Today we’d like to introduce you to Ricki Bedenbaugh.
Hi Ricki, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Originally from Pensacola, Florida, I moved to California in 1991 to pursue a career in cinematography and editing. I started off only filming with my good friend Kris Markovich who’s a pro skater. He introduced me to other pro skaters, and it just kind of snowballed into a full-time career. I strictly only shot skateboarding for about 20 years.
Around 2013 I got a job at Stance Socks and that gave me the opportunity to shoot with athletes such as Allen Iverson, Dwyane Wade, Klay Thompson, Ken Roczen, Bubba Watson, and many more. Not only that, but I also was shooting jobs for Playboy TV, Red Bull TV, Dew Tour, Vans Park Series, etc. Currently, I am the Senior Cinematographer at Fox Racing in Irvine and mostly shoot motocross and mountain bikes. One of my favorite projects I did was a passion project called “Keep On Pushin”. It’s basically my thank you to skateboarding for everything it has given me through the years.
If you would told the 14 years old me that I would be living in California, filming and traveling all over the world with the best skateboarder out there, I’d say you’re crazy.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Obviously any new adventure has its challenges, but when you’re determined, you put in the hard work, and love what you do, it makes everything worth it. I never went to college, I learned everything on my own. There’s no school out there that could have taught me what I’ve learned from traveling the world with skateboarders and my camera.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m a skateboarder, cinematographer and editor.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
Obviously my family, they’ve always had my back with any decision I’ve made. My wife Vicky for dealing with my crazy schedule, and my injuries from skating. Kris Markovich and his family, when I first moved to California they took me in as one of their own. Josh Friedberg and Chris Ortiz from 411VM, Ryan Kingman for bringing me on board at Stance, and Ryan Marcus for always having my back and bringing me on board at Fox Racing.
Contact Info:
- Email: rickithedude@gmail.com
- Website: https://www.keeponpushin.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rickithedude
Image Credits:
Gordon Dooley, Drew Ruiz, Ted Newsome, Derrick Busch
