The official White House photographer captures in images what words often cannot — the stillness of history, the tensions of lawmaking, the humanity of the president.

It was a job treasured by David Valdez, a Texan hired in 1983 to follow George H.W. Bush first as vice president and then president. With mostly unfettered access, Valdez photographed Bush’s wins and his losses. But most of all, Valdez remembers the intimacy of moments shared between the president and his family — a sentiment surfacing in the wake of Bush’s death on Nov. 30.

Through his archives and reflections, Valdez took us back in time to the Bush White House.