Beat
Daily life in provincial Russia.
One Shot
“Ravil was very shy so it was difficult to photograph him. We spent all day together, exploring abandoned houses and gathering wild berries. Once he got used to me I was able to take this portrait. It’s an ordinary image, but I like the process of becoming inconspicuous.”
Profile
My father is a photographer, so I’ve been familiar with photography since my childhood. When I was 9, I had a camera Smena 36 on which I captured my friends and classmates. We developed the films in the bathroom of our flat. My major teacher in photography was my father.
With the arrival of digital technology, I picked up photography again with renewed enthusiasm. I studied history, but from my from third year at university I started working as a photographer for a local paper.
Photography is my way of life. It allows me to visit different places, meet interesting people. It leads me from plot to plot: from street photography to a long-term projects about a dying Russian village.
My first assignment was for a small newspaper covering a sports festival for university students where I studied. I was very worried and made a lot of mistakes but was very pleased with the first publication.
Over the years, there have been several assignments that left a big mark on me. One of them was a photo story about children with leukaemia. While working on such topics, you understand the real price of simple things like, health and family.
Documenting the lives of ordinary people excites me the most. I would like to show the whole world the life of provincial Russia. Especially as citizens of our own country are often unaware of how ordinary people live.
To photojournalists starting out now, I would advise them to look everyday at the work of photographers from around the world and constantly document life around them.
Behind the Scenes
