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THE STORY BEHIND ADY NICOLE PHOTOGRAPHY
More Than a Photograph
✦
Photography first found me on the sidelines of my son's high school football games.
What started as a way to capture memories quickly turned into a passion for freezing
motion, chasing perfect timing, and telling stories through a single image.
After stepping away from photography for a few years, everything changed when I met
my husband, Vic. When I shared my dream of picking the camera back up and building
a business, he was all in. Together, we jumped in with both feet and never looked back.
By God's grace, that journey eventually led us to our first rodeo.
At the time, I knew nothing about barrel racing or western events. I simply showed
up with a camera and trusted my instincts. One photograph from that day — a barrel
racer in perfect stride with a hot air balloon filling the sky behind her — became
a turning point.
It reminded me why I loved photography and sparked a passion for western event
photography that continues today.
EVERY KIND OF MOMENT MATTERS
More Than Events
What started with a single rodeo quickly turned into horse shows, clinics,
barrel races and countless miles on the road. Along the way, we've met
incredible people who welcomed us into this community and helped shape
what Ady Nicole Photography has become.
But events are only part of our story.
Over the years, we've also had the privilege of photographing
equine portraits, weddings, seniors and families —
the quieter, more personal moments alongside the fast-moving ones.
I love the intensity of capturing a horse and rider flying through an arena
just as much as I love documenting the relationship between someone and their horse,
a senior stepping into their next chapter, a family together in one place,
or two people beginning a life together.
They may look completely different through the lens,
but they're really about the same thing.
Preserving a moment you won't get back.
The funny thing is, I'm a first-generation horse girl.
Horses weren't part of my childhood, and the western lifestyle wasn't something
I grew up around. Yet through photography, I discovered a passion I never expected.
The horses, the people, the grit and the dedication behind every run completely
captured my heart.
Today, Vic and I call the Kansas City, Missouri area home, but you'll often find
us traveling wherever the next arena, rodeo, horse show, wedding, portrait session
or story takes us.
Whether it's an arena full of people or a quiet session with just one person and
their horse, every photograph has the potential to become a memory that matters.
And there's actually a story behind the name I put on every one of those photographs.
64
CHAD • #64
A few pieces of a life we still carry with us.
IN MEMORY OF CHAD | #64
The Story Behind “Ady”
The name Ady — pronounced AY-dee —
didn't come from photography.
It came from my cousin, Chad.
Chad was my cousin, but growing up, he was much more like a brother to me.
His mom and my dad were brother and sister, so we spent a lot of our childhood together.
When we were little, Chad couldn't say my name, Adrienne, so somehow I became
“Ady.”
Apparently I wasn't doing much better, because I couldn't say Chad either.
So naturally, he became “Sad.”
Those silly childhood nicknames grew up with us.
My grandma called me Ady. My family called me Ady.
Eventually my friends started calling me Ady.
It just stuck.
In June of 1997, shortly after his 17th birthday, we lost Chad to suicide.
For almost 30 years, I've carried his story pretty close to my heart.
And although I've carried the name he gave me all these years,
I've never really shared much publicly about the person behind it.
In 2026, I finally felt like it was time.
I created In Memory of Chad | #64,
a memorial campaign benefiting the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
The #64 was Chad's football number.
After we lost him, that number became incredibly special to our family.
Years later, my own son would carry #64 throughout his football years,
from when he was little through high school.
His memorial page tells the rest of his story —
not simply how we lost him, but who he was.
A quiet kid with a funny side.
A jokester who loved to tease.
A baseball and football player.
Everyone's friend.
Someone with a heart of gold.
And the boy who called me Ady.
Read Chad's Story + Support #64
Donations are made directly through the
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
THE STORY CONTINUES
Take the Picture.
Looking back, it's hard not to see God's hand in every step of this journey.
What started as a simple love for photography has become something Vic and I
are incredibly grateful for. From arenas and horses to weddings, seniors
and families, we're trusted with moments in people's lives that can't be recreated.
