Strong is the new pretty

[purplehaze]

I came across these images on Tumblr today and they thrilled me enough that I wanted to share. I especially love the swimming shot. It is a good time to be a girl, I think. I feel lucky to have been born in the time and place I was, with privileges and opportunities not afforded to my mother's generation; how much better to be rid of the narrow conventional notions of female beauty.

[Shadowman]

Nice link.

[Manfred M]

Janis - while I like your thought, it is unfortunate that it is only true in much of the English speaking developed world and in to a large extent in Europe. In much of the rest of the world, traditional values of women still hold sway.

I hope that equality that is now firmly ingrained in our culture continues to strengthen and spreads to other parts of the world.

[purplehaze]

I'm with you, Manfred. As an unmarried and childless woman working in Africa in my thirties, I was only too conscious of what my status would have been had I not been a white Westerner.

[bnnrcn]

Very nice images Janis, thanks for sharing

[rpcrowe]

A picture of Lottie should be on that website...

Societies that do not allow their female members to compete on an equal basis are selling themselves short and missing out on a lot of valuable talent!

[IzzieK]

Thank you for the link...something to think about.

[jcuknz]

No doubt they sell and appeal to a certain type of person but many of them were revolting to my eyes with the exaggeration they contain ... I am glad that I do not have to earn my living taking such stuff ... sorry

[chauncey]

I've read recently that athletes are taking over the modeling industry, opposing the scarecrows.

[Max von MeiselMaus]

No doubt they sell and appeal to a certain type of person but many of them were revolting to my eyes with the exaggeration they contain ... I am glad that I do not have to earn my living taking such stuff ... sorry

Really? To my eye, they were a bunch of girls that one could see anywhere around here, out and about enjoying themselves. Representative of most children in our (admittedly privileged) culture. As a parent of two girls, I found them charming. I would much rather see those than some created pageant princess. It is sending the right message to us and our children.

Only thing I would note, though, is the lack of diversity in there. Almost exclusively white children.

[chauncey]

they were a bunch of girls that one could see anywhere around here

That is most likely true but...a good photographer would attempt to accentuate the beauty as
much as possible, rather than go out of her way to the other direction.

[Max von MeiselMaus]

Now, that very much depends on your definition of beauty. I see exuberance, vitality, character. Those girls are beautiful, and not in an unconventional way. They are beautiful like young children are beautiful. I am taking it from your comment that you didn't find them so. What is it that you find unappealing about them? I am not being confrontational but genuinely interested to know, as I just can't see anything but beauty there.

Also, I am not sure that accentuating beauty is all of a photographer's job. Lots of other emotion-inducing things to accentuate out there. "Beauty" is just one of them.

[chauncey]

I just can't see anything but beauty there.

And I see the PP headed in the opposite direction...IMHO

[dedro]

thanks for the link Janet....

[Krawuntzel]

I agree with your direction of thought; fe-male beauty is ... not in advertising.
But these pictures you propose are nothing else than ordinary snapshots.
Sorry to say so.
Erwin

[Texas Dave]

Maybe I'm biased being the father of two girls but I found the photos to be tasteful representations of art, not only a portrait of adolescence but of a mother's love. I so wished I would have had the opportunity to do something like this as my own were growing up.

Thanks for the link.