Both creative and boastfully entertaining, Irina Bak and Elina Yudilevich are the super star team behind Czaristas, a new company specializing in creative photo shoots that give people the ability to express their inner self or their fantasy-self. Both come from creative backgrounds with experience in photography, art, design, and beauty, with much appreciation for ‘the perfect shot’ and ‘the right light,’ this all star duo will capture your expressions with ease and strong dedication.

In order to truly understand the phenomena behind what these two were up to, I had to experience a Czaristas photo shoot first hand. The experience of working on a shoot with them is wonderful. We had an initial meeting to discuss ideas and concepts for my creative shoot. In this meeting, we brainstormed around ideas and my ideal look and expression. They helped me sort through my own clothing and accessories to finalize the look. They were helpful, accommodating, and most importantly made me feel extremely comfortable.

On the day of the shoot Elina worked on my hair and makeup, she was very skilled in using colors that were both flattering and to my liking and kept reminding me this was my vision; so I was able to give my input to ensure my look was perfect for me. Once more it was a very comfortable atmosphere, where I could truly be myself. Irina is a brilliant photographer and while out on the shoot you can find her rolling around on the ground to get the right light, angles, and perfect shot. We worked into the sunset, captured beautiful shots using touches of accessories and props to finalize the creative perspective I was looking to express.

I had the chance to sit down with the all star team to learn more about where they come from and what their goals are with Czaristas.

L: What exactly do you guys do?
C: In one word, we empower. We want our clients to feel beautiful and confident. So many girls and guys look in the mirror and dislike what they see. They are not able to see their potential, but we are! People might not realize that celebrities do not just wake up looking as glamorous as they do on the cover of magazines. They have teams of people who create their image using tricks of the trade to achieve the desired effect. So, we thought, why not offer a celebrity style experience to everyday girls and guys! With the combination of Elina’s styling, hair and makeup skills and Irina’s keen photographic eye, we are able to provide a coveted product. A celebrity style photoshoot with all the fixings. Each client is a blank canvas that can be turned into a work of art. Together with the client we thoughtfully sculpt a unique theme for the photoshoot. This is no cookie cutter production. Each girl or guy gets a personal consultation where we figure out our direction. The day of the shoot she or he gets the glam treatment and the final product is a stunning set of professional quality photos. Our goal is to have our client walk away from a CZARistas experience not only with stunning photos, but with a feeling of empowerment and confidence!

What are your backgrounds?
IB: I have always loved taking pictures of anything and everything I find to be beautiful. Whenever I am in the presence of something visually stimulating, my natural instinct is to grab the nearest camera at hand or obsess in my head over the fact how I wish I had my camera, what setting I would use, how I would frame the image and beat myself up over how “O my god, I can’t believe I don’t have my camera with me right now!” I love to experiment with different techniques on digital, film and post processing softwares. The sky is the limit when I shoot and I feel since I am self-taught, nothing has stifled my creativity.

EY: My background is in drawing/painting and my degree is in graphic design. The transition from painting on a canvas to painting on a face was an easy one for me. Many years of practicing on my friends gave me the confidence to work on other people. I have experience styling on multiple projects. One of my favorites was assisting on the WMMR Hottest Girls of Philly calendar. It was definitely one of those “I can’t believe I’m getting paid for this” moments. Overall, I have tried my hand at almost all visually creative outlets which helps me gather inspiration from unusual places. I have had great success with my work with CZARistas consistently leaving our clients feeling more beautiful than they thought they could be.

What inspired you to start this business?
Initially it was a way to express bottled up creativity. An idea for an extraordinary photograph would start flowing and we immediately move on to figuring out how to make it happen. We started asking friends to be models and canvas for our ideas. Before we knew it, the word was out. Girls were talking about the experience as being unlike any other. Once the phone started ringing, we embraced working with whomever was interested in becoming a Czarista or Czar. The progress into a business was a natural one. Build it and they shall come. They come and we welcome them with open arms!

Why Czaristas?
When selecting the name we wanted it to be personal and descriptive. We both liked the word “Czaritsa” because it not only relates back to our Eastern European roots but it also means Queen and insinuates the idea of Royalty. We loved that being associated with a royal title would put our clients on a pedestal. To give it a modern day creative spin, we switched it to “CZARista” – a play on the word “Fashionista.” To continue our mighty theme, we crown each girl with the Czarista title, making them a part of the exclusive royal court!

What do you think is the most challenging thing about a photo shoot?
Not as much a grand challenge but more like many little challenges present themselves in every single one of our shoots. There are times when our client wants to execute an exact vision they have dreamed about. It becomes our responsibility to think outside the box to make it happen for them no matter how grandiose, lavish or out there it might be. We want the experience to be better than what they have imagined. We embrace all the challenges that come along with crowning Czaristas or Czars because we love and are excited by what we do!

How do you feel your company stands apart from other photography agencies?
There are multiple things that set us apart from the average photography studio. First of all, our packages include hair, make up and styling. All of our clients get customized themes and our undivided attention. Each person is unique and important to us, not just a number in line. Second, being an all female team is also something that differentiates us. We understand how to make a girl look good, how to enhance a girls face and how to dress for their body types. The fact that we are a female team is also beneficial to our male clients as we definitely know how to make a guy look attractive. Last but not least, we pride ourselves to being very down to earth which allows our clients to treat us as though we are their friends and helps them to relax and feel comfortable. At the end of the day, a CZARistas client walks away with amazing photos and a renewed sense of self confidence and empowerment!

What is your favorite place to shoot?
When the weather is cooperative, we love shooting outside. We embrace any location that allows us to take advantage of the natural sunlight, particularly during golden hour. We always love shooting outdoors because it gives a truly free spirited, relaxed experience for our Czaristas or Czars which they all seem to enjoy as well.

If you were the ones in front of the camera, how would you express yourselves?
We always try to do personal photo shoots to experiment with different techniques and test out new wild ideas. Every so often, we step in front of the camera to remind ourselves what it actually feels like to be the model. It is very easy to forget how intimidating the lens can be so we try to keep ourselves relevant. Being in a shoot is also a great way to improve on directing skills. Since we do not work with models with years of experience, making sure we can direct our clients and keep them comfortable is very important to us.

Is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
Yes, we want to thank whomever read this article and got to this part of the interview. Thank you for reading, for your interest and support. As our final words, we would like to encourage our reader to never dim your shine for anyone and to always express what you are. Believe in yourself as there is only one you. COME PLAY!

Visit Czaristas.com for more information.