One of the most memorable images former White House photographer Barb Kinney ever captured wasn’t of a historic event, but a light, impromptu moment prior to one.
It was in September 1995, when then-President Bill Clinton and four Middle East leaders were ceremonially signing the second installment of the Oslo Accords, an ultimately unsuccessful regional peace plan. Before entering the White House’s East Room, Clinton straightened his necktie, and three of the other leaders instinctively followed suit. (The exception was Palestine Liberation Organization Chairman Yasser Arafat, wearing a traditional Arab headdress instead).
Kinney, a 1976 Harrison High School alumna who photographed more than three-fourths of Clinton’s eight-year presidency, fired off three snaps on her Leica M6 camera. The “tie photo” ran as a double-truck in Life magazine and won first place in a World Press Photo competition. The image, Kinney says, is a reminder that memorable photographic moments often are “unguarded.”
Prior to working for the Commander in Chief, she set out for Washington, D.C., after studying photojournalism at the University of Kansas in Lawrence. Two years after graduation, she landed at USA Today, rising to staff photographer and photo editor during her 6.5-year tenure.
Transitioning to freelance work, Kinney’s name was given to Hillary Rodham Clinton’s press team following Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential campaign victory. She was with Hillary Clinton during the week of the president’s inauguration, covering all of her events and culminating with riding in the Clintons’ motorcade down Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House.
Kinney’s behind-the-scenes work at the White House took her around the world and involved “everything” the daily routine entails. “The meetings, handshakes — lots of handshakes,” she says. “You have lots of receiving lines in the White House.” Among her favorite photos taken is of Hillary Clinton and five former first ladies gathered for the now-called U.S. Botanic Garden’s dedication in 1994. She also photographed Chelsea Clinton’s 2010 wedding to Marc Mezvinsky.
Kinney served as Hillary Clinton’s photographer during her unsuccessful 2008 and 2016 presidential bids. During the 2016 Democratic National Convention, following a speech by outgoing President Barack Obama, Kinney caught a backstage image of Obama and Clinton sitting down and chatting, when they “broke out laughing hysterically over something.”
Kinney returns to Evansville to visit her 93-year-old mother, Bettye York, and longtime friends. Following Clinton’s 2016 defeat, Kinney relocated from her home base in Seattle, Washington, to the San Francisco, California, area, where she is senior photographer and photo editor at Emerson Collective in Palo Alto.
While carrying equipment is a bit more tiresome these days, Kinney says finding the best possible shot is a passion that never ages. “I’m still doing it and still love it,” she says.
