From early on, my parents tutored me in math and physics: at 16, I enrolled in a boarding school for gifted STEM students — and my new life began. I never came back to my village, as my days were now filled with lectures, experiments and dreams about becoming a scientist. And so I did. Мy degree in physics from Novosibirsk State University (the Russian MIT) landed me at a geophysical lab amidst instruments and graphs, and I spent many happy research hours there.

However, this was exactly when my life took another turn. As a college student, I was active in our student community as an event organizer: one time, I saw our campus photojournalist at work—and the rest was history. At first, I volunteered as a photographer at the music festivals and trivia games, but soon I was officially hired by the university’s marketing and communications department. My award-winning project, “The Faces of Novosibirsk State University”, was a one-of-a-kind media hub that featured daily photo stories about our students and the faculty—this dynamic platform shined a light on our 10,000+ student community. Seeing the power of photojournalism in connecting people and places, I founded a photo club for undergraduate and graduate students that grew into a 50+ member landscape and spanned multiple parallel projects and interest groups. What I long thought of as a hobby actually became a passion + profession.

As a young photojournalist, I was often on the road with my team of photographers to cover events, conferences celebrations and far-flung corners of our region. For some of our projects, I would split our team into sub-teams and manage the operations to cover all parts of an multiple-day event. Our travel map was drawn far and wide : we went to goldmines and bread factories, oil plants and hockey clubs, schools and museums. But my favorite stories came from small Siberian villages and their residents, who welcomed us into their homes and lives. This was our opportunity to represent the people who were invisible to most media outlets and their audiences — but not to us.

Photojournalists happen to be witnesses both to large-scale history and to day-to-day lives of others, and I am no exception. I am driven by the energy of people who make change happen, and I am honored to be their chronicler behind the lens. Some of my most meaningful projects focus on political protests and multicultural events both in Russia and the U.S.: my work in these contexts is an expression of my civic and personal values, as well as my way to contribute to these events through what I do best.

Another passion of mine is to chronicle the inner workings of small and large businesses, to capture the work that goes behind the scenes and the people who silently take care of our world. My experience in this arena ranges from working with single-proprietor businesses to large corporations of 10,000 employees — in both contexts, I highlight the enthusiasm and hard work that goes into running daily business operations. Marketing a business takes many forms and shapes: in this sense, photostories happen to be a critical vehicle for introducing one’s work values and accomplishments to the world.

Currently, I am working on a number of Seattle-area community projects that involve assistance to low-income families and to refugees from Ukraine. I am very open to projects highlighting events, businesses and politics in the Pacific Northwest — what’s your next story?

Forbes
Kommersant
Vital Solutions
IMiracleProject
The Lucky Pen
Meduza
NovayaGazeta
Novosibirsk State University

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