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Obama’s Photographer to Release Behind-the-Scenes POTUS Photo Book

Pete Souza is selecting his 300 best White House pics—out of 10,000 photos—for a new book called 'Obama: An Intimate Portrait: The Historic Presidency in Photographs.'
President Barack Obama makes Thanksgiving Day phone calls from the Oval Office. Photo by Pete Souza

You see a lot when you're the White House's official photographer: the president signing bills, playing with his kids, getting 3D-scanned, hanging with press on Air Force One, and making speeches and life-changing decisions in the situation room. Pete Souza, photographer and friend to the 44th president, has landed a deal to showcase 300 revealing moments in a book titled Obama: An Intimate Portrait: The Historic Presidency in Photographs.

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When Donald Trump's administration swooped into office scrubbing all mention of climate change, LGBTQ issues, civil rights, and progressive healthcare reform from the White House's websites, Souza's extensive photographic archive of Barack Obama's presidency also disappeared. Souza's always-on-point Instagram feed resurfaces many of his photos, often contextualizing the Trump administration's behavior with similar moments during Obama's time in office. Most recently he's highlighted Obama's accomplishments during his first 100 days in office.

Obama: An Intimate Portrait: The Historic Presidency in Photographs, which follows Souza's 2009 book, The Rise of Barack Obama, will be published by Little, Brown, and Company on November 7, 2017. Check out more pictures we want to see the likes of from the National Archives and Records Administration Flickr account below.

April 9, 2015 "The President's wave aligns with a rainbow as he boards Air Force One at Norman Manley International Airport prior to departure from Kingston, Jamaica. Read my Behind The Lens account of this photograph: bit.ly/1NMjCjHtk ." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

President Barack Obama delivers remarks with the help of comedic actor Keegan-Michael Key during the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner in Washington, D.C., April 25, 2015. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)

President Barack Obama holds a bobblehead doll of himself in the Outer Oval Office, May 14, 2014. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) 

June 17, 2015 "The President carries the twin boys of Katie Beirne Fallon, Director of Legislative Affairs, into the Oval Office just a few months after they were born." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) 

Nov. 15, 2014 "The President holds a koala backstage prior to the G20 Welcome to Country Ceremony at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Center in Brisbane, Australia." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) 

March 27, 2015 "The First Lady snuggled against the President during a video taping for the 2015 World Expo in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House." (Official White House Photo by Amanda Lucidon) 

President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden participate in a "Let's Move!" video taping on the Colonnade of the White House, Feb. 21, 2014. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) 

Nov. 21, 2015 "The President talks with a young refugee at a Dignity for Children Foundation classroom in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. She was working on a painting." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) 

President Barack Obama delivers remarks during the event to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of Bloody Sunday and the Selma to Montgomery civil rights marches, at the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Ala., March 7, 2015. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) 

June 23, 2015 "The President checks out a thunderstorm brewing outside." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) 

Nov. 19, 2014 "Lawrence Jackson captured the President busting out in laughter as he and the First Lady recorded a holiday video message in the Map Room of the White House." (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson) 

Oct. 30, 2015 "This is the first time the same child has made two appearances in the Year in Photos. But it was difficult to not again include Ella Rhodes, daughter of Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes, after the President lifted her in her elephant costume that she was wearing for a Halloween event at the White House." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) 

June 8, 2015 "We were at the G7 Summit in Krün, Germany. Chancellor Angela Merkel asked the leaders and outreach guests to make their way to a bench for a group photograph. The President happened to sit down first, followed closely by the Chancellor. I only had time to make a couple of frames before the background was cluttered with other people." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) 

Oct. 30, 2015 "The President and First Lady react to a child in a pope costume and mini popemobile as they welcomed children during a Halloween event on the South Lawn of the White House." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

July 16, 2015 "In July the President became the first sitting President to visit a federal prison. Here the President departs El Reno Federal Correctional Institution in Oklahoma with Valerie Jarrett and Secret Service agent Rob Buster." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) 

President Barack Obama walks through the Cross Hall of the White House, Aug. 8, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) 

Pre-order Obama: An Intimate Portrait: The Historic Presidency in Photographs on Barnes and Noble or Amazon. See more photos on Pete Souza's Instagram account, and follow Creators here to find your next favorite artist.

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