I rose at 4am on Janueary 20, 2009, to attend the Inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States. I had no ticket and joined the masses on the National Mall, ending up opposite the Hirshhorn Museum.
These photos are ordered by the time they were taken, beginning after my 3-mile walk from home to the Metro station for the trip downtown, ending on the Metro heading back home. There were nearly 2 million exceedingly friendly, civil, and optimistic people there, but I could only single out a few dozen in my immediate vicinity. Some posed, many did not. It was a real celebration, not just of the inauguration but of humanity.
All pictures taken with the Olympus E-510 DSLR, and either the 12-60swd or the "new" 40-150 lens - aperture priority at f8, iso400 (except iso1600 in the Metro).
© Stefan Kaben Images