“This coming spring, I will begin my 15th year of taking daily photos!” said Alonzo, who finally upgraded to a new Canon 5D Mark IV in 1027. “My equipment gets better, and more expensive, as time goes on, but it allows me to capture what I see, even something as fleeting as a butterfly in flight.”
In the case of this past year, he captured the cutest chipmunk picture you will ever find. The little fellow is surrounded by green shrubbery, and looks as if he was caught doing something naughty. Alonzo zoomed in so tight, you can see the details of the little one’s fingernails.
“It takes a lot of persistence to shoot photos every day, and the photo of the chipmunk is a good example,” said Alonzo. “It was a cold and wet day, and I didn’t want to go outside. But I forced myself to take my camera to a park and walk around. I was surprised to find a chipmunk stuffing its cheeks with red berries, and it was surprised to see me too.”
Timing can be a surprise, or a great plan for a serious photographer. His daily routine will take him to places he wouldn’t ordinarily visit, like the Montgomery County Fair. This time it was an image of a jockey with dirt covering his red, white and blue silks, and just about everything else.
"I spent a lot of time at the fair, knowing that it was the last time it would be held at the fairgrounds downtown," said Alonzo. "During the final harness race, the track was muddy and I noticed that one rider had goggles but no face mask. I made sure to find him afterward to get a photo of his muddy smile."
His ideal routine is to go out with his camera in the morning, with no watch or phone as a distraction. He’ll follow the sun, the birds, or the flow of the water.
When the weather is good, I like taking photos outside before I go to work,” said Alonzo. “One day I just stood by the river bank and waited, watching the ducks, gulls and geese with their little goslings. I didn’t know what I was waiting for, but as soon as a gull started pecking at its reflection in the water, I knew that was it.”
He teaches photography workshops on a regular basis for Five Rivers MetroParks.
“I enjoy helping people become better photographers and experience nature in our local parks. During a class at Aullwood Garden, we came across a spider web with lots of dewdrops like tiny diamonds,” said Alonzo. “I’m happy to say that one of my students made a new year’s resolution to take pictures every day in 2018.”
Maybe she’ll start posting the best ones to her own website. And she can get fantastic shots like some of Alonzo’s favorites in 2017: an eager black-and-white dog, catching a bright red frisbee in mid-air, surrounded by blue sky; young Stivers’ students in the middle of a dance performance; and an up-close-and-personal view of a colorful dragonfly.
When he’s not out taking picture, you can hear Alonzo working as an afternoon host at Discover Classical, 88.1 FM, Dayton’s classical music public-radio station.
Contact contributing writer Pamela Dillon at pamdillon@woh.rr.com.
About the Author