Candid Camera: President Obama's Final Year Captured In Photo From Each Month

The U.S. presidency and still photography have been intimately entwined since the image-capturing technology was invented in 1839. Although the evidence of it has been lost, William Henry Harrison was the first sitting president to be photographed, reportedly having his picture taken after giving his inaugural address in 1841.

As President-elect Donald Trump prepares to be sworn in Friday, photographers — from the media to the official White House staff — are preparing to train their lenses on the new chief executive to capture him during the inauguration, as well as the next four years. Trump is no shrinking violet when it comes to playing for the camera, but he will be following one of the most photogenic presidents in American history, a world leader who always seems to be in his comfort zone when he's caught on film (or pixels, as the early 21st century case may be).

During his two terms, President Barack Obama had talent for charming the camera that rivals photo-friendly predecessors, such as John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan. His ability to appear natural and at ease in pictures is punctuated by his effortless and disarming smile. Obama also has an enviable and infuriating knack for never looking too goofy in photos that would be otherwise humiliating, especially for a dad of two adolescent daughters.

Pete Souza has been the chief official White House photographer since Obama took office in 2009, and the former Chicago Tribune photojournalist has collected some of his favorite daily photos taken by him and other White House staff photographers during the president's final year in office.

Patch went through those monthly galleries compiled by Souza, who also served as a White House staff photographer for Reagan, and chose the images — one for each month in 2016 — that captured Obama during some of his less-than-formal and almost-candid moments as leader of the free world.

Go to the White House website to look at more photos in the galleries.

JANUARY

Jan. 18: Obama reacts to losing at Rock, Paper, Scissors during a Martin Luther King Jr. Day event at Leckie Elementary School in Washington, D.C. (photo by Pete Souza)

FEBRUARY

Feb. 4: Maj. Gen. Julie A. Bentz photographs Obama and University of Alabama Heisman Trophy winner Derrick Henry striking "Heisman" poses after the National Prayer Breakfast at the Washington Hilton in Washington, D.C. (photo by Pete Souza)

MARCH

March 10: Obama holds a baby and greets audience members with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau after reviewing the troops during the State Arrival ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House. (photo by Pete Souza)

APRIL

April 13: Obama blows bubbles with Jacob Leggette, 9, during the White House Science Fair in the Blue Room. (photo by Pete Souza)

MAY

May 10: Obama sits in a rocking chair given to him by the University of Connecticut's women's basketball team in the White House Blue Room. (photo by Pete Souza)

JUNE

June 21: Obama does an agility drill with U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. John "Jae" Terry at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. (photo by Pete Souza)

JULY

July 14: Obama hugs Eliana Pinckney and her younger sister Malana Pinckney, daughters of the Rev. Clementa Pinckney, a victim in the 2015 Charleston church shooting. The Pinckney sisters — along with their mother, Jennifer (left) — were part of "The President and the People: A National Conversation," an ABC-ESPN "town hall" event concerning race and policing. (photo by Pete Souza)

AUGUST

Aug. 24: Obama uses a virtual reality visor in the White House Outer Oval Office to watch footage taken during his visit to Yosemite National Park earlier in 2016. (photo by Pete Souza)

SEPTEMBER

Sept. 29: Obama performs his best split with the gold medal-winning 2016 U.S. Olympic Women's Gymnastics Team as First Lady Michelle Obama looks on. (photo by Pete Souza)

OCTOBER

Oct. 31: Obama flexes in front of Superman — aka Walker Earnest, son of Press Secretary Josh Earnest — in the Lower Cross Hall of the White House before welcoming local Halloween trick-or-treaters at the South Portico. (photo by Pete Souza)

NOVEMBER

Nov. 23: President Barack Obama pardons Tot, the National Thanksgiving Turkey, with help from the president's nephews, Austin and Aaron Robinson, and National Turkey Federation Chairman John Reicks during a ceremony in the Rose Garden. (photo by Pete Souza)

DECEMBER

Dec. 15: Actress Octavia Spencer — accompanied by actress Taraji P. Henson (far right) — can't contain her emotion after meeting Obama, who made a surprise visit before a screening of "Hidden Figures" with the first lady and the film's cast at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. The president is seen here shaking hands with actor Kevin Costner. (photo by Pete Souza)

A Look Into the Future?

Oct. 3: Obama has never been shy about poking fun at himself in pictures, a quality evident in this photo of him sitting with a Lego statue before the South by South Lawn event at the White House. Is this how the soon-to-be-former president will be spending his free time after Friday? (photo by Pete Souza)

More via the White House website

More Patch Coverage of Obama's Final Days in Office

• WATCH: Chicago Cubs Visit President Barack Obama at the White House
• Watch It Again: Full Video Of President Obama's Farewell Speech
• Full Transcript of Obama's Farewell Address
• President Obama's Farewell Speech: What to Know Before Watching His Historic Address

President Barack Obama walks through the Rose Garden to the Oval Office after an all-appointees summer event June 13, 2016, on the White House South Lawn. (photo by Pete Souza)

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