{"id":1608,"date":"2009-03-22T00:36:51","date_gmt":"2009-03-22T06:36:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/?p=1608"},"modified":"2009-03-22T15:13:20","modified_gmt":"2009-03-22T21:13:20","slug":"7-imps-7-kicks-107-featuring-jacquelynn-buck","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/?p=1608","title":{"rendered":"7-Imp’s 7 Kicks #107: Featuring Jacquelynn Buck"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jules:<\/font> Today, 7-Imp welcomes photographer Jacquelynn Buck<\/strong><\/a>. Jacquelynn, who is actually formally trained in Public Health but who has a passion for photography and design, does portraits<\/strong><\/a>, weddings<\/strong><\/a>, travel and nature photography<\/strong><\/a>, and even design work (websites<\/strong><\/a>, posters<\/strong><\/a>, postcards<\/strong><\/a>, etc.) — and much more. I first heard about her from Sara Lewis Holmes<\/strong><\/a>, whose author photo<\/strong><\/a> was taken by Jacquelynn. In fact, I very<\/em> first read about her here<\/strong><\/a> at Sara’s site in 2007. (Sara also interpreted some of Jacquelynn’s photos in this<\/strong><\/a> intriguing Poetry Friday post.)<\/p>\n

Jacquelynn writes at her site, “I want to translate on paper that core that is each person, each city, that makes them who and what they are…There was a time in my life when I wanted to change the world. And maybe I still will. But today let me show you the world through my eyes. Know that not everything is as it seems. Discover again what you thought you already knew.”<\/em><\/font> These are fitting words for Jacquelynn’s latest photography project, entitled Real Women<\/em>. She tells us all about it below (and you can read about its origin at her site), but—to summarize—it’s to help women see themselves as beautiful, just as they are<\/em>. To which I’m sure most of us would say, AMEN. <\/p>\n

This post follows on the heels of author Sara Zarr’s post from this week<\/strong><\/a> about her experience during an author photo shoot, in which she specifically and repeatedly told the photographer that she didn’t want to be Photoshopped. Here’s part of what Sara wrote:<\/p>\n

When I was setting up the appointment for the shoot, I told the photographer\u2019s assistant that I just wanted to look like me. He asked if I required a makeup artist. No. Not my style. I sent him to my blog, I showed him recent photos of me that I liked. The day of the shoot, I spent over an hour with the photographer. And said again – I just want to look like me. As he shot me, we talked a little bit about women being photographed. How we all have our insecurities. How I\u2019d come to accept mine and don\u2019t want to turn down life opportunities because I think I should be thinner or prettier. At the end of the shoot, he said that he could work magic with Photoshop, and if I wanted to look like I\u2019d been going to the gym every day for four months, he could do that. I said no. I said I wanted to look like me. I said that a large part of my audience is made up of teen girls and I didn\u2019t want to perpetuate that whole \u201cI\u2019m not okay\u201d thing.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

<\/p>\n

You can see the photos at Sara’s blog, but—as you can probably guess—he Photoshopped her after all. Sara was perturbed yet still remarkably more understanding than I would have been about having part of my face lopped off. Especially after telling him repeatedly not to do that. I mean, come on<\/em>, photographer dude. As Sara put it so very well, “I know this isn\u2019t something women are typically encouraged to say or believe {but} I LIKE MY FACE. I like the cheek that got shaved away, I missed it and wanted it back. Because it\u2019s me.”<\/em><\/p>\n

Anyway, instead of ranting about photographer-dude’s actions (which Sara already did, much more eloquently than I would), let’s get right to the very antithesis of it, Jacquelynn’s Real Women<\/em> project, and some more photos from it. I thank her for stopping by. Here’s Jacquelynn, in her own words:<\/p>\n

“Real women:<\/font>
\nare mothers, sisters, lovers, friends,
\ncourageous, determined, driven, sensitive, loving, nurturing, intentional, unintentional
\ntrue to themselves<\/p>\n

Real women:<\/font>
\nmissed their prom, missed the bus, made mistakes, lost their cool<\/p>\n

Real women:<\/font>
\ncome as they are, in all shapes and sizes
\nlove their bodies, are trying to love their bodies, are learning to love their bodies,
\nsometimes don’t love their bodies<\/p>\n

but they celebrate their beauty, play dress up, model, smile, pout, pose,
and laugh anyway<\/p>\n

discovering, rediscovering, affirming
\nthat they are beautiful, just as they are.<\/p>\n

