Pete Souza Captures the Humanity of Presidents

The former White House photographer of two presidents spoke about capturing their humanity through his photos at Central Michigan University. 

Pete Souza, who documented the presidencies of Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama, shared personal stories and insights during his presentation. He talked about the impact of still photography and showed his work to the crowd at Plachta Auditorium.

“It was very unusual to photograph him being so contemplative. When we arrived at the hospital, I captured a moment of him kissing Nancy,” Souza said. He described a photo of Reagan alone on a helicopter around the time his wife, Nancy, underwent breast cancer surgery.  

Souza aimed to showcase the humane moments. He photographed Obama's rise to the presidency, and talked about a powerful photo taken just before Obama announced his candidacy. He stated, “The symbolic part of this picture is that he was about to walk out this door, and his life would never be the same.”

Souza showed Obama’s emotional responses to tragedies like the Sandy Hook shooting. This included photos of Obama hugging his daughter after he talked about the importance of hugging your children extra tight in a speech addressed to Americans. 

“The real cost of war was sitting right in front of me,” Souza stated after he showed a photo of Obama visiting a wounded soldier who he had met and taken a photo with months prior to the tragedy. 

Souza talked about his approach to photography, which allowed him to capture genuine reactions and interactions. “I was very unobtrusive... two cameras, very quiet,” he said. This method led to memorable photos, such as Obama fist-bumping a White House janitor.

After the speech, audience member Zoey Morse shared her thoughts on Souza's work. “It was very heavy at points, but it was absolutely beautiful to see that our leaders are actual people. They have emotion and show love,” she said.

Souza’s insights and photos show the audience that behind the politics, presidents are human too. Discussing Obama, he stated, “To me, it was the unexpected little moments that showed his humanity.”