Why I took the body-positive photography pledge | Seattle portrait, boudoir and small business photographer

A fat white woman does a backbend on a beach in a strappy bathing suit. Over her head is the title of the post, Why I took the body-positive photography pledge.

Since I’m so involved in the day-to-day work of body liberation photography, it’s easy to forget how extraordinary this work really is.  There are very few people on the planet who offer photography services that are truly welcoming for fat and very fat people. It’s incredibly important to me that you feel safe, comfortable and happy whenever you work with me. Here’s how I respect your bodily autonomy during our sessions:

  • Ask before touching you the first time
  • Check in with you occasionally about your experience and comfort
  • Give you space if you exhibit unusual nervousness or jitteriness
  • Explain what I’m doing occasionally
  • Respect any requests you might have for space or a break

I also created what I call the body-positive photography pledge, where I’ve committed to:

» View human bodies — all of them — with honesty, joy and compassion» Seek out a wide range of people who aren’t trained models for my portfolio images

» Don’t talk about “problem areas” or “flaws”

» Don’t strive to make bodies look smaller or larger than they actually are

» Don’t digitally remove permanent aspects of people’s bodies like fat rolls or wrinkles

» Honor the body that each person has in this moment, in all its beauty and uniqueness

» Strive to capture a wide range of body types, shapes, sizes, colors and orientations in my portfolio work, both to increase the representation of people in underrepresented bodies and to make clients in any conceivable body feel safe working with me

» Use poses that are reasonably comfortable for each person’s body shape and size, rather than slavishly imitating only poses that very thin people use

» Feature a full range of client and portfolio images on my website and in my social media, not just “aspirational” bodies

Hi there! I'm Lindley. I create artwork that celebrates the unique beauty of bodies that fall outside conventional "beauty" standards at Body Liberation Photography. I'm also the creator of Body Liberation Stock and the Body Love Shop, a curated central resource for body-friendly artwork and products. Find all my work here at bodyliberationphotos.com.