Announcing "The Face of the Story"

the face of the story portrait photography project

For months, I've been trying to come up with the perfect idea for a photo essay. The basics were there, but I still hadn't found the perfect inspiration. I've gone through multiple iterations in my head, but nothing seemed to be the right fit for what I wanted to achieve. As I was driving home after working at the studio one day, I finally had my light bulb moment. It was my 30th birthday, and as most of us tend to do on those big decade-changing birthdays, I was reflecting on what I had accomplished, what I still want to achieve, and the experiences and people that had brought me to this point. And though it hasn't been a smooth journey, I've finally come to a point when I feel like I'm starting to understand and accept who I am.

And in that moment, I realized that that premise was exactly what I wanted my project to encompass. 

"The Face of the Story" is a black and white photo essay that will focus on not only creating a compelling portrait of an individual but also telling their story.

Each portrait will be accompanied by a narrative written by that person that describes a life-changing, life-altering, or other impactful events in their life. 

So many of us have stories to tell, but we tend to keep them to ourselves and hide in the shadows, convinced that no one wants to hear our stories. But as evidenced by the #metoo movement, there are often people that surround you who have experiences that have been untold. 

This is where you come in. Rather than keep these experiences under wraps, I want to bring them to the light. I want to help open up discussions that need to be had. I want others to read these stories and realize that other people have the same struggles, the same challenges, the same profound experiences. But I also want to help others who haven't gone through these experiences to be able to gain a better understanding of others. We all have had moments where our preconceived notions have been challenged, those moments of understanding that shift our perspectives or challenge our way of thinking. 

I want to help tell stories of overcoming adversity, stories of strength, hope, transformation, acceptance, joy, sorrow, and everything else that makes us as the human race absolutely incredible. No story is too small to be told.

If you have a story to tell, I want to photograph you. 

Click here to get the details and sign up!

Can I photograph you and tell your story?

Here’s how it works:

• There is no fee to participate
• A model release must be signed to participate. 
• Each person will schedule a 20 minute time slot to be photographed
• Dress as you normally would (Be yourself!)
  • Do not wear anything with busy patterns, logos, or writing
  • Wear clothes with dark colors and/or textures
  • Each participant will receive one digital image from their shoot (photographer’s choice) that will be delivered via email within 1 month of your story going live.
    • No purchase is required to participate in this project.
    • -Write about a defining moment in your life and email it to laura@laurawebb.me. It doesn’t have to be long, but it can be as long as you’d like.

Can I photograph you and tell your story?

Shooting for the project will resume soon! To be get updates, sign up here!

Ready to share your story? Get involved here!

Today I Turned 30.

Today I turned 30.I had been dreading the big number change for several months now. Thinking of all of the things that I wished I had accomplished, all of those life goals that didn't quite come to fruition-I wasn't ready to suddenly feel like a "real" adult. But you know what. There isn't some magic timer that ran out at midnight. There isn't some hidden rule that says that all goals must be achieved by age 30. And yet, somewhere in the back of my mind, that rule was written in stone and the timer had been set. But today still came and nothing changed. There isn't a prize for checking off all of your hopes by a certain date.

I was trying to figure out what to post today, and I realized it should be a portrait of myself. I'm always talking about the importance of existing in photographs and being seen, but I need to practice what I preach, too. And let's be honest, that's not always easy. So as I started digging through files on my computer, trying to find one that I had maybe overlooked in the past, I realized that I saw myself differently now. The last time I went through those images, I only saw a couple that were "good enough" to post. This time was different. I started seeing the little quirks that I have, but rather than dismiss them as flaws and quickly moving on to the next one, I had an appreciation that didn't exist before. 

This photograph is technically imperfect. 

But it's real. It's my weird laugh, and my nose crinkles, and my eyes squeezed shut from giggling. And it's me.

For months, I've been wanting to start a personal project, but I just couldn't figure out what I wanted it to be. As I was driving away from the studio this afternoon, it finally came to me. Title, purpose, the works. Now that I've found it, it's this driving force, something that is dying to come to life. And I can't wait to get started.

“I exist as I am, that is enough, 

If no other in the world be aware I sit content, 

And if each and all be aware I sit content. 

One world is aware, and by the far the largest to me, and that is myself, 

And whether I come to my own today or in ten thousand or ten million years, 

I can cheerfully take it now, or with equal cheerfulness, I can wait.”

-Walt Whitman

Learning to Love Yourself

Did you know that you are beautiful even if you aren’t the “perfect” weight?

Did you that you're beautiful even if your hair has started to gray?

If things don't necessarily sit where they used to?

Even if you don’t meet your own personal standards of beauty, you are beautiful.

As I sat in a chair in my studio for a consultation with a new client, she said something that really stuck with me.

One thing that I always make sure to discuss with my clients is their own body image. I find out the features they love most, but I also try to find their areas of insecurity (because no one wants their “issue” to be front and center, right?).

to love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance-oscar wilde

Here’s the thing, these “flaws” that we have? We’re the only people who see them as flaws. To everyone else, those are the things that make you who you are.

So as I spoke to her and got to know her better, I was blown away by her own personal body image. Up until that point, every woman I had had this conversation with had eagerly volunteered her problem areas-the double chin, the stomach pooch, etc. But she was different. “I want to actually look like myself in my pictures. I’ve worked really hard for the body that I have, and while it isn’t perfect, I’m proud of it.”

I’m pretty sure that I just stared at her in amazed admiration.

It’s not perfect, but it’s mine, and I’mproud of it.

The amount of self-acceptance and confidence that it takes to say something like that is staggering.

But why?

Why is that such a difficult thing for us to do? Why can’t we, of all people, see past our own perceived “flaws” and treat ourselves with some grace?

The women who share their insecurities with me? I’ll be perfectly honest, I never notice their “issues” until they’re pointed out to me, and even then, I don’t see what that woman sees when she looks in the mirror. I see a beautiful woman that I can’t wait to have in front of my lens. A woman who has a lifetime of experiences that somehow led her to me. A woman with an adoring family and group of friends who love her as she is.

But there was something else that she said that stuck with me even more.

I’ll be the first to admit, I still have a long way to go on my journey to accepting myself as I am and being confident in my own skin. 

So as she talked about her own journey to self-acceptance, I was fascinated. How can I be like that?! That’s the kind of person I want to be, but how do you get there?!

And then she said something that just clicked.

“I’ve noticed that the areas that I am insecure about are the same no matter what weight I am.”

Huh.

The areas that I was most concerned about now?

They're the exact same ones that I was insecure about years ago.

Ultimately, we can always pick ourselves apart and find our perceived flaws, but in reality, the only person who sees those "flaws" is the face staring back at you in the mirror.

Give yourself some grace. Celebrate who you are at this stage of your life. Learn to love yourself.