The inspiration<\/font>
\nToo many times I’ve heard from myself and other women something like the following: <\/em>‘I wish I could change my body. If only I could…lose weight, be more muscular, have a smaller waist, have slightly smaller breasts have slightly larger breasts not have stretch marks not have freckles have freckles have it all.’ As a woman, this resonated with me. As a public health educator, this bothered me. As a photographer, I wanted to do something about it. <\/p>\n

At my core, I believe every woman is beautiful — just as she is. And, while I do not neglect that change is sometimes necessary for health and wellbeing, I seek to help women recognize that we must do honor to our bodies, the only ones we have, by not forcing them to live up to unhealthy and unrealistic standards. Instead, we should appreciate our bodies for what they are -\u2013 the road map of our lives, laid out in lines, planes, angles and curves. A terrain worth traversing and certainly worth celebrating. <\/p>\n

And so the Real Women project was born. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Using light, shadows, flattering poses, sexy clothing and fabrics, and a little creativity, I photograph women of all shapes, sizes, ages. These women may need a new perspective on their bodies, or perhaps have a very sound relationship with their bodies and just want to be photographed to mark a time in their lives that will be worth looking back on. But wherever she is at, I hope that the woman who comes to me leaves with an altered, more positive perspective. <\/p>\n

My hope is to inspire confidence, improve self-esteem, and allow women an opportunity to celebrate their beauty. If I can do that, then perhaps, one woman at a time, this message of empowerment—the message of the real woman—will become louder, clearer, until it is heard by our daughters and granddaughters who might then become stronger for it. <\/p>\n


\n
\n<\/p>\n

The Next Step<\/font>
\nThe Real Women project is actually two efforts. The first is the studio \/ portrait session with the women who are ready for that commitment. <\/p>\n

The second effort is a small group photography collage workshop that I have designed for women. The workshop focuses on positive self esteem by encouraging women to use a photograph of themselves (that I take and print on-site) and, with affirming words (cut from magazines) and materials I provide, to create collages they can take home with them as reminders. These workshops are custom-tailored to every group and can be conducted with any age range. <\/p>\n

What\u2019s next for me is to continue to do both. And make a difference, however small. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

What are words without pictures? And so I wanted to share with you the images of some of the women I have photographed in the <\/em>Real Women sessions. Each and every image here, and on my website, is used with absolute permission. At the heart of this project is respect -\u2013 respect for self and my respect for the women who are brave enough to take this step. I do honor to them by allowing them to choose which images, if any, are posted for the public. <\/p>\n

Yes, I have done some editing in Photoshop, to turn the images into art. But no, I have not made them thinner, removed anything that is supposed to be there, or turned them into something they are not. All you see here is shadows, light, cropping, color. But hopefully it\u2019s black and white \u2013 these are the Real Women. Just as they are.”<\/font><\/em><\/p>\n


\n<\/p>\n

As mentioned above, Jacquelynn took Sara Lewis Holmes’ author photos—not only this one at her web site<\/strong><\/a>, but also the lying-on-letters one at Sara’s blog<\/strong><\/a>, the chair shot at this page of Sara’s site<\/strong><\/a>, and the one at Sara’s A Cast of One<\/em><\/strong><\/a> podcast. “My pictures turned out better than any others I’ve ever taken,”<\/em> Sara told me, “{because} Jackie made me feel completely comfortable in my skin.”<\/em> All of that’s to say that any other children’s book authors or illustrators who need publicity photos are welcome to contact Jacquelynn. (For the record, I believe she lives in Ohio.)<\/p>\n

P.S. Check out the first photo categorized at the “Architecture Images”<\/strong><\/a> portion of her site. How incredibly cool is that? <\/p>\n

Sunday Afternoon Addendum:<\/font> Jacquelynn has updated the <\/em>Real Women portion of her web site. It’s here<\/strong><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

* * * * * * *<\/center><\/p>\n

As a reminder, our 7-kicks are our weekly meeting ground for taking some time to reflect on Seven(ish) Exceptionally Fabulous, Beautiful, Interesting, Hilarious, or Otherwise Positive Noteworthy Things from the past week, whether book-related or not, that happened to you. So, let’s kick it up. Absolutely anyone is welcome to list kicks — even if, or especially<\/em> if, you’ve never done so before.<\/p>\n

* * * eisha’s kicks * * *<\/strong><\/font><\/center><\/p>\n

1* Well, how awesome is that whole Real Women project? I love portrait photography, and I love that she’s capturing the beauty of real, actual human-being-type women. Kudos.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, Susan, this is a fine mess you are in.\u201d (from EoS, illustrated by Maira Kalman)2* So, remember that Elements of Style<\/em> anniversary exhibit<\/strong><\/a> I’m doing at work? I wanted to get photos of the opera that Maira Kalman<\/strong><\/a> and Nico Muhly<\/strong><\/a> did at the New York Public Library, but NYPL hasn’t returned my email. So… on a whim, I emailed Ms. Kalman herself. She very graciously and rapidly replied, and sent me six pictures. I didn’t think I could love her any more than I already did, but there you go.<\/p>\n

