place-photos

Sample code supporting Google Maps Platform JavaScript API documentation. author(s): Geo Developer IX Documentation Team

HTML

<!doctype html>
<!--
 @license
 Copyright 2026 Google LLC. All Rights Reserved.
 SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
-->

<html lang="en">
    <head>
        <title>Place Photos</title>
        <link
            href="https://fonts.googleapis.com/css2?family=Inter:wght@400;700&display=swap"
            rel="stylesheet" />
        <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="./style.css" />
        <script type="module" src="./index.js"></script>
        <script>
            // prettier-ignore
            (g=>{var h,a,k,p="The Google Maps JavaScript API",c="google",l="importLibrary",q="__ib__",m=document,b=window;b=b[c]||(b[c]={});var d=b.maps||(b.maps={}),r=new Set,e=new URLSearchParams,u=()=>h||(h=new Promise(async(f,n)=>{await (a=m.createElement("script"));e.set("libraries",[...r]+"");for(k in g)e.set(k.replace(/[A-Z]/g,t=>"_"+t[0].toLowerCase()),g[k]);e.set("callback",c+".maps."+q);a.src=`https://maps.${c}apis.com/maps/api/js?`+e;d[q]=f;a.onerror=()=>h=n(Error(p+" could not load."));a.nonce=m.querySelector("script[nonce]")?.nonce||"";m.head.append(a)}));d[l]?console.warn(p+" only loads once. Ignoring:",g):d[l]=(f,...n)=>r.add(f)&&u().then(()=>d[l](f,...n))})({
                key: "GOOGLE_MAPS_API_KEY"
            });
        </script>
    </head>
    <body>
        <div id="container">
            <div class="place-overview">
                <div id="info">
                    <h1 id="heading"></h1>
                    <div id="summary"></div>
                </div>
                <button id="randomize-btn">Random City Photo</button>
            </div>
            <div id="expanded-image"></div>
        </div>
    </body>
</html>

CSS

/**
 * @license
 * Copyright 2026 Google LLC. All Rights Reserved.
 * SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
 */

/* 
 * Optional: Makes the sample page fill the window. 
 */
html,
body {
    height: 100%;
    margin: 0;
    padding: 0;
    font-family: 'Inter', sans-serif;
    background: linear-gradient(135deg, #1e1e2f, #252540);
    display: flex;
    align-items: center;
    justify-content: center;
}

#container {
    display: flex;
    background: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.05);
    backdrop-filter: blur(16px);
    -webkit-backdrop-filter: blur(16px);
    border: 1px solid rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.1);
    border-radius: 20px;
    padding: 30px;
    max-width: 900px;
    width: 100%;
    box-sizing: border-box;
    box-shadow: 0 25px 50px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.3);
    color: white;
}

.place-overview {
    flex: 1;
    display: flex;
    flex-direction: column;
    justify-content: center;
    margin-right: 40px;
}

#info {
    position: relative;
}

#heading {
    font-size: 2.5rem;
    font-weight: 700;
    margin-top: 0;
    margin-bottom: 15px;
    background: linear-gradient(90deg, #fff, #a5b4fc);
    -webkit-background-clip: text;
    -webkit-text-fill-color: transparent;
}

#summary {
    font-size: 1.1rem;
    line-height: 1.6;
    color: #cbd5e1;
}

#expanded-image {
    position: relative;
    width: 400px;
    height: 400px;
    border-radius: 16px;
    overflow: hidden;
    box-shadow: 0 15px 35px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.4);
    transform: perspective(1000px) rotateY(-5deg);
    transition: transform 0.5s ease;
}

#expanded-image:hover {
    transform: perspective(1000px) rotateY(0deg) scale(1.02);
}

#expanded-image img {
    width: 100%;
    height: 100%;
    object-fit: contain;
}

#randomize-btn {
    margin-top: 20px;
    padding: 12px 24px;
    font-size: 1.1rem;
    font-weight: bold;
    color: white;
    background: linear-gradient(90deg, #4f46e5, #3b82f6);
    border: none;
    border-radius: 12px;
    cursor: pointer;
    transition:
        transform 0.2s,
  ...

JavaScript

'use strict';
/**
 * @license
 * Copyright 2026 Google LLC. All Rights Reserved.
 * SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
 */

const CITIES = [
    { name: 'New York', id: 'ChIJOwg_06VPwokRYv534QaPC8g' },
    { name: 'London', id: 'ChIJdd4hrwug2EcRmSrV3Vo6llI' },
    { name: 'Paris', id: 'ChIJD7fiBh9u5kcRYJSMaMOCCwQ' },
    { name: 'Tokyo', id: 'ChIJ51cu8IcbXWARiRtXIothAS4' },
    { name: 'Rome', id: 'ChIJu46S-ZZhLxMROG5lkwZ3D7k' },
];

async function init() {
    const { Place } = await google.maps.importLibrary('places');

    const heading = document.getElementById('heading');
    const summary = document.getElementById('summary');
    const expandedImageDiv = document.getElementById('expanded-image');
    const randomizeBtn = document.getElementById('randomize-btn');

    async function showRandomCityPhoto() {
        randomizeBtn.disabled = true;

        // Pick a random city
        const city = CITIES[Math.floor(Math.random() * CITIES.length)];

        try {
            const place = new Place({ id: city.id });
            await place.fetchFields({
                fields: ['displayName', 'photos', 'editorialSummary'],
            });

            heading.textContent = place.displayName ?? city.name;
            summary.textContent = place.editorialSummary ?? '';
            expandedImageDiv.innerHTML = '';

            if (place.photos && place.photos.length > 0) {
                // Pick one of the first 10 photos
                const maxPhotos = Math.min(10, place.photos.length);
                const randomIndex = Math.floor(Math.random() * maxPhotos);
                const photo = place.photos[randomIndex];

                const img = document.createElement('img');
                img.alt = `Photo of ${place.displayName ?? city.name}`;
                img.src = photo.getURI({ maxHeight: 800 });
                expandedImageDiv.appendChild(img);

                if (photo.authorAttributions.length) {
                    expandedImageDiv.appendChild(
 ...