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The White House Photo Office
Documenting two administrations of Barack Obama

From 2009 until late 2013, I worked alongside a talented group of photographers, picture editors, and a photo archivist that made up the White House Photo Office. As a picture editor first, and then as the deputy director, I collaborated with just about every department in the White House during my years serving President Barack Obama and his administration. 

The most important job of the White House Photo Office is to build and maintain an archive of images documenting the President and their administration, as mandated by the Presidential Records Act (PRA). As the first administration to have a completely digital photography team, we quickly established workflow and captioning standards for the entire staff to follow. 

My wire service and magazine background served me well during my time at the White House as we needed to focus on both very short-term demands, as well as how our work would serve the public in decades to come. On average, some 3,000 images would be generated daily. However, on busy days the totals were more significant. During my tenure, the largest daily total was close to 12,000 pictures. As part of the editing team, I was responsible for ingesting photographers' images, editing and selecting photographs for use on different platforms, and curating features like Photo of the Day. 

As the deputy director, I helped coordinate daily coverage, worked closely with the National Archives, oversaw the upgrade and transition to a new version of our digital asset management system, and worked on special projects, while also maintaining my role as a picture editor. 

Chief Photographer - Pete Souza

Photographers -  Samantha Appleton

                            Sonya Hebert

                            Lawrence Jackson

                            Chuck Kennedy

                            David Lienneman

                            Amanda Lucidon

 

Picture Editors - Al Anderson

                          Alice Gabriner

                          Rick McKay

                          Jenn Poggi

                          Jim Preston

                          Amy Rossetti

Digital Imaging Specialists/Editors - Shelby Leeman

                                                         Jared Ragland                          

Archivist - Janet Phillips

IT Specialist - Tim Harville

Office Administrators - Katy Bradley

                                    Anna Ruch

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Healthcare 2010

Year In Photos 2009

Year In Photos 2010

Year In Photos 2011

Year In Photos 2012

Year In Photos 2013

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