**European Economic Area (EEA) developers** > [!NOTE] > If your billing address is in the European Economic Area, effective on 8 July 2025, the [Google Maps Platform EEA Terms of Service](https://cloud.google.com/terms/maps-platform/eea) will apply to your use of the Services. Functionality varies by region. [Learn more](https://developers.google.com/maps/comms/eea/faq.md.txt). **Note: Server-side and client-side libraries** The Places API is also available with the [Java Client, Python Client, Go Client and Node.js Client for Google Maps Services](https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/places/web-service/client-library). The Places API and the client libraries are for use in server applications. Looking to use this service in a JavaScript application? Take a look at the [Places Library, Maps JavaScript API](https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/javascript/places). > [!NOTE] > This product is in [Legacy status](https://developers.google.com/maps/legacy.md.txt). As of October 2026, Places API (Legacy) can no longer be enabled for new Google Cloud projects. Existing projects remain fully supported. For new features and improved performance, [migrate > to Places API (New)](https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/places/web-service/legacy/migrate-overview). Place Photos (Legacy), part of the Places API, is a read- only API that lets you add high quality photographic content to your application. Place Photos (Legacy) gives you access to the millions of photos stored in the Places database. When you get place information using a Place Details request, photo references will be returned for relevant photographic content. Find Place (Legacy), Nearby Search (Legacy), and Text Search (Legacy) requests also return a single photo reference per place, when relevant. Using Place Photos (Legacy) you can then access the referenced photos and resize the image to the optimal size for your application. ## Place Photos (Legacy) requests A Place Photos (Legacy) request is an HTTP URL of the following form: ``` https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/place/photo?parameters ``` Certain parameters are required to initiate a search request. As is standard in URLs, all parameters are separated using the ampersand (`&`) character. The list of parameters and their possible values are enumerated below. ## Required parameters ### photo_reference A string identifier that uniquely identifies a photo. Photo references are returned from either a Place Search or Place Details request. ### maxheight or maxwidth `maxheight` specifies the maximum preferred height, in pixels, of the image. If the image is smaller than the values specified, the original image will be returned. If the image is larger in either dimension, it will be scaled to match the smaller of the two dimensions, restricted to its original aspect ratio. `maxwidth` specifies the maximum preferred width, in pixels, of the image. If the image is smaller than the values specified, the original image will be returned. If the image is larger in either dimension, it will be scaled to match the smaller of the two dimensions, restricted to its original aspect ratio. Both the `maxheight` and `maxwidth` properties accept an integer between `1` and `1600`. You must specify either `maxheight`, or `maxwidth`, or both. ## Photo references All requests to Place Photos (Legacy) must include a `photo_reference`, returned in the response to a Find Place (Legacy), Nearby Search (Legacy), Text Search (Legacy), or Place Details (Legacy) request. The response to these requests will contain a `photos[]` field if the place has related photographic content. > [!NOTE] > **Note:** The number of photos returned varies by request. - A Find Place (Legacy), Nearby Search (Legacy), or Text Search (Legacy) request returns at most one `photo` element in the array. - A Place Details (Legacy) request returns up to ten `photo` elements. Each `photo` element contains the following fields: - `photo_reference` --- a string used to identify the photo when you perform a Place Photos (Legacy) request. - `height` --- the maximum height of the image. - `width` --- the maximum width of the image. - `html_attributions[]` --- contains any required attributions. This field will always be present, but may be empty. Photos returned by Place Photos (Legacy) are sourced from a variety of locations, including business owners and user contributed photos. In most cases, these photos can be used without attribution, or will have the required attribution included as a part of the image. However, if the returned `photo` element includes a value in the `html_attributions` field, you must include the additional attribution in your application wherever you display the image. > [!CAUTION] > **Caution:** You cannot cache a `photo_reference`. Also, a `photo_reference` can expire. Ensure that you always get the `photo_reference` from the response to a request to [Place Details (Legacy)](https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/places/web-service/details), [Find Place (Legacy)](https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/places/web-service/search-find-place), [Nearby Search (Legacy)](https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/places/web-service/search-nearby), or [Text Search (Legacy)](https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/places/web-service/search-text). For more information, see the caching restrictions stated in Section 5.4 of the [Google Maps Platform Service Specific > Terms](https://cloud.google.com/maps-platform/terms/maps-service-terms) The following example shows a Place Details (Legacy) request: ``` curl "https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/place/details/json?placeid=ChIJcUElzOzMQQwRLuV30nMUEUM&key=YOUR_API_KEY" ``` An example of the `photos[]` array in the response is shown below. ```json ... "photos" : [ { "html_attributions" : [], "height" : 853, "width" : 1280, "photo_reference" : "ATJ83zhSSAtkh5LTozXMhBghqubeOxnZWUV2m7Hv2tQaIzKQJgvZk9yCaEjBW0r0Zx1oJ9RF1G7oeM34sQQMOv8s2zA0sgGBiyBgvdyMxeVByRgHUXmv-rkJ2wyvNv17jyTSySm_-_6R2B0v4eKX257HOxvXlx_TSwp2NrICKrZM2d5d2P4q" }] ... ``` ## Place Photos (Legacy) example An example request is shown below. This request returns the referenced image, resizing it so that it is at most 400 pixels wide. ```html https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/place/photo?maxwidth=400&photo_reference=ATJ83zhSSAtkh5LTozXMhBghqubeOxnZWUV2m7Hv2tQaIzKQJgvZk9yCaEjBW0r0Zx1oJ9RF1G7oeM34sQQMOv8s2zA0sgGBiyBgvdyMxeVByRgHUXmv-rkJ2wyvNv17jyTSySm_-_6R2B0v4eKX257HOxvXlx_TSwp2NrICKrZM2d5d2P4q&key=YOUR_API_KEY ``` > [!NOTE] > **Note:** Replace the API key in this example with your own API key for the request to work in your application. ## Place Photos (Legacy) response The response of a successful Place Photos (Legacy) request is an image. The type of the image depends upon the type of the originally submitted photo. If your request exceeds your available quota, the server returns an HTTP 403 status and displays the below image to indicate that the quota has been exceeded: ![Over Quota image](https://developers.google.com/static/maps/documentation/maps-static/images/quota.png) If the server is unable to understand your request, then it returns HTTP 400 status, which indicates an invalid request. The most common reasons for an invalid request include: - The submitted photo reference was not correctly specified. - The request did not include either the `maxwidth` or the `maxheight` parameters. - The value for either the `maxwidth` or the `maxheight` parameter was set to `null`. - The `photo_reference` has expired. If `photo_reference` expires, make a request to [Place Details (Legacy)](https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/places/web-service/details), [Find Place (Legacy)](https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/places/web-service/search-find-place), [Nearby Search (Legacy)](https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/places/web-service/search-nearby), or [Text Search (Legacy)](https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/places/web-service/search-text) to get the updated `photo_reference` value.