Her passion for equine photogra-
phy turned to rodeo and rodeo pho-
tography in 1988 when she moved to
Milton Freewater and began shooting
images for the Milton-Freewater Pio-
neer Posse. “It was the first time I shot
on a professional level. Because I had
been on horseback most of my life, I
could understand and feel the rhythm
of the horses and the livestock. I would
count along the strides of the horses
and anticipate what was going to hap-
pen, even with the broncs, “she said. “I
still count, all the time.”
After she moved to Wallowa
County, Dietrich began looking for a
way to apply her gifts for equine and
rodeo photography and her skills in
graphic design. In 2010 she started as
Chief Joseph Days’ webmaster and PR
photographer. A few years later she
took over designing the Chief Joseph
Days Rodeo program. It was the per-
fect match.
Being a rodeo photographer has
its dangers and less than glamorous
moments. A few years ago, Dietrich
was in her usual position, crouched
behind the fence, her attention focused
on a fiercely bucking bronc and his per-
ilously balanced rider. “This humon-
gous black bronc—and I know which
horse it is because he has a specific
grunt--he came out of the chute like I
expected, and it was one heck of a ride.
I kept shooting and shooting. He came
closer and closer, and I’m thinking “Is
this real or is it Memorex?’”
It was real. The bronc crashed
into the fence right in front of Diet-
rich, ejecting his rider over the sev-
en-foot high barrier. As Dietrich franti-
cally backed away from the wreck, the
rider got up, smiled at her, and nimbly
jumped back over fence into the arena.
“I remember thinking “Wow-you’re
kind of cute” just before I collided with
the steel post behind me,” she said.
Dietrich’s camera was fine, but she had
chipped a bone in her shoulder. She
was the only casualty of the mishap.
Today, Dietrich designs and photo-
graphs the entire Chief Joseph Days
program book, accompanies and doc-
uments the travels, travails, and tri-
umphs of the Rodeo’s court, and of
course photographs the events of the
entire 5 days of rodeo, from the Tues-
day afternoon bucking horse stampede
C14 | Chief Joseph Days 2019
Angelika Dietrich
One of Angelika Dietrich’s favorite shots from last year’s Chief Joseph Days rodeo is
this photo of Logan Patterson aboard a Bridwell bareback horse.
through cowboy church on Sunday.
Every event is a special one when she’s
watching it through the viewfinder.
“What I always tell other people
who want to take rodeo photos is that
I can’t teach you what I feel,” she said.
“A little change in angle is important.
Light is important. Everything I see at
rodeos is slow motion. My brain just
completely slows down. That’s how I
get those shots. I can see the action, the
positions coming. I can just feel it com-
ing. And then, kaboom!, there it is.”
Because the Chief Joseph Days
rodeo contractor, Bridwell, brings back
many of the same horses each year,
Dietrich has learned to recognize them.
“I know how they grunt, and how they
behave in the chute. I know exactly
what’s coming out and that helps,” she
said. “You’re going to get a great shot
because you know that horse. Those
horses just stay in my heart.”
Dietrich shoots mostly with a bulky
but uncannily sharp and quick-focusing
Canon DX1 professional camera and
70-200 f2.8 lens. Her camera, like most
big, professional DSLR’s, shoots clear
images in dark, low-light conditions
like those encountered when the big
broncs and bulls show their stuff. For
closer work, when the subject is head-
ing for the fence, she grabs her sec-
ond camera with a wider angle 28-70
2.8 zoom. In rodeo, there’s no time to
switch lenses. So two cameras--some-
times three--each with a different lens,
are a must.
Dietrich’s advice to spectators who
want to shoot rodeo is to just keep
shooting. “Everybody shoots with a
phone now,” she said. “Just keep on
shooting and practicing. But if you
want anything more close-up, you’ll
have to go to a 35mm camera and a
long lens. To get good pictures at Chief
Joseph Days, which is mostly at night,
you really need expensive, professional
equipment.”
Although Dietrich can’t sell her
images of Chief Joseph Days because
she, by choice, is not a registered Pro-
fessional Rodeo Cowboys of America
(PRCA) photographer, she does cover
the other rodeos in Wallowa County,
including Mountain High Broncs
and Bulls and the Chief Joseph Days
Run-up Ranch Rodeo. You can see her
work at rodeos and other events on her
website: www.AngelikaDesigns.com.