I’m in love with Zach Doleac’s photography. It isn’t just that the locations he shoots are jaw-droppingly beautiful (though of course they are), or that he makes the world feel incredibly vast and yet intimately accessible all at once (though he does that too), I think I love his photos most of all because of the unique way he’s able to capture moments of complete exultation.
Doleac’s photography marks the moment his subjects are soaring through the air, accomplishing great, dangerous feats, and conquering the world. He clicks the shutter right as the world feels at its most alive and brilliant, right at the moment when the million things that can go wrong, the countless doubts, and the fears melt away to leave nothing but pure, unadultered adrenaline-filled joy. It’s like mainlining LIFE.
I talked to Zach recently about his work and he filled me in on how he began traveling the world, taking pictures, and how his passion drives him to put his unique voice out in the world.
You travel all over, so where do you call home these days?
I live in a 22 foot travel trailer, so home is where I park it. But I’m from the Seattle area. I’ve been flying so much recently to different shoots that I end up leaving the trailer in my brother’s driveway when I’m on the road.
What’s it like living in a trailer?
It was certainly a change. It’s funny, all of a sudden 146 square feet is too much space. Which I never thought I’d say, but it certainly simplified my life. It made me trim down to the things that are important to me. It’s awesome to wake up in Moab or Sequoia National Park or the Oregon coast. I spend my workdays in really awesome locations.
What got you started in photography? What was your journey there?
I’d been taking pictures from a young age. But as I got older I got more serious about it. When I graduated from high school I bought myself my first DSR camera. In college I would shoot parties, and my friends, and all the outdoor adventures that we were having. And that kind of snowballed. Then I moved to Utah and interned for an outdoor freelance photographer. And that was like, “Wow, people are photographers and they can make a living doing this, and that sounds pretty awesome.”
You were Columbia Sportswear’s “Director of Toughness.” Tell me about that job.
That was an awesome job. I got to travel all over the world and take pictures in conjunction with a writer. We were telling the stories of Columbia’s gear, and testing in harsh conditions, but then also building an international portfolio in the space that I wanted to be in, which was adventure travel and adventure sports.
How did you get that gig? Was there a long audition process?
There were about 4000 applicants, and I was really lucky to get it. It was a pretty quick application process. I was actually backpacking in Kauai with my girlfriend at the time when they were doing all the interviews, so they let me come in and do one after the fact, just in HR, pretty simple.
That’s awesome. Did you have to prepare a photography portfolio for that job?
Yeah, I approached it from a different angle than how most people were coming at it. I didn’t go the, “Oh, I love to be outside so it would be great to work for you guys so I can be outside all the time,” route.
I told them, I have experience with product development, I know the outdoor space really well, I know the ground really well. I came back from the Hawaii trip with 30 photos turned around, edited the next day, ready to present, and to go out. As if they were ready to go out on social media. It showed that I could be ready to roll out content super quickly. I think being a photographer really helped my chances there because they were obviously looking for professional grade content.
It sounds like part of your success has come from being able to do that business side of the art, and also being able to be savvy on social media. How important is that for a photographer these days?
On Instagram, you can start to get really down on yourself because you look out there and everyone’s creating just the most unbelievable images. So there’s a million people who could take great photos, but I think being able to sell yourself and talk to brands, and put things in their terms, it’s important. I would put all of this minor success that I’ve had so far on that. I think that my photography holds up and that’s key, but I think the sales side of things, and your own self marketing is one of the most important aspects.
So as Director of Toughness, what was your favorite place that they had you visit?
That’s a tough question. We got to do a lot of travel. I’ll break it down in a couple different sections. In wildlife, we went to visit the mountain gorillas in Uganda, and did a trek out there which was absolutely incredible. It was the most unique wildlife experience I’ve ever had.
That sounds so amazing.
Yeah, these gorillas, they were so human-like. Just the way they would play as a family, and interact with you. These are wild gorillas and one of them slapped my butt, and they’re running around chasing some of our guys. They’re just so playful.
We got to go to Japan to go skiing. I love to ski in my personal life and we happened to hit it really, really well with the snow. That was fantastic. I’d never been to Asia before so it was incredible experiencing that culture, and how friendly everyone was and how clean everything was. The heated toilet seats in the 7-11 bathrooms…it was just such a different, awesome experience.
