J. Sybylla Smith, In Conversation with Pete Souza
Episode #22 Summary:
A visual biography of three presidential terms and an historical archive of America, documenting the values, character and personality of these positions of power.
Episode Notes
Chief Official White House Photographer, Pete Souza, shares specifics of his career-defining role documenting the Obama presidency. Through our candid conversation and his generous response to questions, we receive insights and behind-the-scenes stories of his iconic images. Pete explains how he, with skill and intent, used the visual archive he created to expose the truth of the Trump years in his book, Shade.
In this episode, Pete discusses, among other things:
The primary message is to document for history aka not for social media platforms
Being in the room when shit is going down
90% of documenting is the in-between-moments
Inspirational documentary photographers
Gender parity in the White House Photo Office
Editing as the act of selection
The value of collaborating with a photo editor
Creating a searchable photo archive
Secret rose garden weddings and famous pets
Referenced in the episode
David Guttenfelder, John Moore, Drew Angerer, Mark Ostow
Seacoast African American Center Exhibit
Published by Little Brown