photog friday: photojournalism and the presidency

Photojournalism and the Presidency. What a special place to be a photographer... the White House. Pete Souza, Obama's White House photographer sums this up well...

"Imagine someone combing through my photographs of President Obama in 2510. That really makes me realize that this is visual history I am recording with my camera." 

What a special place to be last week but among 13 photojournalists that have had this opportunity. It's one thing to sit in the basement here and look at Okamoto's photos of LBJ all day long, but another to actually talk to the people that were behind the camera. This was a very special night, so here are a few more pictures...

Davide Hume Kennerly, David Valdez, Me, & Eric Draper

photog friday: dan winters

Photog Friday is back on track!

Dan Winters. Last Friday I got to meet Dan Winters! He was Icon No. 16 for the photography series hosted by the Austin Center for Photography. It was great to get an in-depth look and hear the stories behind some of his most famous images. Best part besides getting to meet him? The fact that he had to turn down the lights in the auditorium until we could only see his face occasionally lit by his computer screen because he was nervous. All photographers are the same in this way. We can turn our camera to the world, but when it is turned on us we hide. Where do we go? Who we are is hidden in our photographs.

The photograph below, is the closest thing I have to anything resembling a Dan Winters photograph, or even channeling him. I love this photo of First Lady Barbara Bush. This was in the Green Room before going onstage for "The Enduring Legacies of America's First Ladies: Reflections of First Ladies" on November 15, 2012. It was the LBJ Presidential Library's final program of the season and one of the highlights of my photography career. Here, she was talking to David Valdez, who was the Bush's photographer during their time at the White House. I love the look on her face, happy to see an old friend, very regal and proud, like a mother looking at a son.

First Lady Barbara Bush - November 15, 2012