We are so happy we found Alex and Anastasiia to be our wedding photographers! They just might be our favorite vendor and we had a lot of really great vendors. When we first started searching, we discovered this category of documentary style photography and realized this is exactly what we were looking for – a focus on capturing all of the raw emotions and special moments throughout the day rather than a focus on creating and capturing a perfectly composed scene. It’s not that we didn’t want some of the typical family portraits and wedding party poses you often see, or to somehow look great from all the angles, we just wanted a photographer that understood that we put a higher value on the candid shots. And we got two! Alex and Anastasiia understood this balance way better than we did and used their crazy good creativity and sensitivity to capture what was meaningful to us, to align with the miscellaneous aesthetic interests we discussed and practiced during the engagement shoot, and to document the beautiful realities of the day so perfectly. The communication was great. They were super kind, respectful, and patient. They were simultaneously easy-going and professional. We highly recommend and will be reaching back out to them for any future professional photo needs. We’re so grateful to be able to relive the day through the photo gallery forever. Also, by the way we found them on fearlessphotographers.com – an incredibly impressive group that needless to say Alex and Anastasiia can hang with.

Alex and Anastasiia were an absolute delight to work with, and honestly the MVP vendor of our entire wedding (and the rest of them were great too!). When people told us their thoughts on our wedding, most of them commented (unprompted) on how great the photographers were.

Alex and Anastasiia get a combination of posed and documentary-style candid shots, and each and every one of them is STUNNING. When I look through our wedding album all I can think of is how well they captured how fun the day was and also "damn, they made us look GOOD!"

This is not to mention that they are timely, professional, kind, creative, fun, and always prepared. 10/10, would hire again/recommend to anyone.

https://polyakovphotography.com/stone-tower-winery-wedding/

On October 22, 2017 I (Maid of Honor) witnessed the most important event in my best friend’s life-her marriage! Like any other woman she desired this day to be perfect, so are the photos that would remind her of the brightest and happiest moments she shared on that day with her loved ones for the rest of her life! So the couple did an extensive research of DC area photography companies to ensure they choose the best one for reasonable costs. After a few meetings with some photographers, I remember her calling me being super excited about hiring Polyakov Photography company and saying that she fell instantly in love with the work they had shown to her.
Well, as it turned out soon after the wedding, it was the best decision ever!! I think it would be inappropriate to call the wedding pictures as just, the photos, I’d rather say each of them is a piece of art! (check out the album called Daniela& Dave on their website and you will see yourself)
Besides, Alex and Anastasia did such an amazing job that day at dealing with the crowd during the group picture photo session, at giving the instructions and suggestions about postures, coming up with some funny poses for us all! Overall, they made it a truly fun on such a beautiful (but also stressful for bride and groom!) day and handled it all on 150%! I strongly recommend you to hire them if want your happiest moments to be perfectly captured on your photos!!!

Great photographers! Pictures speak for themselves. Had thousands of photos taken from beginning to end. Our wedding was around 10 hours from start to finish. Then they provided really good photos immediately after the wedding. Followed by the full digital album a few weeks later that looks like it was digitally remastered. So much more color in the photos. When we were first looking around for photographers, I was worried that we will end up with photographers who didn't know how to take pictures in the dark too well. Because we both had lots of friends who got married and their photographers were always subpar. But as you can see in the photos I uploaded, they went above our expectations. I would add more but it only allows me to upload 10. Also, we were able to finish all the different photo shoots ahead of schedule because they were so organized. We went from ceremony to family wedding photos, couple photos, and a bunch of other photos and we were 25 minutes ahead of schedule according to our timeline. So organized and so good at instructing people what to do. I would highly recommend!!

Look no further as you have found your wedding photographers. We have known Alex and Nastia for years and could not recommend them more. We had the privilege of having them photograph our engagement photos, as well as our wedding day. They could not have been more professional, a more calming presence, and fun to be around. It is not like your normal photographer experience; they go above and beyond! Please please PLEASE choose So Tender is Humanity, as you will not regret it!

