About myself
It all started when I was twenty, back in Ukraine — the country where I grew up. That was when my view of the world began to expand in two different ways.
I picked up my father’s Zenit film camera and started looking through the viewfinder, trying to leave distractions out of the frame and capture the essence of a place or moment. Around the same time, I also began my first outdoor adventures: kayaking in the Kharkiv region, backpacking in the Carpathians, and climbing mountains in Crimea. Those experiences changed how I saw life and deepened my connection to the natural world. It’s no surprise that landscape photography quickly became my favorite genre.
The story took a new turn when, a few years later, I moved to the United States, and the story took a new turn. Some things changed, while others stayed the same. I started exploring the incredible variety of American landscapes — stargazing in South Dakota, feeling the icy wind near Alaska’s glaciers, and listening to waterfalls in Pennsylvania. My two passions naturally came together, and that is what I’m sharing with you here. I began using my camera more often and with more intention. It is still a hobby, but now I often plan trips around the chance to experience nature in new ways — and, when I’m lucky, to capture those moments so they last beyond memory.
About elements of nature
It might be somewhat surprising that so many ancient philosophies from around the world independently arrived at the idea of using five elements to describe the complexity of nature and its various aspects. Without aligning with any particular philosophy or mythology, I just found it intriguing to organize my humble collection of works based on the elements of nature.
About how to make this world better
Ukraine, the country that has given me so much, has been going through difficult times lately. We all have the power to make a difference and help those in need. If you'd like to purchase a print of any of my works, please contact me, and I'll donate all profits to one of the many humanitarian projects supporting the people of Ukraine in their fight for freedom.
