Political photo ops through the years

Democrat or Republican, no candidate can resist an age-old campaign standard: the political photo op. Here’s a look at some finely staged moments.

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Everyone loves babies

Then-presidential hopeful Barack Obama holds a baby during his visit to Harper's Restaurant in Columbia, S.C., in 2008, the day of South Carolina's Democratic primary. The baby shot is a standard in politics, from presidential candidates to city aldermen.

Jason Reed / Reuters

Vigor

Exhibiting a vigorous lifestyle, Ronald and Nancy Reagan go for a ride on horseback at their ranch, Rancho del Cielo, near Santa Barbara, Calif., in 1969. At the time, Reagan was governor of California, but he also was a national presence among conservatives in the Republican Party. Reagan maintained his vibrant image and won the GOP’s nomination and the presidency in 1980, at age 69.

Michael Evans / AP

Having fun with the locals

President Obama is lifted off the ground by Scott Van Duzer, owner of Big Apple Pizza and Pasta Italian Restaurant, during an unannounced stop in September 2012. Politicians, even when president, have to appear approachable to the common man or woman.

Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP

Caring

Republican vice-presidential candidate Paul Ryan washes a pan as he visits St. Vincent De Paul Society in Youngstown, Ohio, with his wife, Janna, right, and his son, Sam, after his speech at Youngstown State University in October 2012. It helps when politicians come across as caring for the less-fortunate, but Ryan was criticized for this photo op after the president of the St. Vincent De Paul Society soup kitchen said that Ryan did little to help with its Saturday food service.

Madelyn P. Hastings / AP

Commander-in-chief

President George W. Bush declared the end of major combat in Iraq as he speaks aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln off the California coast in May 2003. Few things help a presidential candidate more than to appear ready to be in command of the U.S. military forces. This normally gives incumbents an advantage, but Bush paid a price for the "Mission Accomplished" banner that was flown in triumph; It later became a symbol of U.S. misjudgments and mistakes in Iraq.

J. Scott Applewhite / AP

Physically fit

President Bill Clinton goes for a morning jog on the Mall in this May 1993 photo. Clinton, who was criticized for his fast-food diet on the campaign trail, tried to show how well he kept in shape. Because of the importance of the office and the constitutional order of ascension, the health conditions of presidential candidates and their running mates are always under the microscope.

Doug Mills / AP

The outdoorsman

Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry aims his shotgun while hunting pheasant near Colo, Iowa, in October 2003. Hunting and gun ownership are traditions in the U.S., and politicians who show their support for maintaining Second Amendment rights can win over some voters, especially if they are Democrats. Despite his display of shooting skills, Kerry lost to George W. Bush in the 2004 presidential race.

Charlie Neibergall / AP

Ice cream sociable

Republican Presidential nominee John McCain with his wife, Cindy, stopped to buy ice cream at the Dairy Dutchess in New Concord, Ohio, in August 2008. Because ice cream stands are a community gathering place in the summer, they are frequented by candidates for the handshaking photo op.

Melina Mara / The Washington Post

The unusual pose

Vice President Biden talks to customers during a stop at Cruisers Diner in Seaman, Ohio, in September 2012. This photo got a lot of attention because it at first appears that the woman is sitting on Biden’s lap. The photographer later explained that Biden was actually sitting backwards in a chair behind the woman, so there was no lap sitting. But the photo got Biden a lot of attention, something all politicians want.

Carolyn Kaster / The Associated Press

FEATURED PHOTO GALLERIES

A woman is attacked by water cannon during protests in Kizilay square in central Ankara, June 16, 2013. The unrest, in which police fired teargas and water cannon at stone-throwing protesters night after night in cities including Istanbul and Ankara, left four people dead and about 5,000 injured, according to the Turkish Medical Association. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)

Photos of the day

Continuing protests in Turkey, reformist candidate wins in Iran, Google’s Project Loon and more.

WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 14: Johnathon Carrington, valedictorian at Dunbar High School, laughs with family and friends after his school's graduation ceremony at Howard University on Friday, June 14, 2013, in Washington, DC. Carrington, who grew up in Tyler House public-housing apartments and is graduating from one of DC's low-performing high schoolsy, where academic expectations are high. (Photo by Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post)

Johnathon’s journey

Johnathon Carrington graduated Friday as the valedictorian of his neighborhood school, Dunbar High, and is headed to Georgetown University. But Carrington, 17, is nervous, and so are...

LONDON, ENGLAND - JUNE 16: Reenactors dressed as knights stage a medieval jousting competition at Eltham Palace on June 16, 2013 in Eltham, England. The 'Grand Medieval Joust' event at Eltham Palace, an English Heritage property which was the childhood home of King Henry VIII, aims to give a great insight into life at the palace during the medieval period. (Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images)

The Grand Medieval Joust

The Grand Medieval Joust at Eltham Palace, an English Heritage property that was the childhood home of King Henry VIII, aims to lend insight through reenactment into life at the palace...

NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 16: Solange performs during the 2013 Northside Festival at McCarren Park on June 16, 2013 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Mike Lawrie/Getty Images)

Eye on entertainment

Solange, Rod Stewart, Jon Bon Jovi, Demi Lovato, Samuel L. Jackson and more.

In this June 8, 2013 photo, youth compete in the Sao Carlos slum local soccer tournament in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The pitch is just dirt and the incandescent lights aren't so bright. But when the boys' feet strike the football in the Sao Carlos slum as night falls every Saturday, big league dreams glow, inflated by the hope of escaping the shantytown with sporting skills. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Brazil’s other soccer fields

With the Confederations Cup opening this week and the World Cup one year away, all eyes are on Brazil, where soccer is arguably played with more passion and art than anywhere else....

WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 16: John F. Tatum Sr. hugs his grandson John F. Tatum III during his annual Father's Day block party on Sunday, June 16, 2013 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Amanda Voisard/For the Washington Post)

Father’s Day picnic in Northeast D.C.

A decades-old backyard barbecue in Northeast Washington draws hundreds in honor of dads everywhere. “It’s off-the-chain fun,” says Butch McNair, who has worked one...

JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA - JUNE 14: A man cycles past murals of Nelson Mandel near to Regina Mundi Church in the Soweto township on June 14, 2013 in Soweto,South Africa. The former South African President and leader of the anti-apartheid movement is spending a seventh day in hospital and is reported to be responding better to treatment for a recurring lung infection. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Mandela remains in a hospital

For a week, South Africa’s first black president has been undergoing treatment for a lung infection. Schoolchildren at Nelson Mandela’s childhood school in Qunu sang in...

LAS VEGAS, NV - JUNE 16: Miss Connecticut USA Erin Brady reacts after being crowned Miss USA during the 2013 Miss USA pageant at PH Live at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino on June 16, 2013 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Miss USA 2013

Miss Connecticut USA Erin Brady is crowned Miss USA 2013 in Las Vegas.

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