Stan Stearns

Stanley Frank “Stan” Stearns (1935 – 2012) was an American photojournalist best known for capturing three‑year‑old John F. Kennedy Jr.’s salute to his father’s coffin during the 1963 funeral procession—an image that became one of the most reproduced photographs of the twentieth century.

Born in Annapolis, Maryland, Stearns began photographing at sixteen and served four years as a U.S. Air Force photographer for Stars and Stripes before joining United Press International in 1958. He covered the closing years of the Eisenhower administration and went on to document the presidencies of Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon. His “John‑John salute” shot was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 1964.

In 1969, Stearns was elected president of the White House News Photographers Association and even hosted a black‑tie dinner for President Nixon and Vice President Agnew. He left UPI in 1970 to open a studio in Annapolis, where he photographed local figures, celebrities, and politicians until his final days. Stearns’s meticulous craft and instinct for decisive moments left an indelible mark on American photojournalism.