Tampa Photography Blog

There’s always a debate about how much access the White House Press Corps should have to the President of the United States.

The latest blunder occurred when the Obama family traveled to Panama City Beach, Florida last weekend. Only one member of the White House staff was allowed to accompany the family to the beach to shoot photos; the other photographers were kept at a hotel for a few hours while the President swam in the ocean.

The White House said the reason they did this was because it was easier to coordinate with a staffer than the press corps. The photographers know it was because showing a bare-chested President Obama in photographs is not a good idea. It happened once before and stirred lots of controversy for the President (see first photo).

The press corps wanted to document the event because seeing the President swim in the Gulf waters after the BP oil spill could be very symbolic. It could help calm the nation’s fears after what has been months of problems due to the spill.

So many interesting and intimate photos have surfaced that were shot because there was great access and a smart photographer captured the moment. I hope the White House sees the value in this and doesn’t keep the photographers at bay.

*Photo credits: (top) unknown; (bottom) Reuters*