A former White House photographer told the Times that using pictures of Shealah Craighead for his own profit – with books selling for up to $ 230, Trump reportedly made $ 20 million – the former president had “slapped her in the face. face”. . Craighead was only the second woman to become the White House Chief Photographer, after Sharon Farmer, who worked under Bill Clinton. In 2018, Craighead told Marie Claire magazine that she and Trump had “a wonderful relationship… very professional, but also… quite humorous at times” and added that Trump had “a genuine, strong, affectionate heart”. He also said he was “always very careful to make sure I do not push photos in a way that relates to me personally, but to the president and the administration on a professional level.” However, the Times reported, at the end of Trump’s time in power, Kreghead reached a “trial agreement with a publisher”. [that] involved a deposit of hundreds of thousands of dollars. “ A Trump spokesman did not dispute that Craighead was first asked to ask Trump to write a prologue in exchange for a cut in that advance. But spokesman Taylor Budowich told the Times that Trump then decided to use the images and others taken by other official photographers for his own book first. “President Trump has always seen the beautiful and fascinating editing that came to life through the pages of his book,” Budovic said. Most former presidents sign huge deals with major publishers. Trump, who ousted power after four years of hard-fought party war, two ousts and a deadly attack on the Capitol, has not done so. But an iconographic memoir, Our Journey Together, was released through Winning Team Publishing, a venture started by his eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., and a Republican agent, Sergio Gor. An unsigned copy of the living room table book, for which Trump wrote captions, costs $ 74.99. The signed copies are $ 229.99. CNN recently reported $ 20 million in sales in just two months. The work of White House photographers is public, available to everyone through Flickr. But photographers usually publish books of their own work. Pete Souza worked for Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama and has released his best-selling photo books. He told the Times: “It is valuable for every leading photographer to make a book just about the historical record and compose it in a way that tells its story and unifies the images.” Eric Draper, the White House chief photographer under George W. Bush, said Trump did not respect Kreghhead. “It’s a slap in the face,” Draper said. “I would be disappointed if I were in her position.” Speaking to the Times, Craighead said only that it was “as apolitical as possible, as I’m a neutral historical documentary. “By remaining neutral, I am able to remain a keen observer.” But Stephanie Grisham, Trump’s third White House press secretary and author of her own memoirs, was less restrained. “Shea is a very talented photographer,” Grisham said, “and that was really all her hard work. I just keep thinking: what a pity that actually benefits now from this. “But again, this is the guy who makes hats and all sorts of things right now to raise money for himself.” According to the Times, after contacting Trump for comment, Trump called Kreghhead for the first time since stepping down. She reportedly said she was ready to write her prologue now.
