that looked beyond national boundaries. At the turn of the 20th century, the first international fine art photography fair marked the start of a series of travelling exhibitions visiting different countries. Half a century later, after the last show held in 1953, the SFP started to run two kinds of event: retrospective exhibitions drawing on its historical collections, and themed exhibitions involving photo clubs from across the world.
