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The beginning
As President Barack Obama’s time in office comes to an end, we take a trip through the past eight years, through images captured by White House photographer Pete Souza.
Souza compiles his favorite photos every year, and these are some of the best of those featuring the 44th president.
Here, Mr. Obama and first lady Michelle Obama share a semi-private moment after he gave her his coat on the way to an inaugural ball in 2009.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Adoring fans
Mr. Obama sits in the driver’s seat of a car to greet employees after giving a speech at the Ford Kansas City Stamping Plant in Missouri in 2013.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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A glorious spring day
Mr. Obama basks in the sunshine after moving a meeting with his senior advisors out to the Rose Garden in the spring of 2009.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Face!
Mr. Obama mimics the face of a little boy while visiting troops and their families at Marine Corps Base Hawaii Kaneohe in 2013.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Winter wonderland
Mr. Obama plays in the snow-covered Rose Garden with his daughters, Sasha and Malia, in 2010.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Shake Shack shuffle
Mr. Obama slides across a counter at Shake Shack in Washington, D.C., for a group photo with the staff after having lunch with Vice President Joe Biden in 2014.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Little prince
Mr. Obama meets Prince George in 2016.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Relaxing
Mr. Obama sips from a coconut while visiting Luang Prabang, Laos, in 2016.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Intro to "slow jamming"
Mr. Obama laughs as he’s briefed on the “Slow Jam the News” segment he will be doing during a 2012 appearance on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.”
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Spider-Man's web
Mr. Obama plays make-believe with White House aide Nate Tamarin’s son, Nicholas, during a Halloween event at the White House in 2012.
The president told Souza that this was his favorite photo of the year.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Superman
Mr. Obama runs into Walker Earnest, son of Press Secretary Josh Earnest, during a Halloween event at the White House in 2016.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Pie face
A boy takes a bite of Mr. Obama’s pie after the president offered it to those sitting near him at a restaurant in Ohio in 2012.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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A somber moment
Mr. Obama hugs the vice president after giving a eulogy at the funeral for Biden’s son, Beau Biden, in 2015.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Stealing a kiss
Mr. Obama and the first lady kiss at a game between the U.S. Men’s Olympic basketball team and Brazil in 2012, while Malia and Biden watch on the Jumbotron.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Hello there
Mr. Obama greets children at a daycare center next to his daughter’s school after attending her fourth-grade closing ceremony in 2011.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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A devastating view
Mr. Obama and White House staffers peer out the window of Air Force One to see devastating tornado damage in Moore, Oklahoma, in 2013.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Singin' the blues
B.B. King, on right, talks Mr. Obama into singing “Sweet Home Chicago” during the “In Performance at the White House: Red, White and Blues” concert in 2012.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Cracking up
Mr. Obama and Biden laugh together before a campaign rally in New Hampshire in 2012.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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The Tonight Show
Jay Leno cracks a joke as Mr. Obama laughs while the two wait to tape “The Tonight Show” in California in 2011.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Downpour
Mr. Obama tells the Chicago audience of his 2010 Memorial Day speech that he is sorry he won’t be able to deliver remarks because of a dangerous lightning storm.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Bruce!
Mr. Obama reaches out to shake hands with Bruce Springsteen before the Presidential Medal of Freedom ceremony in 2016.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Goal!
Mr. Obama and European leaders take a break during the 2012 G8 Summit at Camp David to watch the overtime shootout of the Chelsea vs. Bayern Munich Champions League final.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Shenanigans
Mr. Obama plays a joke on White House Trip Director Marvin Nicholson as he stopped to weigh himself in a locker room at the University of Texas in 2010.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Slippery fish
Mr. Obama and his guide react after they thought he had caught a fish in Montana in 2009. He hadn’t.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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A momentous day
Former Deputy Press Secretary Jamie Smith’s daughter, Lincoln Rose, learns to walk in the Oval Office in 2014.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Not a perfect shot
Mr. Obama reacts as his putt falls short while playing golf with staffers in 2016.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Four presidents
Presidents Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, Obama and George W. Bush laugh as they wait backstage before the dedication of the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum in 2013.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Meeting Bo
Mr. Obama runs alongside Bo in an East Wing hallway of the White House on the day the Obama family was introduced to the pup in 2009.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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"Not impressed"
Mr. Obama and U.S. Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney recreate her “not impressed” face that went viral during the 2012 Olympics.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Make a wish
The President plays with his niece, Sevita, while on vacation in Martha’s Vineyard in 2009.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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The water's fine
Mr. Obama jumps in the ocean while on vacation in Hawaii in 2012.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Late-night calls
Mr. Obama makes calls to congressmen to urge them to vote for the health care reform bill in 2010.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Lego man
Mr. Obama takes a picture with Lego men constructed for the White House’s South by South Lawn event in 2016.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Remembering Rosa Parks
Mr. Obama looks out the window as he sits in the famed Rosa Parks bus at the Henry Ford Museum in Michigan in 2012.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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What's he saying?
The first lady reacts to something Mr. Obama whispers in her ear while attending United Nations General Assembly events in New York City.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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This kid ...
Mr. Obama poses with a little boy who had fallen asleep during the 2013 Father’s Day ice cream social at the White House.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Snowball fight!
Mr. Obama chases Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel on the White House colonnade in 2009.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Dance lessons
Mr. Obama dances with aide Ferial Govashiri in 2016 to help her practice for her upcoming wedding.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Playtime
Mr. Obama lifts Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes’ daughter, Ella, in the Oval Office during a Halloween event at the White house in 2015.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Yoga session
Mr. Obama practices yoga with Master Chief Petty Officer David Hall and his family while visiting he National Intrepid Center of Excellence in 2016.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Bedtime
Mr. Obama escorts daughter Sasha up to the private residence before returning to the Oval Office in 2009.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Ears
When Mr. Obama saw this 2014 photo of him and the Easter Bunny listening to the national anthem, he said: “The two most famous sets of ears in Washington,” Souza recalls.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Yum
Mr. Obama eats a green tea ice pop with his hosts while visiting the Great Buddha of Kamakura, in Japan in 2010.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Happy hug
The president hugs the first lady after she introduces him at a campaign event in Iowa in 2012.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Hilarity
Mr. Obama laughs as White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs shows him pictures of past leaders wearing shirts chosen by the host country of the Summit of the Americas. The team was on their way to the summit in Singapore in 2009.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Virtual reality
Mr. Obama watches a virtual reality film taken during his trip to Yosemite National Park in 2016.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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Koko Head Crater Trail
Mr. Obama admires the view after hiking the Koko Head Crater Trail in Hawaii in 2015.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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In prayer
Mr. Obama prays with members of the Circle of Protection Campaign during a meeting in 2011.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
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All smiles
The first lady snuggles the president during a video taping for the 2015 World Expo in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Amanda Lucidon
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A thoughtful pause
Mr. Obama during a trip to Midway Atoll in 2016.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Pete Souza