Beauty Redefined Series - Brittany - TRD Photography

Beauty Redefined Series - Brittany

""Beauty was about control. My self-image, along with a set of lovely signs/symptoms; has been drastically affected due to a developmental disorder, Aspergers Syndrome, which is the highest functioning autism on the spectrum. I focused on my external beauty so I could mask how ugly this syndrome made me feel.

Repression, regression, and retaliation were all three characteristics that I was afflicted with, and my self-image is slowly rising from the crippling life of isolation, anxiety, and self-consciousness that society bestowed upon me. 

Females are made to believe in beauty stigmas; you must buy this, you cannot be skinny, fat, pale, or tan. Society may always have this view on beauty and the linked consumers; you and I, are unaware of the hazard it is doing to our perception. Beauty has become so demanding externally, that we forget what makes us feel beautiful, what sets us apart. 

I am beautiful due to my nature, empathy, intuition, and perseverance." 

Brittany

Beauty Redefined Series - Jolee - TRD Photography

Beauty Redefined Series - Jolee - TRD Photography

"I have always had a solid definition of beauty: everyone is beautiful. It's simple, and it gave me an outlook on life, that enabled me to see every person, with the same eyes: To not judge someone by their skin color, their clothing choices; or by their scars. There is beauty everywhere.

It wasn't until recently that I realized, I was not applying this logic to myself.

If I could see the beauty in every one and every thing around me, why would I not allow myself to see it in me? 

I began to listen to those who love me, for who I am. Through this; I learned to love my self, and my body. Every scar, every dimple, every imperfection. I have learned to see my own beauty." 

Jolee

Beauty Redefined Series - Post #3 - Photographer Ricky Davis

Beauty Redefined Series - Post #3 - Anonymous

" So I'm fighting cancer. Which in and of itself isn't a big deal. It is what it is. But it takes over your body and changes it, inside and out. Things change that you never expected to change. You lose internal organs (for me, a radical hysterectomy). You pump poison into it to try and save you. You lose things that define you, like your long red curly hair. Your shape changes; sometimes you gain weight, sometimes you lose it. You bruise. A LOT. You look tired even when you're not; but lets face it.... you are. It feels violating to have your body betray you and what you felt as your femininity being taken away. I've had people yank off my hats; call me fat and ugly...and I've also had the reverse happen. I've been extremely private about my cancer; it's not public knowledge. But beauty; beauty is inside. But sometimes you need to feel it on the outside too, and our society is harsh about what it considers beautiful. I'm bruised, I'm chubby, I'm bald...but I'm still beautiful." 

Anonymous

Beauty Redefined Series - Post #2 - Photographer Ricky Davis

Beauty Redefined Series - Post #2

"The beauty I see is the devotion I have for caring for a spouse who can't take care of himself any longer. In a world with instant gratification and throw away marriages, I believe there must be beauty in faithfulness...." Claire

We hope you enjoyed this week's Beauty Redefined Series post. Stay tuned for the next one next Friday.

"What Makes You Feel Beautiful?" Allie - TRD Photography

"What Makes You Feel Beautiful?" The Series - Allie - By TRD Photography

"What makes you feel beautiful?" 

"It's hard for me to speak on beauty in the conventional sense, but I'm sure that's not what you're looking for anyways!  I believe in beauty radiating from the inside. Finding positivity, confidence, dedication, compassion, and originality in your life and highlighting it. For me, after a hard night in the kitchen I am filthy and sweaty. I've put everything I've got into what I'm passionate about and know that I've made delicious food. I think I feel the most beautiful then, cracking a beer and reflecting on an honest day's work." Allie 

"What Makes You Feel Beautiful?" Series - Leighann W. A TRD Photography Project

"What Makes You Feel Beautiful?" The Series - 

"What makes you feel beautiful?" 

Leighann - "What most people see "Beauty" as, is overrated IMO. I'd rather people look at me and be inspired. That's where real beauty comes into play for me. When my nieces and little cousins look up to me and say they want to BE like me, THAT's what I live for. I don't want them to feel you need to be drop dead gorgeous to be somebody. I want them to know that it's being true to yourself that is beautiful. That's what makes me feel "beautiful" is being an inspiration to people who are looking up to me as a role model."

"What Makes You Feel Beautiful?" Krysten B.

"What Makes You Feel Beautiful?" Series - Krysten B.

"What makes you feel beautiful?"

"There are a lot of things that can make me feel beautiful. From simply having a good hair/makeup day all the way to wearing no makeup and having messy hair and someone telling me I'm beautiful anyway. I've always had self esteem issues so feeling that way is very few and far between."  - Krysten

"Why do you think we put such an emphasis on beauty in America?"

"The 'standard' of beauty has always been a part of the media. It obviously changes over time, but it's always there and it will always be there. I think there is such an emphasis on it because everyone will always want to be beautiful. Maybe not the standard beauty that is pushed to us through magazines/tv/movies, but in their own way." - Krysten

"What Makes You Feel Beautiful?" Series - Krysten B - Photo by Ricky Davis of TRD Photography - Film Photo - Kodak Tri X

Stay tuned for more from this series coming soon...

"What Makes You Feel Beautiful?" - Jessica W.

"What makes you feel beautiful?" 

The definition of beauty gets a lot of play in our society today. You're too  fat. You're too skinny. You have stretchmarks. You've got wrinkles. There are arguments over what is beauty, what's not and how evil it is to not know the difference. 

The only thing is beauty doesn't really exist. There are no set ramifications because we all have a different perspective of what it means to us. So the only real definition of beauty is what our definition of it is. That's the only one that truly matters. How we view ourselves, instead of how the world views us. 

Along that line of thinking, I plan to work on a series. What makes you feel beautiful/what makes you feel unbeautiful? 

I asked my good friend Jessica about what makes her feel beautiful.

"Learning to love myself has made me feel beautiful , looking in the mirror and loving what i saw staring back at me is one of the most beautiful feelings in the world." Jessica

Me - "What helped the most in teaching you to love yourself and being able to look in the mirror and loving the person looking back at you?"

"Self acceptance. My hips will always be curvy my chest isn't the fullest,my teeth aren't straight and I have double dimples on my cheeks but these are the things that make me ME." Jessica

"What makes you feel beautiful?" Jessica W. Photo by Ricky Davis of TRD Photography

How you see yourself is everything. Notice the perfect imperfections, but know that we all have them. By learning to love ourselves as we are, we can learn to love others for who they are as well....Until next time...