#unretouched is a project that I have been working on since 2019. As a professional beauty photographer, the industry that I work in and the social media that we consume is rife with retouched, face tuned, body altered imagery. Alarmingly, a lot of the time, you can’t even tell that these images are altered.

I couldn’t stand the thought that I would be contributing to an industry that made me feel so insecure about myself growing up. I was so uncomfortable with the idea of present and future generations questioning why their skin is not as smooth as models on those posters? Why don’t they have lines in the corners of their eyes when they smile? Why is there not a piece of facial hair anywhere except their eyebrows and the hair they have on their head?

My subjects range from people who may be typically seen as stereotypical models to models that are a bit less traditional; with vitiligo, facial scars, tattoos and textured skin. They range from having a face of makeup on to no make-up at all. I want to get as much detail as possible - to be able to see the lines, the texture, the tiny bit of lipstick on a tooth, a drop of colour on the skin where eyeshadow fell off a brush as it was applied.

I want to make a stand to be an agent of change, and show that not only are pores, texture, scars and pimples normal, they are beautiful.
My hope is that eventually brands will eradicate retouching in their advertising completely. That advertising will be diverse and inclusive and we will know that what we see is actually real.