Beautifully Flawed
Donation protected
Hello and Welcome!
My name is LaKeshia Stigall and I am a Professional Photographer. I am embarking on a project to promote positive body image and self love. I have entitled the project Beautifully Flawed.
My Story
I grew up being teased and bullied for various reasons. My skin color, my hair, my weight, my gender, my mental condition, my freckles, my scars; anything they could find that made me different than them. I struggled for many years to love and accept myself. At one time I had to be removed from school because of how severe it got. I succumbed to eating disorders and other coping methods because I became extremely unhappy. They made me hate myself at times. I wished every night that I could change who I was so they would stop.
As I grew older, I started to focus more on accepting myself and loving myself despite others. I learned that my scars showed what I survived, my hair was a statement on my fun, charismatic personality, my skin was a combination of all my ancestors history coming together in one person, my weight didn't define me as low or as high as it has been; I was beautiful. Inside and Out. I saw myself through photographs always smiling despite everything she had been through. I saw in the photos the shy, hurt little girl that matured into a beautiful confident woman. I found the positive in all the things that others had convinced me were my flaws. Someone captured it in photos before I was even able to comprehend it. In photos, I was someone else for the longest time and when I opened my eyes and looked at the girl in photos I saw what I could be. I saw what I wanted to be. I focused on the positive. I focused on what I survived. And with a lot of hard work and support I brought that forward for the world to see. I became stronger. I became happier. And others started to see it.
That is why I created this project. I want to give that back to everyone. I want them to take their perceived flaws and find the beauty in them. I have chosen those who have struggled with the pain of not feeling worthy or accepted because of something they felt was a flaw in their eyes... Not realizing how much character that having that "flaw" actually gave them and how beautiful it made them if they instead changed the negative feelings to positive ones. I, myself, as stated, have struggled with body image, gender, personality; struggled with depression, bi-polar, ADHD, and anxiety since I was young as well as PTSD from a "colorful" past. After all of it, I realized something beautiful a few years ago.... I survived all of it... I am still here. I am the beautiful, happy person I am because I endured the pain and I survived it. And with that, I decided to document my survival and after years of being behind a camera, I stepped in front of it for the first time in many years. And after enduring all the pain and hurt, I let go. I allowed me to be me. And honestly, as much as I griped and moaned, some of the best photos were the ones the photographer caught of me off guard, being silly, being me, and I saw myself through someone else's eyes; someone who saw the beauty I had not seen myself for so many years... And, it took time but eventually I learned to see it too. Not see that I had tons of extra cushioning or my stomach is forever riddled with scars, or that I was bullied for years for having mental conditions or a quirky personality or even being intelligent. I realized it all had a story attached. Some of pain, some of love, some of survival, some of creation. And realized that they all made me who I am in some way. And I was beautiful and complicated; I was me! I want others.... To see themselves in the most wonderful way you are, as themselves but with the realization that they are beautiful and that nothing can define them!
What we are doing and trying to accomplish:
I have chosen a number of individuals to create an entire peice on each one and tell their story on overcoming the mindest of being flawed. I will not only photograph them but I currently run a group to teach and encourage ways for them to love themselves and appreciate what makes them unique. We work on focusing on being healthy and happy. It is my hope that we can fund and complete this project and make it an on-going project through the rest of my career. I, with the help of the participants, and a skilled writer, will be publishing a book at the completion of the project to show case our hard work and the men and woman's experience within the project.
We will be holding full studio and on-location photo shoots to complete very detailed and imaginative shoots to show the participants how beautiful their flaws really are. In addition to that I would like to move the support group from online to a physical meet-up for the participants to come together comfortably to talk, find comfort, and be themselves. We will be utilizing many professional services for all these aspects of the project.
These include Photographer(s), Hair-stylists, Make-up Artists, Location Scouts, Prop Specialists, Lighting, and more.
Why we need your help?
Creating anything requires resources. We have to provide gear, location rentals, props, artists, wardrobe, travel, time, and more to this project. It has become quite costly as much as we have tried to work with donated items and utilize our own skills. I have 3 wonderful make-up artists that have graciously donated their time and skills at no-charge to be part of such an inspiring project knowing how much it is helping those participating. We however need supplies to really actualize our dreams for this project. Your donations both in financial assistance, materiels (wardrobe, memory cards, props, locations, etc), and time would help tremendously. If you are interested in contributing to our project outside of cash donations or have an individual you would like to recommend for the project who needs to find their beauty, please contact me. Thank you so much for your time!
Stay Tuned for More!
