All photos by Nina Berman

Watching the press at the RNC

Wednesday, July 20: Waiting for Trump

July 21, 2016

The credentialed press awaited Donald Trump’s “official” arrival in Cleveland by helicopter on a field by the Great Lakes Science Center, where he greeted his running mate Mike Pence.

The photo op was constructed so that Trump’s plane would first make a pass, but many press members missed the shot because the sound of the plane was drowned out by Trump’s playlist–The Rolling Stones’ “Let’s Spend the Night Together” and Jerry Goldsmith’s theme music from the movie Air Force One.

Trump then switched to a helicopter, which made two passes across the city before touching down.

Members of the press started arriving as early as 7am and then waited in line until 12:30pm when the doors opened. They then crammed into a small riser and waited for another two hours in blazing summer heat.

Trump made a brief statement acknowledging Pence and family members. In the background was the city of Cleveland.

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Reporters then returned inside Quicken Loans Arena for the evening’s events.

 

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A view of the upper rafters of the RNC

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Press check their equipment on the convention floor.

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Press wait for Governor Scott Walker to speak.

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Trump supporters hold signs on the convention floor.

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The RNC pool camera focuses on an audience member, who gives a thumbs up.

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Robin Grist of Cleveland.com interviews Henry Allen, a delegate from Florida who holds a sign reading: “Hillary’s Lies Matter.” On the other side, it reads: “Lock her Up.”

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Washington Post reporter Dalton Bennett holds a 360-degree VR camera on the convention floor.

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Donald Trump sits inside Quicken Loans Arena while his son Eric speaks.

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Donald Trump gives a thumbs up as his son Eric speaks.

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A reporter watches Ted Cruz on a monitor in the lower level of Quicken Loans where media operations are located.

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Donald Trump walks through the halls of the RNC.

Nina Berman is a photographer and an associate professor at Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism