The long way
to a portrait.

I'm a portrait photographer based in the Netherlands. I came to portraiture the long way around — through television, documentary, and my own story of starting over.

For more than fifteen years I worked in Ukrainian television, directing programs for the national channels — a morning makeover show, a culinary program, and big entertainment formats like So You Think You Can Dance, X-Factor, and Ukraine's Got Talent. All those years of watching people in front of a camera taught me the one thing that matters most in a portrait: how to help someone forget the lens is even there.

After fleeing the war in Ukraine with my son, I rebuilt my life and my work here, in the Dutch documentary field, as a researcher and assistant director.

These days my camera turns to portraits. I photograph women in moments of transition — a move, a new chapter, the quiet in-between.

I look for the moment a woman forgets she's being seen, and simply meets herself.

I work with natural light and a lot of patience: quiet, honest, unhurried.