You Can Help Student Achieve His Dream!

Hello to you, Dear Friends!

My name is Andrey and I'm a student from Latvia, Eastern Europe. I've been interested in photography since I can remember myself. I've always admired photography as a way of art; photography is such a beautiful way of expressing yourself without words. It's amazing how photographers can tell a beautiful story though a single shot, that's such a powerful way of storytelling. It's unbelievable how sometimes one photo can get you mesmerized and leave you speechless or covered in goosebumps all over your body just by looking at it. As one of the most influential photographers of 20th century Irving Penn said: "A good photograph is one that communicates a fact, touches the heart and leaves the viewer a changed person for having seen it. It is, in a word, effective''. That's only one of many reasons I love photography.

But I never actually got myself into doing it professionally. Until a couple of years ago when I set a goal to save up some money and eventually bought my first camera - Panasonic Lumix LX100, that's when I decided that it is time to start studying the art of photography. Through those years I've gone through several photography courses in real life and online, read countless photography blogs, plus practiced a lot on my spare time. Now I don't go anywhere without my camera and enjoy capturing all kinds of memorable moments through it more than anything. I never thought that it will bring so much joy in my life and I love every second of doing it so far.

Recently Times magazine released their list of 100 most influential images of all time. And one of the photographers in that list is also from Riga, Latvia - Philippe Halsman, who took an epic photo of Salvador Dalí called “Dalí Atomicus” in 1948 and is also known for his portraits of famous people like: Albert Einstein, Marilyn Monroe, Alfred Hitchcock and many others. Philippe Halsman is such a big inspiration for me, he redefined portrait photography and inspired generations of photographers, as well as shown the world that even someone from such a little country as Latvia can become a world known photography phenomenon. I absolutely love his work, and I hope that after many years of practice and dedication I can become a person who will inspire others with my photos and I'm willing to work really hard for it.

I adore my compact camera, but unfortunately it feels like I've hit the dead end with it and like I've already squeezed all the juices from it. So in order for me to continue growing as a photographer I started to feel the necessity of upgrading my gear to a more professional level. But this kind of investment demands a lot of money and it will take me a lot of time to come up with that kind of amount.

It's the first time in my life I'm asking somebody for something and unfortunately there are not many spare options available right now. You can help a fellow human being to fulfill his dream of becoming a photographer. All I need now is a little investment and for you kind people to believe in me. I understand that there are many other worthy causes for fundraising, but in my case you will help a student make the dream become a reality. So you have the power to change my life for good. I will be eternally grateful for every cent funded in that project. Every little bit helps whether it is $1 or $100!

Thank you very much for taking the time to read about my campaign! And remember - sharing is caring, so I will be very thankful if you can share this project with other people.

P.S. I post some of my pictures here and it would be great if you could follow my journey and I will be more than happy to share this great experience with you.