Sapulpa native's photo of Moore tornado on Time magazine cover
By KENDRICK MARSHALL World Staff Writer on May 23, 2013, at 2:35 AM Updated on 7/05/13 at 5:31 AM
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When freelance photographer Alonzo Adams headed out Monday to shoot what turned out to be one of the most destructive tornadoes in Oklahoma history, he never imagined that one of his photos would end up on the cover of a major news magazine.
On Tuesday, Adams received an email from Time magazine saying one of his shots - a photo of a large funnel cloud hovering ominously over a neighborhood in Moore - would grace the cover of an upcoming June issue.
"I was in shock when I found out," he said. "I'm so honored."
The 36-year-old Sapulpa High School graduate, whose images are routinely used by The Associated Press and the Oklahoma City Thunder, said Wednesday that he was simply doing his job.
"I only submitted just four photos (that day) to the AP," said Adams, who lives in Oklahoma City. "I just thought they would be picked up by The Oklahoman or Tulsa World - not Time."
In addition to working as a photojournalist for the last seven years, Adams is a storm chaser.
Adams says he wasn't paid for the picture and that he's only paid by The Associated Press for images.
He said he was not in harm's way while he was capturing photos that chronicled the raw, unbridled power of nature.
"Everyone wants to shoot that photo of the tornado, just like I do," said Adams, who described Monday's EF5 twister as the most intense he's ever witnessed. Of all the tornadoes he's seen, "nothing compared to this one," he said.
Kendrick Marshall 918-581-8386
kendrick.marshall@tulsaworld.com
Original Print Headline: Sapulpa native's photo on Time cover
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