real women

[susan_mullarkey]

Pete...I understand what you are saying. I am a Mom of 2 (teenagers now) and 43 years old. I don't think that I will ever get back to my size 11 jeans which is what I wore in high school. At 125-130 lbs. I was concidered fat and it took me until I was a happily married woman and a Mom of 2 at age 33 that I was finally able to look at myself and say, "ok...so I am not a little person but I am a strikingly attractive woman and my husband still finds me (as he would say) sexy as hell". I took a long time to get there but I did and you will NEVER hear anyone say that they would love for me or someone who looks like me do a photo shoot because I am a great rep for the average female. Not many people wants average looking or even strikingly attractive to represent their products or their photography. It's kinda like the myth about how great a virgin is socially compared to someone who has been "around the block a few times". Virgins were highly sought after and thought special because of all of their status and how only a virgin was good enough to appiese the gods as a sacrifice when the truth was why would you sacrifice a woman who you knew could bare children? So the only reason that virgins were sacrificed was because they were not proven to be useful in the way of getting with child. Beautiful women are usually considered arm candy and makes the man (or company) look important and successful. Forbid that they might, jst might actually have a brain!!!!! Cold I lose a few pounds? Sure. It would make me heathier but to prettier. I am already damn good loooking. Just ask my husband or my daughter. My son has no opinion...I Mom and that's all he's cares about.

[thomas_hardy1]

Darn, no self portraits of Susan.

[ericophotography]

Check out "Psychology Today", 2/07, "Size 12 Women Get Revenge". They're talking about an increase in average size women making a comeback in advertising.

[lindakaysorensen]

You know, my husband always wants me to pose for him and I find it very very uncomfortable. And I would DIE if he ever put a "risqué" photo of me up online - or HE would. :o) I've never been small, even before I had a child. I'm 39 and have a 3 year old. But, my husband says I'm sexy too and he likes to practice taking photos and doing lighting, etc. Maybe it's because we only see the sexy little "bits" in advertizements that makes us all feel self conscience, but it's a fact of life. I don't think it has anything to do with the photographer not liking to see the sags and bags and the stretch marks as much as us women not wanting to see ourselves that way!

[raymondborg]

For me a woman's body is a piece of art. It does matter if she had kids or not. My wife is 45 and we have two children. I have taken a lot of nude photos of her and I believe they are pretty good. Just kick of and start shooting.