My name is Irina Zdyrko.

In 2020, the pandemic postponed all my plans and there was time for the things we usually put off. I had been interested in photography for a long time, but lacked the time and energy to do it. All of the things I thought I'd do later became possible, I had free time and most importantly the desire to learn something new. I just took my camera and started walking around my familiar city, Berlin, and took photos. After a while, when the camera settings didn't scare me anymore and the photos were more deliberate, then I started getting to know my favorite places again. It's a great feeling to look at a photo and think, "why I didn't see this before?" The camera has not only given me something new to do, but it has opened my eyes to this world. The opportunity to see everything from a new angle and with a new sense of wonder.

I love capturing moments or places that will never be the same again, whether in a few hours or years. I think I love photography for being able to show a picture of a place and tell the story of how it was. In our fast-paced world, it's so important to have something that can catch you even for a second and say "look, this is our world." 

At the moment, I enjoy shooting nature, landscapes and cityscapes the most, but my journey into photography is just beginning, so we'll see what happens next.

Kamchatka is the place where I was born and lived for 17 years. It's an incredibly beautiful, amazing place.

It's like another planet, with about 300 volcanoes, 72 of which are active, and constant earthquakes. The waves of the Pacific Ocean break on black volcanic sand. Natural and man-made hot springs— the man-made ones we call “paratunka”, they look like an ordinary outside pool, but the water is constantly warm due to the hot springs. Bears are everywhere, along with sea lions, killer whales, whales, many birds and other animals. This is all Kamchatka.

A place where nature is still living its life, nature still rules (I hope that this will continue). A place where you feel like a guest of the animals. I love and miss this place very much. 

Why Smile Ira?

Irina is my full name, and in Russia almost every name has a shortened or abbreviated version. So you can turn Irina into Ira, Irishka, Iriska, Irinushka, and so on.

Most people call me Ira. Smile is a smile, that's what I was called in my school years. Those who know me personally, know that a positive attitude and a smile are integral parts of me.

When I first registered on Instagram, I immediately wrote this nickname - @smileira. It stuck with me so much that I still use it and even created this site with the name.