Ecuador was really cool, too. They had such a diverse landscape, from the beaches to climbing a volcano up to 1,900 feet. For a relatively small country it really packs a punch as far as the different elevations you can get to, and the different climates. That was really cool to be down there, as well.
What were some of your favorite pictures that you took?
Some of the stuff from Mt. Hood in Oregon, where Columbia’s based out of. We were in this ice storm. It was freezing rain, and then when we got to higher elevations and our whole bodies just turned into popsicles. That was a time when I was surprised my camera was still working, but I got some really cool photos there. Some of the stuff in Ecuador was fantastic. We were hiking and as the sun rose up behind us we were looking west, so the shadow of the mountain on the cloud layer as the sun came up was a welcome sight, to get some more warmth, but also absolutely spectacular.
What’s an adventure you’ve done recently? What have you been up to?
I just got back from ten days in Valdez, Alaska. I was up there with a couple buddies. It was very cold. It averaged about 0-degrees our whole time there. We went to go do a bunch of ski mountaineering, but unfortunately everything was really wind scoured, so the skiing was really dangerous in the high Alpines. So we ended up just doing a bunch of ice climbing, and did some low angle skiing. It was awesome. It’s such a rugged place, and it’s wild. The people that we were staying with, they don’t have plumbing, they don’t have electricity, they’re completely off the grid. It was a cold and rugged adventure. Got to play with my camera, and do some climbing, which was awesome. Had a good time.
How do you protect your camera equipment when you’re doing adventures like that?
The really high end gear is pretty self-sufficient. I wouldn’t call them water proof, but the Nikon D5 is about as good as it gets when it comes to the elements. I’ve put that gear through hell and back, that’s for sure. Snow, rain, wet, getting down in puddles. Then you just go home and you dry it off and it keeps on working.
Do you ever get sick of all the traveling, or is it just what fuels you?
I love traveling. It’s so fun to experience other people’s cultures and way of life. Sometimes it can be a little isolating, and sometimes it can be a lot, but you know, it’s just like the little things in life that are hard. When you’re moving so fast it’s hard to take care of them all. Like, shoot, I still need to pay for health insurance. I need to get the oil changed in my car. I have no time because I’m home for two days and I have to edit all these images and get them out, and then I’m getting on a plane and going somewhere else.
Do you prefer to shoot landscape based photography? Or do you like doing portraits?
I definitely like to shoot people. That’s really one of the things I get the most enjoyment out of, being able to capture someone and feel like you’re portraying them in an accurate way. With all of my work I try to take more of a documentary approach to how I shoot. When you’re doing commercial work you’re obviously trying to build environments that are real. Instead of trying to fake doing things, I try to just let things happen, whether it’s athletes or just normal people, or models, you just put them in a scene and let them live out the scene. Then try to capture it.
I’m so passionate about photography, and so I try to shoot people that are passionate about something else, whether it’s rounding up horses, or skiing, or on a highline. Seeing people excel at something that they’re passionate about, and being so focused, while — on the other end — I’m focusing on my art, it’s just a great feeling.
What is your editing process like?
I shoot for a certain edit. I always have something in mind. So I take a bunch of photos, then get home, and go straight to those places throughout the day where it’s like, “Oh yeah, definitely want to take a look at that shot.” Then once you’ve filled out your core shots throughout the shoot, you get to fill in all these other little moments that there may be some surprises in there, or, “Oh wow, I didn’t even think that that was as great as it was when I was taking it, but look how this turned out.” Then there’s a whole bunch of photos like, “Wow, that’s shit. That’s shit. That’s shit.” But I learn something from those too. You definitely learn a lot when you get off the three inch screen on the back of your camera and you put it on the computer and really take a look at the image.
Do you have advice for people looking to get into photography?
I would say don’t get too caught up in looking at what other people are doing. Certainly be inspired by other photographers, but the more time you spend with your camera, the more you’ll start to develop your own style, and that will just come out naturally. Don’t try and force that, but just practice, practice, practice. Then you’ll start to see how you like to operate, and how you like to shoot, and how you like to edit, and develop your own style. Stay true to that. If you stand behind it, and you think it’s amazing, then chances are it is and you’ll be able to convince other people that it is as well.
