Devin Feil - Unseen Works

Captured over a handful of years and thousands of miles of travel

16 Sep 2017

Josh Eilken is one rider I have had some excellent luck shooting with. The very first time we met, we came away with a Madera ad from the session, and continued a streak of productive efforts ever since. Somewhere in the midst of shooting 3 more magazine ads and a photo that made the Red Bull Illume book, Josh's footjam whip slipped between the cracks and never saw the light of day. The Bulls jersey and red shoes was by my request. On a related note Josh is also the best hooper who rides BMX that I've played a bit of ball with. Peoria, Arizona. 2013.

In the summer of 2015 I got talking to Tom Villarreal and Chris Bracamonte about the possibility of working on a DIG exclusive video. They were both enthusiastic about the idea and I was excited to tag along with the pair for some sessions. Nearly every spot Chris took us to Tom would find something wild to try. I caught this quieter moment as Tom scoped out one of the few places that we came up empty handed at. Los Angeles, California. 2015.

Longtime friend of mine Clay Johnson out in Los Angeles on a brief filming trip. Although I've known Clay for over 10 years, we've shot surprisingly few photos together. As a matter of fact my very first foray into shooting BMX, was on a spring break trip to Phoenix in 2008. It was my first time using some Vivitar285's I'd purchased and Clay was a willing subject as I tried to incorporate what I'd been learning in school in the streets. I was glad after a long gap in photo missions we were able to get together for this one. Inglewood, California. 2015.

I've been visiting Santa Barbara ever since I first travelled west to stay with Alex Raban, who grew up not far from there, about 7 years ago. I can't say I've ever had anything but a great time there, and this particular weekend getaway came at a time when I really needed it. A dear friend of mine was dying of cancer. It wasn't public knowledge that it had reached a terminal stage, but I'd been informed and my heart was heavy with the news. A couple of days away riding bikes with good friends was a brief respite from the sadness I felt at the time. Santa Barbara, California. 2015.

This photo of Cody Brown includes one of my favorite back stories. I'd travelled up to NorCal to shoot with Vern, Curtis Elwell, plus some of the Bay Area guys, and Cody met up with us in Chico. Not only did Cody come along, but his son joined the session as well. He really pushed himself with this barspin, letting me know after it was the highest drop he'd done one down, which is crazy when you factor in the very low head clearance. But much more amazing than that, was the happiness he exuded in having snagged a photo with his son watching on. Being a part of a moment like that, and Cody's heartfelt thank you meant a hell of a lot to me, and was easily the highlight of my trip. Chico, California. 2015.

I can't recall whether Dan Kruk had been here prior, or just seen footage from the spot, but he had a clear idea of what he wanted to do soon as we arrived. First up was uprail to 360 fakie into the bank, which came relatively easily to him. What he really hoped to do was go up the rail and hard whip off back down the bank as if it was an air. Dan is a pretty determined guy and from my experience he isn't going to let up unless he takes a session ending slam. On this day I think his patience was tested a bit trying to get one clean enough for his liking. It's always that much sweeter when you have to work for it though. La Habra, California. 2016.

To shoot this photo of Josh Alderete I had to stand on a narrow wall wall that ran along a small bridge with at least a 40 foot drop. Standing up there wasn't so much of a challenge in itself, but composing a photo and timing a barspin under those circumstances adds a real layer of difficulty. Only one or two vehicles passed by while I was up there, which I was very thankful for, as it caused the whole structure to shake just enough to be a bit unsettling. Palm Springs, California. 2014.

I'll never cease to be impressed by riders like Jourdan Barba who manage to juggle BMX, work, and his family life with the wife and twin boys. I can't remember the specifics, but I do know we shot this crook rather early in the morning, earlier than most guys would want to be jumping on a kinked rail, but it was probably the only time that suited Jourdan's busy work schedule. San Bernardino, California. 2014.

I got to know Justin Henninger shortly after moving to California, and he quickly grew to be both one of my favorite riders to shoot with and people I've met in the area. Back in 2013 I was spending a lot of time with the Volume guys and also chiseling away at what would become David Grant's All Who Wander Are Not Lost here on DIG. Justin would come meet up, happen to find something crazy he wanted to do, and handle it nonchalantly. These unplanned photo opportunities developed into an Albion interview, and this one didn't make the cut in favor of a different 6040. On this particular day David Grant had the iconic Staples Center ledge lined up as the first spot of the day. Justin decided a 6040 down it was enticing, but the particular ledge that people usually hit didn't work for that trick. In all honesty the fact that he had to pull his front peg out early makes this ledge even more difficult than the ledge everyone typically rides. Safe to say watching David and Justin's Staple Center session was something I won't forget. Los Angeles, California. 2013.

Cody Bowers laying out a tabletop at a wild spot Nick "Vern" Black brought the crew to on a brutally hot summer day. I'd seen some photos and clips on Instagram and had it as a top priority to visit. The long drive there helped build anticipation and once we arrived everyone got right into a productive session. After baking in the sun for a few hours we were all happy to grab sandwiches from a local mom n' pop deli and make our way to a scenic river hangout spot which capped off the afternoon perfectly. Northern California. 2015.

Mike Mastroni has an eye for spots, and very little desire to do the ordinary. As a photographer it's been a pleasure to work with him on so many projects, and be one of the first guys that came to his mind when he had a new idea to shoot. This particular idea didn't pan out quite as Mike had hoped, but it's always worth a try though and made for a fun pitstop on the way back through Utah. Salt Lake City, Utah. 2012.

Jeremie Infelise humored me by doing way too many barspins to get a shot we were both happy with. Originally the plan was to do a regular barspin air across this channel. This presented some timing issues, as it was difficult to anticipate when to expect Jeremie to appear in the frame. Although harder to work around was the fact the key moment was happening once he'd travelled nearly all the way across the tunnel opening, and I was not achieving the sort of framing I was hoped for. I asked if a bar to fakie across it might work and Jeremie let me know that would be no problem at all. First one was timed right on, as it was much easier to see the throw of the bars. I fine tuned the angle, moved a light, and we nailed it the very next go. Austin, Texas. 2016.

Ryan Antle hails from the Canadian province of Newfoundland, a remote island on the eastern coast with long harsh winters. Given the location and climate you might expect a BMX scene to be hard to come by, but despite the odds it's thrived for many years. My first introduction to Newfies was thanks to Jeff Evans, and through him I met Phil Bartlett, who in turn introduced me to Ryan. You've got to have respect for a rider who can visit California in the middle of winter, shake the rust off and crook a big kinked rail. Southern California. 2016.

One of the wonderful things about close friendships is that no matter how much time has passed since you saw one another, it will instantly feel just like old times the next time you do. Kenny Horton and I had spent a fair bit of time riding and filming together in the early Peg Leg days. Gradually those trips became less frequent, I moved to California, he'd relocated to Austin, and before we knew it the earth had circled the sun a few times since we last hung out. In January of 2016 I decided to change that, and pay him a visit. Just as we'd done when we first met at Woodward over a decade prior, we rode our bikes, captured some images, and had a hell of a lot of fun. Austin, Texas. 2016.

Photos by Devin Feil

Captured over the course of a handful of years and spanning thousands of miles of travel across California, and to Arizona, Texas, and Utah these 14 images feature some old friends and also riders whom I've shot with only once. As with every image I create there is bound to be a story behind how it was created and relationship with the subject. I haven't been making this sort of work nearly as often these days, but I will always be thankful for the opportunity to shoot with so many talented individuals and the memories made with each and every one of them.