Alex and Anastasiia were a great photographer duo. They were very responsive during the planning stages and friendly to work with. They combined artistic/creative elements that reflected a sense of adventure and also delivered high-quality classic shots and portraits. Their photo-journalistic style also helped to capture candid shots of the wedding and reception. Great seeing them work as a team and their willingness to try new things. Thanks both for capture our day! Highly recommend.

We did a photoshoot with Alex and he was great! Easy to work with and very receptive to feedback. We scheduled one session with our dogs at Sligo Creek Park and we got some great shots. However, our dogs quickly lost interest and made it tough to proceed so Alex offered to do a whole additional session in another setting in the city. In addition to his flexibility, the pics came out great! We can't wait to share them with our family and friends!

I really don't know where to start but I know for sure that I was 200% happy that I had Alex and Anastasiia to capture my wedding day. They are honestly the best! Not only my husband and I were extremely satisfied with the service and pictures, but our family members couldn't stop complimenting on this wonderful couple and their amazing photos! I reached out to Polyakov Photography when I was looking for photographers for my traditional Vietnamese wedding back in August 2018. We met Alex at a small coffee shop to discuss about our wedding plan and even though he didn't have much experience with Vietnamese wedding, I still felt like I could trust him by his excitement and enthusiasm, and it was the best decision that I made. Alex and Anastasiia were soooo fun and easy to work with. I love how patient and creative they were despite how chaotic the situation might get sometimes. They were so sweet and always tried their best to capture all the details of the story and I couldn't be happier going through the final gallery feeling like I just relived those moments again. I am totally recommending this vendor to you all for your wedding day. Trust me, you will not regret your decision :) It's really difficult to only select 10 pictures for this review :D

Alex and Anastasiia are INCREDIBLE! My husband and I will never be able to say thank you enough for the absolutely STUNNING memories they captured for us. They are such a fun, friendly, awesome couple to work with. We love you guys and will definitely use for my sisters wedding! 11 out of 10- WOULD RECOMMEND

When my then-fiancé (now husband) and I started researching wedding photographers, we knew we needed the best. We wanted our special day to be captured perfectly so that we could look back and remember the joy, excitement, and love we felt on our wedding day. After combing through Polykov Photography's website and seeing examples of their work, we knew they would be perfect. We loved the vibrant colors, how they captured emotion and movement, and how they framed their shots. We met Alex early on just to make sure we were a right fit. He spent over an hour chatting with us answering all of our questions. We could immediately see that Alex was patient, kind, and knowledgeable, and his passion for photography just jumped out at us, and that's exactly what we wanted in a photographer. Alex and Anastasiia did our engagement photo shoot at the National Harbor. The weather was very uncooperative, but they were extremely flexible and rescheduled a couple of times just so that we could get good pictures. They were so fun and easy to work with, it was almost like hanging out with friends! The photos were gorgeous! It was so crowded that day, but they made it seem as if we had the entire harbor to ourselves. For our wedding day, the only instructions we gave Alex and Anastasiia was to take as many pictures of everything and everyone as they can. They tag teamed our event, and I'm positive they didn't miss a single thing! Friends remarked to me that the photographers were everywhere! On several occasions, I saw Alex jumping up and down on the dance floor along with a groups of guests so that he could capture the moment! They brought such positive energy that anyone who saw them immediately wanted to smile. My husband and I are still waiting for the bulk of our photos (since they have to go through over 10,000 shots!), but they sent us a small batch as a teaser, and the photos are astonishingly beautiful. The colors, the details, the angles, the emotions, the everything! I don't know how they got so many great candid pictures. Alex and Anastasiia are masters of their craft, and we were so fortunate to have worked with them. If you're looking for a photographer, definitely reach out to Polyakov Photography. It will be one of the best decisions you'll ever make.