David Valdez (photographer)

Valdez officially retired in 2010, but freelances for the LBJ Presidential Library and the National Park Service at the LBJ Ranch, in addition to his active speaking and consulting career. In 2014, Valdez was called upon by the Bush family to photograph George P. Bush in his successful campaign for Texas Land Commissioner. Having photographed three generations of the Bush family, Valdez told the Georgetown View that this was "kind of neat".

George Herbert Walker Bush: A Photographic Profile is a 1997 book of photographs published by the Texas A&M University Press. Andrew Delbanco of The New York Times described it as "a feel-good album ranging from boyhood photos to snapshots of the grandkids."

From 1993 to 2001, Valdez headed the photography department for Disney in Florida, ushering in the transition from film to digital. He also published a picture book, George Herbert Walker Bush: A Photographic Profile, which was released in 1997. In 2002, he was made Vice President of Business Development at Blue Pixel Digital Experts. He later returned to Washington in two roles: the first, as the Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, during the presidency of George W. Bush, and the second, to work for HUD again.

In 1989, after Bush's inauguration as President, Valdez was appointed as the President's photographer and director of the White House Photo Office. Valdez later commented that under the Reagan administration, the White House Photo Office released two or three photo releases per day, compared to the G. H. W. Bush administration, which did away with the controlling nature of the previous regime, allowing photographers from news organizations to record their own photos of White House events alongside the White House Photo Office staff. Valdez reportedly took 65,000 rolls of film of the President during his time at the White House.

Valdez's most famous photograph of Bush came in the summer of 1987. He had been requested by Life to shoot a candid picture of the Vice President on vacation. Initially, Bush was against the idea, but relented when he realised Valdez's involvement. By now, Valdez was exceptionally close with the Bush family, and was invited by Barbara Bush to Walker's Point in Kennebunkport, Maine. The photograph, taken at 6 a.m., shows the Bushes in bed, with six of their grandchildren, alongside Marvin Bush's wife Margaret. It was an instant hit, as Life put the image across its pages and later reprinted it in special editions of the magazine. It is also by far, Valdez's most republished image of his career, and in an interview with NBC News, he felt the way it resonated with the general public was that it was in line with what Bush always said were the most important things in life – family, faith and friends.

Valdez left the service in 1971, and went on to attend the University of Maryland, where he majored in journalism and radio and television production.

Following his graduation from high school in 1967, Valdez was drafted into the Air Force, where he was told he was going be a field photographer. He was stationed at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida. He worked for the base newspaper and often photographed generals during the Vietnam War at Strike Command headquarters. He was also put in charge of other servicemen, which he put on his resume as 'supervisor', hoping that it would help him in the long run.

David Valdez (born June 1, 1949) is an American photographer, best known for being the Chief Official White House Photographer from 1989 to 1993, during the presidency of George H. W. Bush.

Valdez was born on June 1, 1949, to Israel Valdez Sr. (formerly of the Army Air Corps), and Alicia Saldaña Valdez in Alice, Texas. His family had emigrated from Mexico when the King Ranch started transporting cattle north of the border.