And maybe that's what photography has taught me more than anything:
Take the picture.
The big moments.
The ordinary ones.
The people you love.
The life you're living right now.
Because photographs have a way of becoming more important with time.
We're honored every time someone trusts Ady Nicole Photography
to preserve a little piece of their story.
And every time I put Ady on one of those photographs,
I'm carrying a little piece of mine, too.
More Than a Photograph
Photography first found me on the sidelines of my son's high school football games. What started as a way to capture memories quickly turned into a passion for freezing motion, chasing perfect timing, and telling stories through a single image.
After stepping away from photography for a few years, everything changed when I met my husband, Vic. When I shared my dream of picking the camera back up and building a business, he was all in. Together, we jumped in with both feet and never looked back.
By God's grace, that journey eventually led us to our first rodeo.
At the time, I knew nothing about barrel racing or western events. I simply showed up with a camera and trusted my instincts. One photograph from that day — a barrel racer in perfect stride with a hot air balloon filling the sky behind her — became a turning point.
It reminded me why I loved photography and sparked a passion for western event photography that continues today.
More Than Events
What started with a single rodeo quickly turned into horse shows, clinics, barrel races and countless miles on the road. Along the way, we've met incredible people who welcomed us into this community and helped shape what Ady Nicole Photography has become.
But events are only part of our story.
Over the years, we've also had the privilege of photographing equine portraits, weddings, seniors and families — the quieter, more personal moments alongside the fast-moving ones.
I love the intensity of capturing a horse and rider flying through an arena just as much as I love documenting the relationship between someone and their horse, a senior stepping into their next chapter, a family together in one place, or two people beginning a life together.
The funny thing is, I'm a first-generation horse girl.
Horses weren't part of my childhood, and the western lifestyle wasn't something I grew up around. Yet through photography, I discovered a passion I never expected. The horses, the people, the grit and the dedication behind every run completely captured my heart.
Today, Vic and I call the Kansas City, Missouri area home, but you'll often find us traveling wherever the next arena, rodeo, horse show, wedding, portrait session or story takes us.
Whether it's an arena full of people or a quiet session with just one person and their horse, every photograph has the potential to become a memory that matters.
And there's actually a story behind the name I put on every one of those photographs.
The Story Behind “Ady”
The name Ady — pronounced AY-dee — didn't come from photography.
It came from my cousin, Chad.
Chad was my cousin, but growing up, he was much more like a brother to me. His mom and my dad were brother and sister, so we spent a lot of our childhood together.
When we were little, Chad couldn't say my name, Adrienne, so somehow I became “Ady.”
Apparently I wasn't doing much better, because I couldn't say Chad either. So naturally, he became “Sad.”
Those silly childhood nicknames grew up with us.
My grandma called me Ady. My family called me Ady. Eventually my friends started calling me Ady.
It just stuck.
In June of 1997, shortly after his 17th birthday, we lost Chad to suicide.
For almost 30 years, I've carried his story pretty close to my heart. And although I've carried the name he gave me all these years, I've never really shared much publicly about the person behind it.
In 2026, I finally felt like it was time.
I created In Memory of Chad | #64, a memorial campaign benefiting the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
The #64 was Chad's football number. After we lost him, that number became incredibly special to our family. Years later, my own son would carry #64 throughout his football years, from when he was little through high school.
His memorial page tells the rest of his story — not simply how we lost him, but who he was.
Take the Picture.
Looking back, it's hard not to see God's hand in every step of this journey.
What started as a simple love for photography has become something Vic and I are incredibly grateful for. From arenas and horses to weddings, seniors and families, we're trusted with moments in people's lives that can't be recreated.
And maybe that's what photography has taught me more than anything:
Because photographs have a way of becoming more important with time.
We're honored every time someone trusts Ady Nicole Photography to preserve a little piece of their story.
And every time I put Ady on one of those photographs, I'm carrying a little piece of mine, too.