Photographing Ben Thanh Market: What to Shoot, and When

Most visitors photograph Ben Thanh Market once — a phone shot from the roundabout, taken on the way past. The building rewards a little more than that. Its four facades carry a set of 1952 ceramic bas-reliefs, its clock tower survived the 1985 rebuild, and its facades were repainted and given decorative lighting in 2023. None of that is obvious from the square unless you know what you are looking at and which hour the light does the work.

This guide is a shoot list, not a gallery. It sets out what is actually worth photographing on the building and inside it, where each subject sits, the best time to shoot it, and how to do it without getting in the way of the people who work there. Everything below is tied to the market's own published information and its official opening hours — the market's official page is benthanhmarket.vn.

The shoot list

Five subjects are worth planning a visit around. The table gives the short version; each is explained underneath.

Subject Where it is Best time Why it works
The 1952 ceramic bas-reliefs On all four faces of the market, above the gateways Late morning to mid-afternoon, when the facades are lit Twelve Biên Hòa ceramic panels of local flora and fauna by the artist Lê Văn Mậu — the building's most distinctive artwork and the least photographed part of it
The clock tower Above the South Gate (Cửa Nam) on Công trường Quách Thị Trang Golden hour and after dark The front form and clock tower are the elements retained in the 1985 renovation, so they are the oldest surviving part of the elevation
Repainted facades and night lighting All four facades After sunset The Management Board repainted the four facades and installed decorative lighting in 2023, adding a night photo and check-in point to the city centre
Lê Thánh Tôn flower-and-fruit frontage The North Gate (Cửa Bắc) frontage on Lê Thánh Tôn Morning Fruit, fresh flowers and artificial flowers — the most colourful exterior elevation of the market
Interior aisles and food zones Zones Khu vực I–IV; the dining zone Ô 4C ("ẩm thực"); fresh food and vegetables in Zones III and IV (Ô 3C–3F, 4E–4F) Early morning Stall geometry, hanging bulbs and colour blocks read best before the crowds and the midday heat arrive

The 1952 ceramic bas-reliefs

In 1952, twelve ceramic bas-reliefs by the artist Lê Văn Mậu were mounted on all four faces of the market. They are made of Biên Hòa ceramic — a celebrated southern Vietnamese ceramic line — and depict local flora and fauna. They sit high on the elevation, so a long lens or a step back across the road will frame them better than standing underneath. Shoot them straight on rather than at an angle: the panels are shallow, and raking light from the side is what flattens the relief.

The clock tower

The market was built by the contractor Brossard et Maupin, begun in 1913 and completed in 1914. When the interior and stalls were rebuilt between 1 July and 25 August 1985, the front form and the clock tower were deliberately retained. That makes the tower the one part of the elevation that has watched the whole history of the site. The obvious frame is from the square looking north at the South Gate; the less obvious one is from further back, so the tower sits above the gate's arches rather than filling the frame alone.

The repainted facades and the night lighting

In 2023 the Management Board repainted the four facades and installed decorative lighting on the market, adding a night photo and check-in point for the city-centre area. Treat this as what the 2023 works put in place rather than as a nightly guarantee — the lighting is part of the building's evening appearance, and the honest way to describe it in a photo caption is simply "the facade lighting installed in 2023".

The Lê Thánh Tôn frontage

The street frontage on Lê Thánh Tôn — the North Gate, Cửa Bắc — sells fruit, fresh flowers and artificial flowers. It is the most colourful exterior elevation on the building, and the easiest place to get colour into a frame without any staging. Come in the morning, when the stalls are being set out and the light is soft.

Interior aisles and food zones

Inside, the market is divided into four zones (Khu vực I–IV) with numbered sub-areas. The dining zone is Ô 4C, known as "ẩm thực" (eating); fresh food and vegetables sit in Zones III and IV (Ô 3C–3F and Ô 4E–4F). These numbers matter if you are looking for a particular aisle rather than wandering — the interior is a grid, and the zone-and-number labels are the fastest way to describe where you were to someone else. Our market plan, what's sold where at Ben Thanh Market, maps each of the four areas and their Ô sub-areas to the stall-number ranges and the products they hold, so you can go straight to the aisle you want to shoot.

