Backstage at Outside Fest

Last year The Public Works hired me to shoot Outside Fest here in Denver. Two days, a credential around my neck, and an assignment I thought I understood before I walked in.

Here's the thing about being a photographer who's built his name on getting outside — hiking to the lake, chasing the light on a ridge, being the guy who's actually out there — is that when someone hands you a backstage pass instead of the run of the festival grounds, your first reaction isn't gratitude. Mine wasn't. I was bummed. Roaming the grounds, working the crowd, catching the real texture of the thing — that's what I'm good at, and for two days, that wasn't the job.

Then I found out who else was back there with me.

Shaun White was quiet. Not unfriendly — just quiet, the way people who've spent their whole lives being watched learn to be. But there was a confidence underneath it you could feel before he said a word.

Jimmy Chin — one of my favorite photographers, full stop — wasn't much more outgoing. I don't think I expected him to be. Some people save all their energy for the work.

Cory Richards was the opposite. He walked straight over and started talking photography with me like we'd known each other for years. No ego, no festival small talk, just two people who make pictures for a living, talking shop.

And then Diana Nyad pulled out a trumpet and played it. For me. Backstage, in the middle of a two-day blur, because apparently that's just a thing she does.

It wasn't all handshakes and small talk, either. Robin Thurston — the founder and CEO of Outside Interactive, Inc., meaning the guy whose company put the whole festival on — sat down for a quick photoshoot with me. So did Quannah Chasinghorse. For a few minutes, backstage stopped being about who I was meeting and turned back into the job I actually know how to do.

I didn't get my usual shot — the wide crowd frame, the golden hour on the mainstage, the guy in the crowd having the time of his life. I got something I wouldn't have picked for myself and wouldn't trade now: two days learning that the quiet ones and the loud ones are both just people, and that getting handed the wrong assignment is sometimes the best thing that can happen to you.

Thanks and have a great day.

—Dustin Doskocil

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Where the Real Cowboys Are

Growing up in Texas, Willie Nelson has always been one of my heroes—not just because he can write a great song, but because he is unapologetically himself. In his music, his personal life, and his public presence, there’s a consistency that’s hard to ignore. He walks that line between cowboy, artist, and hippie without ever feeling like he’s trying to be anything other than who he is. That’s something I’ve always respected.

So when I had the opportunity to go backstage at the National Western Stock Show and Rodeo, I knew I didn’t just want action shots—I wanted to capture the real cowboys.

Yellow Scene Magazine sent me on assignment to grab a cover shot for their “Best of the West” issue. But I wanted more than a cover, more than some rad action shots—I wanted portraits. Honest ones of the young men and women carrying forward a tradition deeply rooted in American agriculture.

With the smell of hay in the air, I stepped backstage, started conversations, and made a few portraits along the way.

Here are some of my favorite images from my time at the rodeo in Denver.

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2025 FITNESS PORTFOLIO

Fitness photography is about more than muscles and motion — it's about showing the work. The discipline, the focus, the moment right before someone pushes past what they thought was their limit. That's what I'm always chasing with the camera.

This is my 2025 fitness portfolio: athletes, gym environments, outdoor training, and the kind of shots that make you want to lace up your shoes and get after it. If you're a gym, a coach, a supplement brand, or an athlete who needs imagery that reflects the grind — this is what I do.

Dustin Doskocil | 817-223-6122 | www.doskophotos.com 

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