Page 6 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, JULY 1, 2022 “ZAP” | FROM PAGE 4 A: When I was a kid, growing up in the 40s and 50s, everybody on my mother’s side of the family all lived in Saugus, on Vine Street. Seemed like every weekend, we’d go see my grandparents. My grandfather owned a piggery that used to be behind the Kowloon property at the back of the parking lot Q: How long have you been shooting photos now? A: Since I was 14 years old. My fi rst camera was a Brownie Hawkeye camera that I got from S & H Green Stamps. There was no instant gratifi cation for photos in those days. You had to wait a week to get the film developed. My passion continues, after all of these years. I’m still learning what to do and what not to do. These days, I’m using a Pentax. Q: Your high school yearbook says it was your ambition to become a freelance photographer. But you went into the Apprentice Program at GE Lynn and made a career as a machinist for more than three decades. So, how come you never followed your ambition into photography as a profession? A: I was married in 1965 and family was my priority at the time, but my passion for photography was still with me. Q: You seem to enjoy photographing birds, and a lot of them are posted on your websites. A: I like to shoot everything. I’m an eclectic photographer. I shoot anything that appeals to me. I try not to be a onetrick pony. I like to do sunsets. I always have the police scanner going, so sometimes I’m chasing accidents. I only live a quarter of a mile from Route 1. Most of the bird pictures I take are from sitting in my living room, shooting through the window. But birds are just a small part of what I photograph. I love to do the hummingbirds. For the past year or two, I have been taking a lot of osprey shots. It’s only been recent that I have been shooting photos of the bald eagle. Q: Okay, let’s talk about your photos of the bald eagle. What makes this photo special from the many others you have shot over the years? A: Of the eagle? It’s relatively new in this area. There have been the ospreys around and the other birds, but when the eagle started showing up, so did everybody else show up, taking pictures. So, I said to myself, “Let me try, too.” It’s only been this year that I have been photographing the eagle. Q: What makes it special as far as capturing that photo? A: When you see them, their claws are enormous, and when they spread their wings, it’s like it’s really, really graceful. Q: And the patriotism in you. Does it move you to be out there taking photographs of a bald eagle? A: That’s a small part of it — yeah — the excitement of seeing the eagle and trying to capture a good shot. And in the back of my mind, I’m always thinking, this is a symbol of the country, too, so I try to do it justice, taking a good picture of it. That’s why I was saddened by the baby eagle that got killed recently. Q: Please, tell me about that. A: I was telling you about the nest at the end of Chestnut Street; there was one chick in there. And the racoons will go after it. I guess the racoons climbed up the pine tree. In certain places where they have eagles in trees, they put a skirt around the tree so the racoons can’t get by — but not at this tree. And a friend “ZAP” | SEE PAGE 8 A MOTHER’S LOVE: A bald eagle gives attention to its baby at a nesting spot in East Saugus. Charlie “Zap” Zapolski posted this photo on his Facebook website a few weeks ago after learning that racoons had gotten to the nest, resulting in the death of the baby eagle. (Courtesy photo to the Saugus Advocate by Charlie Zapolski) PERCHED ON A PINE TREE TOP: From a distance, this eagle looks like he is surrounded by hotdogs — they are actually pine cones. (Courtesy photo to The Saugus Advocate by Charlie Zapolski) 10 Everett Ave., Everett 617-389-3839 Owned & operated by the Conti Years! “Same name, phone number & address for over half a century. We must be doing something right!” www.everettaluminum.com Summer is Here!
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