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Ricky Adam



 rickyadamphoto.com


I don't know why this happens, but I've noticed that, the minute someone picks up a camera and begins shooting BMX photos, it becomes generously easy to locate said person's eccentricities.


The person could be the most normal person you've known your entire life; but the minute he or she picks up a camera and starts ordering strange items like Sunpak cables from Hasidic Jews in midtown Manhattan, you become immediately aware of what sets that person apart from any other person walking down the street on any given day.

Their strange habits all become abundantly clear as soon as the label 'photographer' is attached to them.


Such is the case with Ricky Adam. Though I never had the pleasure of meeting the pre-photographer version, I can happily point out everything about him that makes Ricky what he is, which is one of the most eccentric personalities I've ever known.

So what have I noticed about Ricky in the time I've come to know him? For one, he's a human squirrel. He hoards his food and hides it on himself. Days later, he'll find the hidden food and then, that day's meals are taken care of. (This practice often involves peanut butter sandwiches and nuts.)


Secondly, Ricky is bizarrely obsessed with Northern Midwest cities in the U.S. If it's North of Chicago and offers an average temperature of 20º in the winter, Ricky has been there or wants to go there. And lastly, and this is the really strange one, Ricky leaves suitcases full of unknown items behind at places he visits. I have one in my basement, and I think Will [Smyth] has one as well. For the sake of privacy, I won't open it or disclose the contents, but it does make me wonder...


I digress though, as this is supposed to be about Ricky's photography. Ricky likes to shoot photos. His current employment at Dig BMX requires him to shoot photos of BMX, which he does quite brilliantly. But he takes his

photography much further beyond the realm of technically accurate BMX riding. I guess what I'm getting at,is that Ricky captures the reality of life. Yes, he's a little strange (which we all are to some degree), but there's a fine line between genius and insanity, and it often gets crossed when someone is spending their living moments laying down on a dirty patch of ground, shooting photos of kids riding their bikes down handrails.


- Brian Tunney