Do a Google image search for “Obama lift” right now. You’ll find literally dozens of photos taken during pizza shop owner Scott Van Duzer’s now famous bear hug of President Obama a few days ago.
This event wasn’t exactly staged, but it wasn’t entirely candid either. Journalists from around the world were present during the “big squeeze” and each photograph told a slightly different story. The basic narrative is the same: Burly Pizza Man Shows Primal Enthusiasm for the Prez on Campaign Trail.
But take a look at what was published and where it was published and you get a slightly more nuanced perspective.
The first shot I saw was from Doug Mills at the New York Times:
The New York Times: a big room, shocked guests, and a not-so-candid moment.
Of all the photos published, this one seems to have the widest angle and it conveys a broad variety of information. There’s the stunned woman, the smiling Van Duzer, the other woman with the iPhone, her smiling husband, and a room full of dutiful reporters. All of this presents the idea that this was a man making a spectacle; he was genuinely excited, but readers should understand that this was no random encounter.
One important piece of the story is notably missing: Obama’s reaction. His hands are spread wide, does this mean he’s confused? shocked? uncomfortable? Without a peek at his face, it’s tough to say how he feels about this situation.
The visual story as told by Reuters presents a slightly different tale. In this shot, Obama’s reaction is front and center. Van Duzer is still grinnin’, but he’s less important here. It’s still hard to tell how Obama’s feeling about this little stunt, but he doesn’t exactly look surprised. How this changes the story is up for debate, but he is now obviously an active participant, that is for sure.
Reuters: Look at that face! Sometimes even reporters get caught looking the fool.
The major departure in this photo is in the background. Specifically, that goofy reporter on the far right of the frame has completely re-written the narrative structure of the event. It looks as though the media was completely caught by surprise, unless that reporter is doing some serious mugging for the cameras in the crossfire. Pretty unlikely. Notice the change: a staged event suddenly appears far more candid.
Now, Barack Obama himself got in on the action by posting a photo of the event to Twitter. If you’re reaction to this photo is anything like mine, this seems like the obvious shot to use if you’re looking for a great narrative, solid composition and outright hilarity. Obama’s face is hidden, so we have no idea what he’s feeling about this, but his hand is perfectly framing the face of a woman who appears genuinely astounded that this lummox has hoisted the leader of the free world. Van Duzer looks about as pleased as can be and there’s a passing nod to the media presence tucked away in the right hand corner of the frame: a single solitary reporter standing in the shadows to dissuade any critics. If I was President Obama, I’d much rather have the public see this shot full of laughing red-blooded Americans. His reaction to the event becomes secondary.
@BarackObama: A friendly giant and a giddy bystander.
I count at least ten more unique shots in the initial “obama lift” search, but most are just slight variations of these three major themes.
I recently discovered that there is also a video, which blows the lid off the entire story. From this footage —also shot by Reuters— we learn that Obama goes in for a bone-crunching handshake and then he announces to the room full of reporters that they should “look at these guns” on the pizza-hulk. It appears as if the lift is the direct result of President Obama’s verbal appreciation for Van Duzer’s powerful frame. They throw in a little bump-cuddle that turns into an awkward tickle and suddenly the president is soaring. The crowd gasps in unison as Obama is scooped from the floor.
None of the shots present anything especially misleading, but it is interesting to see what aspects of the event were emphasized. The video obviously adds some much needed context by showing Obama as an active player in the big hug, but even that story is limited. The shock of the audience is only heard, not seen.
Surprises are about as rare as unicorns on the campaign trail, so these little moments deserve a little extra inspection. We get to take a look under the hood and see how even the arbitrary positioning of photographers in a room can completely effect the story being told to the public.
