'He left us too soon' — Ukrainian photographer and soldier Huzenko killed in Russian strike in eastern Ukraine
Kostiantyn Huzenko of the 35th Marine Brigade, in Kyiv, Ukraine on June 3, 2025. (Valentyn Kuzan)
Kostiantyn Huzenko, 28, a Kyiv photographer who documented the war and enlisted the 35th Marine Brigade in April 2024, was killed Nov. 1 in a Russian strike in eastern Ukraine, the media outlet Ukrainer reported.
Just over two years after the full-scale invasion began, Huzenko joined the communications department of the 35th Marine Brigade, where he served as a photographer and press officer until his death.
"What I want most is for us to survive — to survive as Ukrainians," Huzenko said in an interview with the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers (UAPP) published in May 2025.
Before joining the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Huzenko also worked as a media producer and podcaster. As part of the Ukrainer team, which he joined as a volunteer in 2020, he helped document stories from territories liberated from Russian occupation after the start of Russia's full-scale invasion.
"In every dangerous corner of our motherland, Kostia was never afraid to go anywhere," Bogdan Logvynenko, a soldier and a founder of Ukrainer, wrote on Facebook.
Ukrainian photographer Karina Piliuhina, in an interview with the Kyiv Independent, recalled that Huzenko had considered leaving photography to serve more directly in the war.
He wanted to take a combat role, feeling that photography and work in the press service were not enough, Piliuhina said.
"I remember him telling me about it, and I felt such a deep pride for him," Piliuhina said. "Kostia was gentle, sensitive, and vulnerable, yet the courage he discovered in himself during his years in the army commands my deepest respect and admiration."
In June 2024, the Kyiv Independent, in collaboration with UAPP, published a series of photographs by Huzenko. Taken in 2023, the images capture the fleeting moments of childhood in front-line regions, where the evacuation of civilians was already underway.
"He did not see the world as black and white — he saw all its colors, all the interesting things it held," Larisa Kalik, a photographer and friend of Huzenko, told the Kyiv Independent.
"Even though he had recently been at the front, all these military photos showed so much humanity and warmth — such care for others, for loved ones," Kalik said. "We have lost an extraordinary person. He left us too soon."
As the war in Ukraine continues, Russian attacks on Ukrainian journalists and photographers have become more frequent and brutal.
A first-person-view (FPV) drone strike on Oct. 3 killed French photographer Antoni Lallican and seriously injured his Ukrainian partner, George Ivanchenko, who lost his leg in the attack. It was Ivanchenko who had photographed Huzenko during an interview with UAPP, where Huzenko spoke about his service in the 35th Brigade.
"Today marks exactly one month since Antoni was killed. Yesterday (on Nov. 1), Kostia was killed by Russians. It is hard to even find the words — this month has been a difficult one. I still cannot quite grasp what is happening," Ivanchenko wrote on Facebook.
"It feels like Kostia just went somewhere into the mountains, to a wooden cabin, picking apples in an orchard. My deepest condolences to all his family and loved ones. This is a hard trial we all have to go through," Ivanchenko added.
Two days after Huzenko's death, the 30th Marine Corps, which includes the 35th Marine Brigade, confirmed that its service members had been targeted in the Russian attack in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. The corps did not specify which brigade was affected.
Friends and colleagues of Huzenko, speaking with the Kyiv Independent, suggested that the photographer had been killed in this attack, which reportedly struck an award ceremony where troops had gathered.
The State Bureau of Investigation launched on Nov. 3 an inquiry into possible negligence in military service during martial law, which may have led to the deaths of Ukrainian service members in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.
Tania Myronyshena
