Close your eyes for a moment and imagine being named the best photographer in your chosen genre. It would be a major moment, right?! Well, for Olesya Alferenko it is a dream come true. She was recently named Click + Company’s Best Family Photographer! She worked hard to make it happen, and seven years after staring her photography education with Click Photo School, she is number one in her field.
We asked Olesya how she got here and why she’s so amazing at what she does. Plus, of course we’re sharing her gear list and a few fun favorites! Read all about Olesya, get inspired by her gorgeous work, then let us know where you’re at in your photo journey.
Meet Olesya
Olesya Alferenko is a photographer in Los Angeles, California soulfully capturing cinematic family love stories and adventures. Olesya lives with her sweet twin boys and beach loving husband. She loves to hike and explore nature, dance it up, travel the world, practice yoga and laugh with her boys. Photography is her true passion. Find her at olesyaphotography.com or @olesya_alferenko.
Q: Hi Olesya! First, a HUGE congratulations on winning the honor of Best Family Photographer! What does this award mean to you?
A: It means everything!! I started my photography education journey with Click Photo School seven years ago, and now to be recognized as the Best Family Photographer by Click & Company is truly a dream come true! I have worked hard on pushing myself to over deliver on every client session, and getting an award for my body of work makes me feel that I have done the best work that I possibly could have.
Q: Your gorgeous photos are so full of emotion and light. How would you describe your photography style? Is there a certain message or feeling you’re trying to convey with your work?
A: Thank you so much for that! My mission is to tell my client’s dream adventure story, and to showcase family romance artistically and cinematically. My work often conveys the feelings of freedom in nature, closeness or intimate love, romance, playfulness, exploration and that feeling of “ah, what a beautiful life this is!”
Q: What does a photo session with you look like?
A: My photo sessions are usually a fun adventure that I design with my families, where I get to follow along and be the observer, documenting their story as it unfolds. In the majority of my sessions, my clients are authentically connecting with each other and the environment in a way that’s true to them and mostly on their own. I provide light directions to help them flow from scene to scene. Some of my sessions are more directed and some are more observed stories. Both ways, client initiated interactions happen and I get to capture them connecting.
I put a lot of effort into my planning, marketing and client service to be in this place with my clients. I feel very lucky that my clients feel comfortable and confident enough to give so much of their love and of themselves in our sessions. This really makes my heart sing.
Q: Tell me about your creative process. Do your photo shoots begin with an idea, a client, a location… How do you make the magic happen?
A: I put a lot of work into session planning before the day of the shoot. I try to make sure that I have a creative idea for every family photo session. Sometimes the creative idea comes from what I know about the clients and what they want me to capture, sometimes it comes from the location or styling the clients choose, or sometimes I’m inspired by the light I know we will encounter at the location. Other times there’s an idea I have been wanting to execute and I know it would fit for a certain client.
Also, I go into every session with one or two creative skills or techniques I want to practice a few specific photos I would like to try to create. This helps me grow creatively and learn from every session.
Q: Who are your clients and how do they find you?
A: My clients are romantics, dreamers and explorers, who love being in nature, traveling to beautiful places, and appreciate design and photography. They want to hold on to the deep love of their family in a tangible, visual way that makes them smile every day when they look at their wall art. Many of my clients are moms, but I have a good number of dads who book the sessions for the family.
Most frequently my clients find me through their friends or via Instagram. While engagement on Instagram is at an all time low right now, I still find that it’s a great place for my ideal clients to find me and interact with me.
“I believe that one must feel the photographer’s point of view, position, voice… there should be a touching story or soul that draws you into the image.”
Olesya’s Favorite Things
Favorite colors to photograph: All the earth tones, but especially black, white, and camel. It’s such a classic, beautiful combination.
Favorite session-day snack: An Aloha protein bar and an energy shot.
Favorite kind of light: It used to be backlight, but now it’s dappled light or diagonal light.
Favorite photo-day wardrobe: White shirt and black pants or leggings.
Favorite location: El Matador beach in Malibu! It has big rocks and cliffs, and is a client favorite. I love that there are tons of opportunities to play with compositions, light and have adventures.
Coffee or tea? Matcha latte all the way! I am a matcha-holic.
Sunrise or sunset? Sunset! I love warm light.
Books or movies? Both! But right now I am more into movies, or TV shows. I just got into K-dramas and adore them for their cinematography.
Hustle or chill? Chill.
Indoor or outdoor? I would say outdoor, but if there is moody or unusual indoor light, that would be a tough choice.
Favorite quote? “To create art with all the passion in one’s soul is to live art with all the beauty in one’s heart.” ―Aberjhani
Q: Do you have a favorite session so far? Tell us about it!
A: It’s so difficult for me to pick just one because I honestly feel like every session I do is my ideal shoot!
