For Yuri Hahhalev, a photographer based in Tallinn, Estonia, it all started in 2003. Studying at university at that time, he had received an unexpected grant and spent it on his first digital camera. Constantly progressing ever since both technically and artistically, Yuri realized that photography became for him not just a hobby but a passion for capturing beauty in all possible forms. Enjoying the most taking studio close-up shots Yuri tries not to be too lazy and packs his camera while traveling. He also finds some time for playing around with graphic rendering software. Also, under an alias name Yurok Aleksandrovich, he successfully promotes his works on the stock photography market. Yuri sees photography as a truly exciting learning process: "You try something new, you do make mistakes, archive your results and after analysis and conclusions are done you move forward. And the important thing - you move with the new knowledge. Photography is such extensive field for self-improving - no matter how skilled you are, there is always plenty to learn. I am always working hard on providing the best possible result at the moment, and a year later from now I know I can do better. That keeps me going."