Polly Rusyn

My name is Polly Rusyn. I’m a professional photographer, street photography teacher, speaker, author, and former Fujifilm Ambassador.

My love for photography began as a hobby that grew into an obsession that became a career!

I’m going to blow my own trumpet now and tell you that my work has been awarded and exhibited all over the world at several street photography festivals and published in magazines such as Nat Geo Traveller UK, Framelines, and Eyeshot Magazine.

I’ve also had the honor of being asked to judge competitions and provide talks about street photography at the Nat Geo Traveller Masterclasses as well as photography festivals.

Aside from writing and publishing my own books and zines (available at Amazon if you’re interested), I’m also one of hundred women featured in the first ever ‘Women Street Photographers’ book curated by Gulnara Samoilova, and I contributed to ‘The Travel Photographers Way’ by Nori Jemil.

I’m on a mission to share what I learn through the courses, resources, and workshops I run at the Department of Street Photography! My belief is that everything is ascertainable.

I also believe in a very light and minimal camera kit for street photography.

Learn more about street photography.

I literally put my Fujifilm X100V into a pouch and toss it into my handbag with a couple of spare rechargeable NP-W126S batteries and an extra SD card.

Without a doubt, for me anyway, this is the perfect street photography camera. Compact, unobtrusive, and delivers gorgeous color and sharpness.

I’m nuts about color, particularly primaries, and I’m also a self-confessed fair-weather photographer. Give me bright sunlight and strong shadows, and I am in my element.

Having a fixed prime lens means I don’t waste any time deciding on focal length, and I get to exercise by zooming in with my feet!

Oh, and it’s a very handsome-looking camera too.

I process everything in Adobe Lightroom, but I hate processing, so I just spend a minute or two per photo, literally tweaking the light or straightening up the horizon. Sometimes, I think I have one leg longer than the other!