It’s always excited and an enormous privilege to photograph a President. Photographing George W Bush was no exception. In fact, he’s the third living President that I’ve been honored to capture.
It takes a lot of planning, logistics and a Herculean effort by many to make these shoots happen. After a number of calls with the Secret Service, I was cleared for our recent shoot (shout out to all the team who helped that happen!).
I decided to opt against strobes and create a more relaxed environment by utilizing two large continuous lights that were color matched with the ballroom that we were in. The aim was to flood his face with soft, diffused light to. I really wanted to showcase his relaxed and personable demeanor.
In fact, post presidency, he has taken up painting and you can find some of his books here. I’d highly recommend them.
This was the second time I’d photographed him and once again he was a joy to be around; funny, smart, witty, quick as a whip and incredibly easy to work with. My aim was to capture this more relaxed, jolly and laid back side of his personality that perhaps was not seen frequently during his Presidency. I can’t release any of the photos just yet but stay tuned!
An out take from my photoshoot with President George W Bush