Times and light

The market is officially open 07:00–22:00 daily, with public holidays and Tết announced separately. Fresh-food and eating stalls open from 04:00. Those two facts set the shooting day more than any other:

  • Shortly after 04:00 — the fresh-food section is working while most of the building is still shut. This is the quietest window of the day, and it is a photographer's recommendation rather than a rule: early trade is brisk, so work around it.
  • Around opening, 07:00 — the aisles are at their emptiest, which suits wide shots of the stall grid before the tour groups arrive. Morning light is the best of the day for the interior aisles; again, that is judgement, not a published fact.
  • Late morning to mid-afternoon — the facades are lit and the reliefs are readable. This is the window for the building itself rather than its interior.
  • After dark — the repainted facades and the 2023 decorative lighting take over, and the market becomes an evening subject in its own right.

If you are planning the visit around the light rather than the clock, the opening hours and best-times guide sets out the market's daily rhythm in more detail.

Getting the whole building

The market covers more than 13,000 m², with 16 doors opening onto four streets and four large gates: the South Gate (Cửa Nam) on Công trường Quách Thị Trang, the North Gate (Cửa Bắc) on Lê Thánh Tôn, the East Gate (Cửa Đông) on Phan Bội Châu, and the West Gate (Cửa Tây) on Phan Chu Trinh.

That layout is the practical answer to "where do I stand" — the four gates give you four clean, unobstructed angles, one per street, instead of the one crowded view most visitors get. The clear frames come from stepping back onto the square or across the street opposite a gate. Our map page shows the position and the surrounding streets, and the about page covers the gates and the building's history in more depth.

Photographing people and stalls respectfully

Two things are worth knowing before you raise a camera.

First, the market's own rules ask everyone inside to guard their own money and property and stay alert to theft. A crowded market is a crowded market, and the same advice that applies to a wallet applies to a camera and a phone — keep them close, and do not leave a bag open on a stall counter while you frame a shot.

Second, if people or their goods are in the frame, ask first. Our own guidance, and the long-standing courtesy of the market, is to check with a vendor before photographing people or their products; buying something from a stall you have photographed at length is the simplest way to give something back. This is guidance rather than a market rule — the market's published rules do not mention photography at all — but it is the difference between a good morning and a bad one.

One useful fact: entry is free. Visitors pay no entry fee, so there is no gate price to factor in.

Frequently asked questions

Can I take photos inside Ben Thanh Market?

Yes. There is no entry fee and the market's published rules contain no photography ban and no "photo permit" or photography fee. Normal courtesy applies to photographing people and stalls (see above).

What is the best time to photograph Ben Thanh Market?

Two windows do the most work. Shortly after 04:00, when the fresh-food and eating stalls are trading and the market is quietest, for interiors; and after dark, when the repainted facades and the 2023 decorative lighting are the subject.

What is the artwork above the doors?

They are the 1952 ceramic bas-reliefs by Lê Văn Mậu — twelve panels of Biên Hòa ceramic, spread across all four faces of the market, depicting local flora and fauna.

Are drones allowed over the market?

We found no published rule on drones, in either direction. Do not assume permission: check with the Management Board before flying, and expect that a crowded, covered market with four surrounding roads is not a sensible place to put a drone up regardless.

How old is the building, and what survived the rebuild?

The market was built by Brossard et Maupin between 1913 and 1914 and inaugurated over 28–30 March 1914. The interior and stalls were rebuilt in 1985; the front form and the clock tower were retained. The facades were repainted and lit in 2023. More background is on our history page.

Related guides

The market's own official pages are the primary source for the building's features, the reliefs and the 2023 works: the market's introduction page and benthanhmarket.vn.