This is actually the only page here in English which only means that I am a native Russian, and the language that I mostly use is of course not English. However, when you work in the market, you should be aware that you provide the services the market needs, and wedding photography comprises many aspects, including that of the language. Here you can see the outline of my thoughts about this and some other info about me.
So, this is it. You found a photographer who speaks English and does it almost everyday. English is quite typical in Russia, mostly in Moscow of course, but not so much among photographers. It so happens, that languages and visual arts are two different roads going different, if not opposite, directions.
A wedding photographer or interpreter?
Many things matter when choosing a photographer — quality of resulting shots, reasonable price of services, sometimes a good command of English is also critical. I am aware that many photographers here can speak English, but their knowledge, in most cases, is limited by only a couple of standard phrases the response to which remains vague and gets lost somewhere in the subconscious level of theirs. I also know that very little people require a photographer with a good command of English here, while I am not planning to work abroad.
Sometimes it is better to hire an interpreter to be able to talk to the local photographer — photographers are artists and nothing can replace a good shot, even knowledge of a foreign language. Though it may seem a bit weird when seeing how a photographer gets his thought translated into his object's mind via another person's voice.
I know my stance and my level — I am not genius and I am more of a craftsman than an artist. I know how to get a good shot, how to process a photograph and how to present the result. But what I can do is to make people show parts of their soul and get it exposed to the camera sensor. One language here is somewhat obligatory.
I can talk the same language, of course not to everyone, but to most people who can speak English. I have a degree in linguistics and I am entitled to work as an interpreter which I did previously, including both consequitive and simultaneous interpretation. So English is not a problem for me, in terms of bringing my ideas to people's minds... I can always choose the right words here.
Pricing and contractual issues
Here is the official section of this page. Speaking about foreigners here in Russia, you always encounter a situation when something is more expensive for a person from abroad, compared to the same level of services for locals. I don't like that as it is a sort of discrimination that I don't accept. The price here is the same as with other weddings that I shoot and equals RUR 25000 (about USD 800) that include:
- my carrot fresh dunring our first meeting
- related consulting services on any wedding or photo subjects
- love story footage which comprises 1 or 2 hours of shots and talks
- the wedding day footage itself, starting with bride's preparations and make-up and ending with the restaurant
- sorting out of photographs, complete color-correction, stylisation and finishing of 100 through 200 shots, with deep retouching of photos that require it, burning the result to a disc or flash card (the cost is also included)
- all minor steps related to make photos printed and handed out to you
- any motion around the city related to the above up to the moment when the disc is yours
Printing, of course, is a special line here as I do not charge extra fee added to the cost of printing. The default option is photos on disc plus cost of print substantiated by a cheque of the printing service.
Many wedding photographers conlude contracts — in this case, it should be noted that their final fee rises as their taxes should be paid either by them or by the tax agent, if they work for a Russian company. This is obligatory and I do the same, so you should always bear in mind that I mention my fee after all taxes and duties paid.
Contact info
You can always get in contact with me by phone (preferable) +79104653623, email or by any other means that can be found on my contact page. Here is a small code for your phone to copy my card to by taking a shot of this code below.
