By Tiffany Merlo Phelps
mail@floridanewsline.com

While Craig O’Neal had a successful career in banking and finance for 30 years, he always felt a strong pull towards photography. “I have a creative side of my brain that is a lot stronger than the analytical,” he said. While still working in finance, O’Neal purchased a Canon camera and shot photos of a triathlon just for fun. Those photos were noticed by a local media outlet and that led to more shoots. O’Neal, a Florida Master Naturalist, then focused on nature photography, capturing some of his best photos right in his backyard. His photos can be found at the kiosks located at Bird Island Park and at Guana River Wildlife Management Area. Soon, O’Neal, a Minnesota native who moved to Ponte Vedra Beach in 1989, began giving slide show talks at the library and rotary club about his nature photography and wrote a column for five years. In 2014, O’Neal started “Craig O’Neal Photography” with corporate clients such as Firehouse Subs, Petco and Hilton Garden Inn. He retired from banking in 2017. The pandemic brought a lot of O’Neal’s corporate work to a halt, but it also inspired O’Neal, 68, to give back to the community. He decided to offer to take free headshots of those who lost their jobs during COVID in hopes of helping them land a new job. Next, O’Neal took photos for the Jacksonville USO at NAS Jacksonville for sailors transitioning into civilian life, and he continues to offer his services free of charge to any local veterans today. A veteran himself, O’Neal joined the U.S. Army when he was 17 years old because he wanted to get away from the cold winters of Minnesota and farm life. O’Neal left the Army at the age of 20 as a sergeant. He volunteers as a photographer for the Jacksonville Humane Society and has signed up to do a daily weather and event map of the world with Team Rubicon, a disaster response group of volunteers. 

Q: You mentioned that you enjoy weather photography and storm chasing. What interests you about both? 

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A: Weather has always interested me. Storm chasing allows me to see and feel the events. It also adds an element of excitement and perhaps danger that I like. Capturing supercells and tornadoes with my camera allows me to share this information with others. 

Q: Do you have favorite places to take nature photographs? 

A: It is not about where I go. It is about what I am going to concentrate on. I learned a long time ago that with nature photography you have to understand the animals and the insects. You have to understand lighting. A lot goes into a photograph. There is always something really cool happening all the time. You just don’t see it. If you look for it, you won’t find it every time, but odds are, it is there.

Q: Your wife gifted you with a trip to Cuba that included a photography guide. What did you learn there? 

A: The most important takeaway was learning street photography and especially how to approach people without being intimidated. How to engage in conversation. The second thing I learned had nothing to do with photography, but the people. I learned that even in Cuba, people can love their country, but, at times, not the government. Kind of like America. 

Q: You mentioned that you were adopted and connected six years ago with your paternal brother and three sisters. What did you discover through this connection in relation to photography? 

A: My siblings told me that our father loved photography as well. Then a few years later they gifted me with our father’s 1958 Leica film camera. I cherish this camera and use it from time to time. It takes wonderful images. If you research Leica, you will find they are one of the few cameras that can be passed from generation to generation. They were made to last. 

Q: What are some of your hobbies? 

A: I love rucking, and I joined the group in Nocatee. What I really enjoy is some of the friends that I have made. I have made a couple of really close friends through rucking. I also play pickleball at the Y several times a week. I enjoy spending time with my three grandchildren as well.

Photo courtesy Craig O’Neal 
Craig O’Neal.

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