Behind the Lens: Stories From South Dakota’s Grasslands and the People Who Care for Them

Dugan Bad Warrior Ranch, Ziebach Co.,, SD. Photo Credit: Joe Dickie

By Buz Kloot

When I first met Joe Dickie, it didn’t take long to know we were going to get along. We’d barely begun working together when the playful jabs started — the kind of good-natured banter you fall into only with someone who is both a consummate professional and someone who loves to keep things light.

SD NRCS’s Collette Kessler threw us together years ago for soil health work in South Dakota, saying, “You two need to work with each other.” She wasn’t wrong. Joe took over the cameras, the color, and the sound — all the things I used to fret over — while I focused on the science and the admin. Somewhere in those early trips down I-90, the partnership took root.

And somewhere in those same miles, something else happened: the prairie stole my heart.

Once you stand in that early light and listen — really listen — the prairie reveals itself: meadowlarks tuning up, cattle moving against the horizon, wind combing through the grass. What looks empty from the highway becomes a whole, living world when you’re standing inside it.

Over the years, Growing Resilience has been fortunate to share Joe’s talents with many South Dakota partners. So when the South Dakota Grassland Coalition releases a new Amazing Grasslands video — produced by Joe and his team — we recognize the signature touches immediately: the quiet dawn shots, the honest conversations, the way people relax into their own story when Joe is behind the lens. That’s why this month’s film, Behind the Lens, feels so special. It offers a window into how these superb artists, Joe, Mitch Kezar, and Charlie Dickie spend their days documenting South Dakota ranch families — long drives, early alarms, unpredictable weather, and more motel coffee than anyone should drink twice.

But the real story is how people open up around them. A rancher may start the morning a bit stiff, unsure about being filmed. Then Joe — with his disarming mix of curiosity and humor — asks a question, listens deeply, and suddenly the conversation shifts. Shoulders drop. A smile breaks. Within minutes, they’re talking about grazing decisions, family history, and the deep love they have for the land. By mid-morning, you’d swear they’ve known each other for years.

What Joe and his team understand — and what South Dakota teaches all of us — is that story begins with relationship. With trust. With showing up on someone’s land and seeing not just grass and cattle, but the generations of care stitched into every acre. That is why South Dakota steals our hearts.Not only for its sweeping horizons, but for the people who rise each day determined to keep those horizons alive.

This month’s Amazing Grasslands release honors exactly that spirit — the open gates, the shared coffee, the humor, and the resilience that define ranch life here.

👉 Watch the September Amazing Grasslands short film on the SD NRCS YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4QqSidPY58

If this steals your heart even a little, you’re in good company. It happens every time.

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