My name is LaKeshia Stigall and I am a Professional Photographer. I am embarking on a project to promote positive body image and self love. I have entitled the project Beautifully Flawed.
My Story
I grew up being teased and bullied for various reasons. My skin color, my hair, my weight, my gender, my mental condition, my freckles, my scars; anything they could find that made me different than them. I struggled for many years to love and accept myself. At one time I had to be removed from school because of how severe it got. I succumbed to eating disorders and other coping methods because I became extremely unhappy. They made me hate myself at times. I wished every night that I could change who I was so they would stop.
As I grew older, I started to focus more on accepting myself and loving myself despite others. I learned that my scars showed what I survived, my hair was a statement on my fun, charismatic personality, my skin was a combination of all my ancestors history coming together in one person, my weight didn't define me as low or as high as it has been; I was beautiful. Inside and Out. I saw myself through photographs always smiling despite everything she had been through. I saw in the photos the shy, hurt little girl that matured into a beautiful confident woman. I found the positive in all the things that others had convinced me were my flaws. Someone captured it in photos before I was even able to comprehend it. In photos, I was someone else for the longest time and when I opened my eyes and looked at the girl in photos I saw what I could be. I saw what I wanted to be. I focused on the positive. I focused on what I survived. And with a lot of hard work and support I brought that forward for the world to see. I became stronger. I became happier. And others started to see it.
That is why I created this project. I want to give that back to everyone. I want them to take their perceived flaws and find the beauty in them. I have chosen those who have struggled with the pain of not feeling worthy or accepted because of something they felt was a flaw in their eyes... Not realizing how much character that having that "flaw" actually gave them and how beautiful it made them if they instead changed the negative feelings to positive ones. I, myself, as stated, have struggled with body image, gender, personality; struggled with depression, bi-polar, ADHD, and anxiety since I was young as well as PTSD from a "colorful" past. After all of it, I realized something beautiful a few years ago.... I survived all of it... I am still here. I am the beautiful, happy person I am because I endured the pain and I survived it. And with that, I decided to document my survival and after years of being behind a camera, I stepped in front of it for the first time in many years. And after enduring all the pain and hurt, I let go. I allowed me to be me. And honestly, as much as I griped and moaned, some of the best photos were the ones the photographer caught of me off guard, being silly, being me, and I saw myself through someone else's eyes; someone who saw the beauty I had not seen myself for so many years... And, it took time but eventually I learned to see it too. Not see that I had tons of extra cushioning or my stomach is forever riddled with scars, or that I was bullied for years for having mental conditions or a quirky personality or even being intelligent. I realized it all had a story attached. Some of pain, some of love, some of survival, some of creation. And realized that they all made me who I am in some way. And I was beautiful and complicated; I was me! I want others.... To see themselves in the most wonderful way you are, as themselves but with the realization that they are beautiful and that nothing can define them!
What we are doing and trying to accomplish:
I have chosen a number of individuals to create an entire peice on each one and tell their story on overcoming the mindest of being flawed. I will not only photograph them but I currently run a group to teach and encourage ways for them to love themselves and appreciate what makes them unique. We work on focusing on being healthy and happy. It is my hope that we can fund and complete this project and make it an on-going project through the rest of my career. I, with the help of the participants, and a skilled writer, will be publishing a book at the completion of the project to show case our hard work and the men and woman's experience within the project.
We will be holding full studio and on-location photo shoots to complete very detailed and imaginative shoots to show the participants how beautiful their flaws really are. In addition to that I would like to move the support group from online to a physical meet-up for the participants to come together comfortably to talk, find comfort, and be themselves. We will be utilizing many professional services for all these aspects of the project.
These include Photographer(s), Hair-stylists, Make-up Artists, Location Scouts, Prop Specialists, Lighting, and more.
Why we need your help?
Creating anything requires resources. We have to provide gear, location rentals, props, artists, wardrobe, travel, time, and more to this project. It has become quite costly as much as we have tried to work with donated items and utilize our own skills. I have 3 wonderful make-up artists that have graciously donated their time and skills at no-charge to be part of such an inspiring project knowing how much it is helping those participating. We however need supplies to really actualize our dreams for this project. Your donations both in financial assistance, materiels (wardrobe, memory cards, props, locations, etc), and time would help tremendously. If you are interested in contributing to our project outside of cash donations or have an individual you would like to recommend for the project who needs to find their beauty, please contact me. Thank you so much for your time!
Stay Tuned for More!
Organizer
Keshia King
Organizer
Joliet, IL
