White House Releases Photographs
These images are by Pete Souza, the official White
House photographer. Souza and his team have unparalleled
behind-the-scenes access to President Barack Obama, his family and
staff.
Jan. 1, 2012: "A nice way
to celebrate the New Year for the President was to jump in the ocean in
his native state of Hawaii. He was on his annual Christmas vacation
with family and friends, and went swimming at Pyramid Rock Beach in
Kaneohe Bay."
Jan. 24, 2012: "One of
the most memorable moments of the year was when the President hugged
Rep. Gabrielle Giffords as he walked onto the floor of the House Chamber
at the U.S. Capitol to deliver his annual State of the Union address."
Feb. 7, 2012: "Kids will
be kids. After the President had welcomed Lauren Fleming, the March of
Dimes national ambassador, and her family in the Oval Office, her
brother, Corbin Fleming, started to play with the President's telephone.
Fortunately, he wasn't able to get through to a head of state."
March 30, 2012: "We had just arrived aboard the Marine One
helicopter on the South Lawn and the President was walking into the
White House. I had seen this scene several times but had never been able
to quite capture it the way I wanted. Here, finally, arriving at night,
I was able to frame him walking into the light of the Diplomatic
Reception Room, with the added bonus of his shadow being cast from the
television lights off to the left."
April 24, 2012: "We were backstage at the University of North
Carolina in Chapel Hill for the President's appearance on 'Late Night
with Jimmy Fallon.' The President let out a big laugh as he was being
briefed by the producers and Mr. Fallon on the 'Slow Jam the News'
segment."
May 20, 2012: "'How cool is this,' the President said after
he threw a football at Soldier Field following the NATO working dinner
in Chicago. I think he was especially excited to be on the home turf of
his beloved Chicago Bears."
May 25, 2012:: "The President was welcoming service members
and their families to a screening of 'Men in Black 3' in the White House
Family Theater. The movie was being presented in 3D, so the President
jokingly asked them to try on their 3D glasses while he was speaking to
them."
June 15, 2012:: "We had just arrived at the helicopter
landing zone in Chicago and instead of walking right to the motorcade,
the President and First Lady walked past their vehicle to the edge of
Lake Michigan to view the skyline of their home town."
July 5, 2012: "'Anyone want to try a piece of my strawberry
pie,' the President asked those at adjacent tables during a stop for
lunch at Kozy Corners restaurant in Oak Harbor, Ohio. A young boy said
yes and came over for a big bite of pie."
July 14, 2012: "The
President delivers remarks in the pouring rain at a campaign event in
Glen Allen, Va. He was supposed to do a series of press interviews
inside before his speech, but since people had been waiting for hours in
the rain he did his remarks as soon as he arrived onsite so people."
July 16, 2012: "The
President and First Lady were attending the game between the U.S. Men's
Olympic basketball team and Brazil in Washington, D.C. During the first
half, the jumbotron flashed couples on their 'Kiss Cam', where they are
then induced by the crowd to kiss each other. But neither the President
or First Lady saw themselves when they were flashed on the 'Kiss Cam',
and some in the audience booed when they didn't kiss. At halftime, as we
walked to the locker room to visit the U.S. team, daughters Malia and
Sasha were asking their parents why they hadn't kissed during their
'Kiss Cam' moment. Both the President and First Lady said they hadn't
even realized what had happened and didn't know why people were booing.
So in the second half, when they appeared again on the 'Kiss Cam', the
President leaned over to kiss the First Lady amongst audience cheers as
Malia and the Vice President watched overhead on the jumbotron."
July 22, 2012: "The
President hugs Stephanie Davies, who helped keep her friend, Allie
Young, left, stay alive after she was shot during the movie theater
shootings in Aurora, Colo. The President visited patients and family
members affected by the shootings at the University of Colorado
Hospital. The President later told their story in a news conference."
July 26, 2012: "A view from behind the President's chair during a Cabinet meeting in the Cabinet Room."
Aug. 8, 2012: "Overcome
with emotion, eight-year old Make-A-Wish child Janiya Penny reacts just
after meeting the President as he welcomes her family to the Oval
Office."
Aug. 14, 2012: "The President waves from his campaign bus to people lining the motorcade route in Iowa."
Aug. 15, 2012: "The President hugs the First Lady after she
had introduced him at a campaign event in Davenport, Iowa. The campaign
tweeted a similar photo from the campaign photographer on election night
and a lot of people thought it was taken on election day."
Sept. 5, 2012: "Backstage at the Democratic National
Convention, the President watches as former President Bill Clinton
delivers his nomination speech, before surprising the crowd with an
onstage appearance together after the speech."
Sept. 7, 2012: "The President and Vice President share a laugh before a campaign rally together in Portsmouth, N.H."
Sept. 14, 2012: "The President grasps the hand of the
Secretary of State after his remarks during the ceremony at Joint Base
Andrews, marking the return to the United States of the remains of J.
Christopher Stevens, U.S. Ambassador to Libya; Sean Smith, Information
Management Officer; and Security Personnel Glen Doherty and Tyrone
Woods, who were killed in the attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi,
Libya."
Oct. 26, 2012: "The President pretends to be caught in
Spider-Man's web as he greets the Nicholas Tamarin, 3, just outside the
Oval Office. Spider-Man had been trick-or-treating for an early
Halloween with his father, White House aide Nate Tamarin in the
Eisenhower Executive Office Building. I can never commit to calling any
picture my favorite, but the President told me that this was HIS
favorite picture of the year when he saw it hanging in the West Wing a
couple of weeks later."
Nov. 15, 2012: "The President had just met with the U.S.
Olympics gymnastics team, who because of a previous commitment had
missed the ceremony earlier in the year with the entire U.S. Olympic
team. The President suggested to McKayla Maroney that they recreate her
'not impressed' photograph before they departed."
Nov. 15, 2012: "The President tries to comfort Damien and
Glenda Moore at a FEMA Disaster Recovery Center tent in Staten Island,
N.Y. The Moore’s two small children, Brandon and Connor, died after
being swept away during Hurricane Sandy."