3* Speaking of work, I had a reference question from someone looking for a certain advertisement from the 1930s in one of our collections. Sadly, we didn’t have it, but in the hunt I figured out where it could be found, and told the patron. He wrote me a lovely email thanking me for “going the extra mile.” *sniff* It’s nice to be appreciated.<\/p>\n

4* Spring cleaning! The husband and I cleaned out our closets and drawers, and came up with 5 big garbage bags of clothes for the Salvation Army.<\/p>\n

5* He also surprised me by doing a mega project on the living room – rearranging furniture, hanging art and window blinds, and actually removing boxes that I’d long since given up on unpacking and started pretending were furniture too. It looks great now – like actual grown-up human beings live here, instead of meth-head squatters.<\/p>\n

6* Saturday was so beautiful! 50-something degrees, and sunny. We spent it on a trip to Significant Elements<\/strong><\/a> (a cool architectural salvage place) where we got an awesome industrial coat-and-hat rack, plus an old door and a big sheet of glass that B. is going to turn into a desk. Don’t even ask how we got it all home in my teeny Toyota Echo – I’m sure it’s not legal. And then lunch al fresco at a yummy bagel place, and then just wandering around downtown – comic book store, music store, library…<\/p>\n

7* I also picked up a funky skirt at a consignment shop, to begin to fill up all that spare room in my closet again. What? It’s cute! And it’s springy! And it was $12! Shut up!<\/p>\n

* * * Jules’ kicks * * *<\/strong><\/font><\/center><\/p>\n

1). My five-year-old painted a birdhouse, given to her by a friend for her birthday last week. We are seriously excited about Spring in our house. I have a thing for suns, and I love how she painted the side of it:<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2). Sara Lewis Holmes’ Poetry Friday contest<\/strong><\/a> this week and the poem my daughter submitted (well, recited while she was painting said birdhouse, and I quickly typed it up). Very, very fun idea for a Poetry Friday, and I love how everyone played along, as well as their kickin’ entries. <\/p>\n

3). Jeremy Hiebert’s still taking stunning ice photos<\/strong><\/a>. I love the comment Jeremy’s friend, Chris, made at that link: “You are taking a picture of what meditation looks like.”<\/p>\n

4). My husband baked that Chocolate Guiness<\/strong><\/a> cake of which Emily Gravett spoke<\/strong><\/a> this week. It’s dreamy good. We were so in love with it that he took a pic before we tore into it:<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

5). The Stephen Colbert interview about children’s fiction, darkness, and The Graveyard Book<\/em> with Neil Gaiman from this week. The video’s no longer available, but it can be seen here<\/strong><\/a>. So perfect. <\/p>\n

And, speaking of Gaiman, in the same blog post<\/strong><\/a> in which he talks about the Colbert interview, he mentions the 7-Imp Dave McKean interview<\/strong><\/a>. Woot!<\/p>\n

6). I was late getting to it, but Liz Garton Scanlon’s poem<\/strong><\/a> from last Poetry Friday. Beautiful. <\/p>\n

7). Tanita<\/strong><\/a> anagrammed<\/strong><\/a> my name to “A Nude Jolliness.” I tried anagramming “Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast” and only got as far as “Been Eating Pie Fast” before I stopped, ’cause, hey, that’s good enough. Pie. Mmm.<\/p>\n

BONUS (and BEST!) — Today, as you’re reading this probably, I’m visiting with my best friend from 9th grade (and her wee daughter!), with whom I had lost touch — yet found again via Facebook. Facebook can be such a time-suck, and I even totally get why some people ditch it altogether, but I’ll always be kicky-grateful that it helped me find her again. She’s here from North Carolina, and you can bet I have a big ol’ pot of coffee on and we’re catching up big-time. <\/p>\n

What are YOUR<\/font> kicks this week?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jules: Today, 7-Imp welcomes photographer Jacquelynn Buck. Jacquelynn, who is actually formally trained in Public Health but who has a passion for photography and design, does portraits, weddings, travel and nature photography, and even design work (websites, posters, postcards, etc.) — and much more. I first heard about her from Sara Lewis Holmes, whose author […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1608","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-seven-good-things-before-monday"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1608","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1608"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1608\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1608"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1608"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1608"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}