Quincy Photographer Shares Beautiful Pictures On Facebook

Most people who share stuff on the news feed on my Facebook page seem to be obsessed with two things: yelling political stuff at the top of their lungs and/or sharing Willy Wonka memes. That's why it has been such a refreshing change to see amazing pictures of our area being shared by a local photographer. Maybe you've seen the posts from "Tiger Imagery". I decided to shoot (no camera pun intended) a note to the person behind the Tiger Imagery Facebook page to find out what inspired her to share her passion.

KICK-FM:  Care to share your name or is it a secret?

Hahahaha! No, it’s not a secret. My name is Toni Taylor, I’m 47 yrs old, and I live in Quincy. I’ve lived in Quincy most of my life. Quincy will always be home.

KICK-FM:  When did you start Tiger Imagery?

Originally, Tiger Imagery was my second profile page on Facebook. I wanted a place to post my pictures besides my personal profile so I started another profile. That was in August, 2011. In October, 2011.. I decided to change it to an actual “Page” on Facebook so everyone could freely see the images I posted and would have the option of liking my page rather than having to become a “friend”.

KICKFM:  How long have you been taking pictures professionally and/or as a hobby?

I’ve always liked taking pictures but my journey into photography started in 2010. I had gone to see Lonestar at the Adams County Fair and was using my cell phone to take pictures. They were just terrible! I decided I wanted a decent camera so I went out and purchased a Nikon Coolpix which is a point and shoot. I took pictures at my cousin’s wedding and then again at my brother’s wedding. I received so many compliments I decided to go out and take some pictures of the area including the Bayview Bridge in Quincy. I posted them on my profile page to see what kind of feedback I would get. So many people complimented me on my ability to capture beauty in our area that I just kept taking pictures. In October, 2011.. I purchased a DSLR because I wanted more control and I wanted to be able to use different lenses. I’m completely self-taught and to a seasoned professional that may be evident... or maybe not.

So to return to your question, I’ve been serious about photography for only a little over a year.

KICK-FM:   What type of camera do you prefer?

Right now I use a Nikon D7000 and I absolutely love it. I would like to get a camera with a full frame sensor but those are pretty pricey. It may be a while before I can afford something like that. I’ve used Canon before .. back when I had a film camera and it was a great camera. I chose Nikon only because I had heard so many good things about the two cameras that I ended up buying. Nikon lenses won’t work on a Canon so I will continue to use Nikon.

KICK-FM:  How long have you had your Tiger Imagery page on Facebook?

Facebook is basically where Tiger Imagery was born. All the compliments I received early on were from friends and family. I wanted to see what everyone else thought about my pictures so I came up with a name and started a page on Facebook. It seemed like the best way to let others see them. Incidentally, the name Tiger Imagery came from my having been called Tiger or Tigger or something similar my whole life. You know.. like Toni the Tiger. Anyway, I mentioned it before but Tiger Imagery has been on Facebook since August, 2011 as a profile and October, 2011 as a page.

KICK-FM:  You feature a lot of landscape photos on Facebook. What’s your favorite part of the area to take pics?

I do and that’s mostly because landscapes are the easiest for me. I work full time outside of photography which limits my time out taking pictures. I absolutely love doing wildlife but so many animals and/or birds are difficult to find. When I do find them they don’t stick around long. Landscapes don’t run when they see me. As for people.. I’ve photographed a few but most of the time people don’t want their picture taken. So landscapes are what I do for the most part and I work every day to improve. I love experimenting with light and shadow.
To answer your question.. there is beauty all around us if you take the time to actually see what you’re looking at but I do seem to return to a couple areas pretty often. Aside from the Bayview Bridge, north of Quincy in the Canton Chute area is a place I seem to return to often and southeast of Quincy in the Burton area is another place I seem to keep going back to. I sure have learned the back roads around town in recent months.  As time goes on I’m venturing further out. I’ve done some shooting in Hannibal and in the Palmyra area. Every time I go out I try to think of a new place to go.

Thanks so much to Toni for taking the time to put up with my Facebook "investigation".  I highly recommend you visit her page and "like" it.  In my opinion, it's one of the more pleasant things you will see in your Facebook news feed.