photo by Tanya Yarmolovych
the person behind the lens
hello, my name is Polina Hedzenko
...and I'm a wedding photographer based in Lisbon, Portugal.
Photography has been my passion for as long as I can remember. I first got interested in it when I found an old film camera on our balcony as a child. From there, I taught myself all about the basics of composition, colour theory, and editing.
I moved to Lisbon after the war started in Ukraine, and this city changed something for me. I'd always thought weddings were something to survive rather than celebrate — loud, scripted, a little chaotic. Then I started photographing couples here, in palaces in Sintra, on clifftops above the ocean, in the cobblestone streets, and I understood that a wedding could be art. That it could feel like a film you'll want to watch for the rest of your life.
"I always dreamed of being an actress and even studied TV directing at university — which gave me a unique perspective on what it's like to be on both sides of the camera. Movies are still my biggest source of inspiration, and that cinematic eye is in everything I shoot."
photo by Tanya Yarmolovych
I work in a documentary style, with both digital and film, for couples who want their photos to feel true and real, rather than perfect and posed. Years from now, I want you to look at these images and think: was that really us? Were we really that beautiful? The answer is yes. You just needed someone to notice.