Aja
College Student/Health Food Store Clerk

Not having much issue with nudity, I immediately agreed to participate in this project. However, not having an issue with nudity and not having body image issues are two separate things. Occasionally, in days approaching the photo shoot I had reservations. Pesky inner voices saying, “but you’re not sexy… yeah… and you’ve gotten fat.” You realized too that this shit could turn out super lame and exploitive right? Then there was my mother with equal parts jest and sincerity saying, “You’ll never be able to run for public office.”

In truth, I feel softness is sexy and who the shit wants to run for office anyway? Also, I trusted Dan’s eye, taking comfort in knowing if he achieves his objective, it’s a project I would like contributing to in some small way. Ultimately any shred of reservation left in me vanished and I stripped down to my underwear. I chose bluish undergarments with cute embellishments, not sure how I would feel about the shoot in the moment, and not wanting to be caught in something overly drab. Sure, I would have just as soon exposed more, but there was a general consensus on the day that the clothed bra/panty, even panty/vest option worked best. So, with shutter sounds and flashes, Ani DiFranco’s “Swan Dive” playing in the background and me, loosely envisioning the one person I most enjoy sharing myself with, I felt at ease. Simply.