I will tell you about the motherhood session I am posting on Instagram now that was shot in Los Angeles. It was for a mom known as the “L.A. plant girl” who works as a plant designer and often brings two of her kids to work with her as she visits plant nurseries.
My idea was to capture her in her element with her loves. We went to a local plant nursery and walked around as she carried her baby and her son ran around the nursery in his rubber boots looking for frogs and hiding among plants.
I really wanted to capture her as a beautiful plant goddess mother, and recommended that we do some breastfeeding shots among the thick rows of fig leaf plants. She loved this idea! Knowing that showing skin creates more artistic intimacy in photos, she took off her top and undressed the baby so I was able to capture some emotive images of motherhood. Ten minutes later they got dressed and we walked out of the nursery without anyone noticing anything unusual.
Q: Let’s go back to the beginning. When and why did you pick up a camera for the first time? How did that bring you to where you are today?
A: I got my first camera to capture my twin boys when they were born, but at that time I did not have enough time to properly learn photography. Then ten years ago I was diagnosed with a chronic illness and could no longer work or lead my normal daily life. But, spending most of my time in bed gave me the opportunity to appreciate the beauty of simple everyday moments. I noticed how the soft light streamed through the window of our bedroom in the morning, how the leaves glowed in the evening light and how tightly my boys hugged each other as they rolled around playing on the floor. Picking up my camera and capturing these stories was something I could still do every day and it filled my heart with immense happiness.
After our family moved from New York to Los Angeles, I started to heal and was able to photograph my boys outdoors in nature on our beautiful beaches. The themes of freedom in nature and exploration were always present in my personal work then, and have now carried over into my client work.
Q: As artists, we talk a lot about imposter syndrome and confidence. Was there a moment you realized you were comfortable calling yourself a photographer?
A: For me, actually calling myself an artist was a more difficult journey than calling myself a photographer. The first year I opened my business, one of my personal images won a local contest and became a mile marker on our walking path by the beach. “Wow,” I thought, “I am officially a photographer now!” I didn’t start calling myself an artist, however, until several years later when one of my images won the Click and Company Voice competition as best in category. That win really empowered me with the personal freedom and confidence to keep exploring and creating.
Q: Why did you start a photography business, and what has been your most important lesson learned so far?
A: My chronic illness gave me the permission to re-evaluate my career, and I simply could not see myself returning to the corporate world. I really wanted to do what my heart loves and what is meaningful to me, which is creating art and capturing family love stories.
The most important lesson I have learned is to be true to myself and to give a piece of myself in every session. I often see beautiful photographs that have the right light, the great styling, and beautiful location, but the photographs do not move me. I believe that one must feel the photographer’s point of view, position, voice… there should be a touching story or soul that draws you into the image.
Q: What would you tell a photographer who’s ready to push her work or business to the next level?
A: When I mentor other photographers, I usually ask “what does pushing your work to the next level mean to you”? Each of us is unique in our own journey, and I really encourage my mentees to uncover their own personal mission. Some consistent advice I give is to shoot for feeling, to shoot for yourself towards the end of the client session, and to never stop learning and experimenting.
Q: What’s next for you? Is there a project or achievement you are working on?
A: I am just starting to do travel sessions around the world, which is really exciting! Last year I did sessions in New York City and Paris, and this year I am heading to NYC again and also Singapore and Bali.
I also just got a film camera! I have no idea what I am doing with film, but I am so excited to play with it in my personal work. I often edit my work to look like film, and love the nostalgic and imperfect feeling that film has.
Q: Thank you so much for letting me into your creative mind! Any final thoughts for our readers?
A: Keep finding new things that inspire you! I am usually not looking so much at other family photographers’ work, but instead going to museums and art shows, looking at editorial fashion photography, watching movies, listening to music, or observing how families interact while I am on the beach or at a coffee shop. I love drawing inspiration from experiences.
Olesya on location
What’s in her Camera Bag?
Camera: Canon EOS R5 and Canon EOS R6 (I shoot with two bodies at once).
Favorite Lenses: Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L II USM, Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L USM. I also love the Lensbaby Sol 45 as my creative lens.
Anything unusual in your bag? I always carry a few creative tools, like plastic baggies, prisms, photo flashlights, fairy lights, etc.
Three things in your camera bag besides photography equipment? Music speaker, lady bug camera hugger, and an energy shot.
Thanks again Olesya! You are an inspiration to us all. I’m sure our readers will agree that we can’t wait to see more of your work on Instagram and follow where you travel around the world. I hope you’ll share some of your film photo experiments too! Congratulations again on being named The Best Family Photographer.
Click + Company Best Photographer Awards were designed to celebrate the artistry, skill and passion of photographers from around the world. Find out more, including upcoming contest categories, and submit your work here.
All photos by Olesya Alferenko except where otherwise noted.
See the full list of Best Family Photography winners here:
These are the absolute Best Family Photographers working today
