DIY Photography

Your one stop shop for everything photo-video

  • News
  • Inspiration
  • Reviews
  • Tutorials
  • DIY
  • Gear
Search

Submit A Story

Presidential portrait

Biden and Harris photographed with Sony A9 II; the first presidential portraits shot on a mirrorless camera

Apr 12, 2021 by Dunja Djudjic 30 Comments
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

The White House has released the official portraits of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. An interesting thing is that they were taken on a Sony A9 II, unlike portraits of two former presidents that were shot on Canon cameras. Also, these are the first Presidential portraits to be shot on a mirrorless camera.

[Read More…]

FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

President Trump’s new official portrait lacks pro lighting and definition

Nov 1, 2017 by John Aldred 60 Comments
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

The White House have released new official portraits for both President Trump and Vice President Pence. Pence’s actually looks pretty good, but Trump’s? Not so much. If I didn’t know better, I’d say it just looks like a smartphone grab shot with ambient room light.

The portraits were shot by two different photographers. Shealah Craighead and D. Myles Cullen photographed Trump and Pence, respectively. The newly released Trump portrait does offer a more friendly pose and expression than the last one, but the bad lighting and messy background really lets it down.

[Read More…]

FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

This is the oldest known portrait of a U.S. President

Aug 18, 2017 by Dunja Djudjic Add Comment
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

There’s an interesting story about the oldest presidential portrait known so far. The sixth U.S. president John Quincy Adams sat for a photographer in August 1843, and the daguerreotype emerged in an antique shop in 1970, priced at 50 cents. Today it sits in the National Portrait Gallery as the oldest survived photo of an American president. However, today, almost 50 years later, another daguerreotype has appeared. It’s older, and it also seems to have an interesting story.

[Read More…]

FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

Pete Souza photographs “House of Cards” president Frank Underwood

May 23, 2017 by Dunja Djudjic 2 Comments
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

Former presidential photographer Pete Souza has found himself in the familiar role again. This time, he photographed the fictional president Frank Underwood from House of Cards. Kevin Spacey plays the president in this popular Netflix series, and he played the role perfectly in front of Souza’s lens.

Souza, Spacey and Michael Kelly (who plays chief of staff Doug Stamper) were hitting the iconic landmarks of Washington D.C., taking photos for “presidential” portfolio. Souza has already shared some of the photos on his Instagram profile. And as always, he’s done a fantastic job.

[Read More…]

FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

Trending Quizzes

DIYP Quiz: So, you think you know film cameras?

quiz film camera from the back

DIYP Quiz: Cameras in the movies

diyp quiz cameras movies

DIYP Quiz: How much storage does it have?

diyp quiz how much storage

more quizzes

Pete Souza announces new photography book “Obama: An Intimate Portrait”

Apr 28, 2017 by Dunja Djudjic 2 Comments
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

Former White House photographer Pete Souza has announced a new book. Titled “Obama: An Intimate Portrait: The Historic Presidency in Photographs,” the book shows around 300 of the photographer’s favorite and most iconic images from the years of Barack Obama’s presidency. Some are the photos we’re familiar with, and some of them have never been seen before.

[Read More…]

FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

Photographing the President: an overview and interesting facts about all presidential photographers

Jan 25, 2017 by Allen Murabayashi Add Comment
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

The importance of presidential photography cannot be understated in today’s visual world. Although the bulk of photography since the inception of regular presidential photography in the 1950s still consists of “grip and grin” photo ops, White House photographers have sought to capture a more intimate look at the leader of the free world. Press access to the President varies by administration (a criticism that dogged the Obama administration), but White House photographers have access to private or top secret moments that are a vital part of the historical record – from 9/11 to the assassination of Osama bin Laden.

“I’m going to document every meeting that you have. It’s for history,” said Pete Souza, Chief White House Photographer under President Barack Obama, in an interview with National Geographic. “This job is about access and trust, and if you have both of those, hopefully you’re going to make interesting and historic pictures.”

[Read More…]

FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

Obama’s official portrait was taken with a Canon 5D Mark II. Trump’s with a Canon 1Ds Mark III, which is even older

Jan 21, 2017 by Udi Tirosh 53 Comments
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

Here is an argument that may shut the race for new gear. President’s Trump’s official portrait was taken with a Canon 1Ds Mark III. Now, it’s a great camera, but it’s also almost a decade into the market. It was announced in august, 2007. President Obama’s portrait, on the other hand, was taken with a Canon 5D Mark II. (Obama was also the first president to have his portrait taken with a digital camera – and we owe that to Pete Souza).  Obama’s second portrait, by the way, was taken with a 5D mark III (Announced March, 2012)

Here is the interesting thing though, the 5D mark II was announced on Sep, 2008, it’s actually a year newer than the 1Ds Mk III that was used to photograph president Trump.

[Read More…]

FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

Submit A Story

Get our FREE Lighting Book

DIYP lighting book cover

* download requires newsletter signup
DIYPhotography

Recent Comments

Free Resources

Advanced lighting book

Recent Posts

  • DIYP talks: The truth about cine lenses revealed
  • Opticull uses AI to cull out duplicates, blurry and photos with blinking people
  • Pentax K3 monochrome review – what a great camera!
  • Aputure’s F14 Fresnel Lens is motorised for remote focus control
  • The Aputure Electro Storm XT26 is a 2600 watts bi color beast LED light

Udi Tirosh: from diyphotography.netUdi Tirosh is an entrepreneur, photography inventor, journalist, educator, and writer based in Israel. With over 25 years of experience in the photo-video industry, Udi has built and sold several photography-related brands. Udi has a double degree in mass media communications and computer science.

Alex Baker: from diyphotography.netAlex Baker is a portrait and lifestyle driven photographer based in Valencia, Spain. She works on a range of projects from commercial to fine art and has had work featured in publications such as The Daily Mail, Conde Nast Traveller and El Mundo, and has exhibited work across Europe

David Williams: from diyphotography.netDave Williams is an accomplished travel photographer, writer, and best-selling author from the UK. He is also a photography educator and published Aurora expert. Dave has traveled extensively in recent years, capturing stunning images from around the world in a modified van. His work has been featured in various publications and he has worked with notable brands such as Skoda, EE, Boeing, Huawei, Microsoft, BMW, Conde Nast, Electronic Arts, Discovery, BBC, The Guardian, ESPN, NBC, and many others.

John Aldred: from diyphotography.netJohn Aldred is a photographer with over 20 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter - and occasional beta tester - of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.

Dunja Djudjic: from diyphotography.netDunja Djudjic is a multi-talented artist based in Novi Sad, Serbia. With 15 years of experience as a photographer, she specializes in capturing the beauty of nature, travel, and fine art. In addition to her photography, Dunja also expresses her creativity through writing, embroidery, and jewelry making.

Copyright © DIYPhotography 2006 - 2023 | About | Contact | Advertise | Write for DIYP | Full Disclosure | Privacy Policy