Come As You Are: The Story Of Rani – Stacey Doyle Photography Blog

I am starting a photo project about women (and anyone who identifies as woman/non-binary) – who are over the age of 40.

Why?
Well, I am in the last year of my 40s (dear lord what?!!? How did that happen??) – and I think there are STILL so many people who think that once you hit a “certain age” you should start to fade.
Disappear.

That, suddenly, you’re no longer a person who can (or should?) live life loudly.
I’ve experienced some ageism situations in my life in recent years and it’s mind boggling and kind of sad.

So, my thoughts are: “Oh hell no! We will not go quietly.”

We of the over 40 group have seen some things. We have done some life. We have figured some things out.
We’ve made mistakes, sometimes many mistakes. But in those mistakes are the lessons.
We’ve learned to take the lessons.

These lessons are carved into our faces and light up our eyes with the sparkle of self knowledge.

I am not against The Youngs
(you’re gorgeous! I love you! Don’t let the world take advantage of you because they will try!)

However, the over 40, over 50, over 60, over 70, over over over are also fucking gorgeous!
Do you see those faces? Do you see the beauty?
Look again. It’s there.

What is written all over our faces, our hands, our décolletages:
We Have Lived.

And we are lucky enough to keep living. And we are going to do just that, thank you very much.

Aging is a privilege, it’s also stunning.
I don’t turn away from a 100 year old Redwood in disgust.
I view her in all her AWEsome glory.
I thank her for being here and allowing me to be in her presence.

And that’s my goal here.
To show you how damn awesome and glorious being Of A Certain Age really is.

It’s time to disrupt what we deem as beautiful. Who we say SHOULD be the cover models.

We of the over 40 are powerful, we are here to show you that these chapters in the novel of your life are some of the juiciest, scariest, craziest, delightful times you’ll ever experience.

It’s time to stop being scared of aging, of no longer “being young”.
Your life doesn’t end when you hit a certain age.
In fact, I believe it’s when it truly begins.
And it’s time to change the attitudes of those who think only the young are deserving of the spotlight.

In the movie Fried Green Tomatoes, there’s a scene where Kathy Bates character is cut off by some young girls in their sporty little car, stealing her parking space.

Kathy’s character is obviously upset and yells that she’d been waiting patiently for that spot.

The girls say, with this pompous “you can’t touch us” attitude,
“Face it, lady, we’re younger and faster!”

And that’s when Kathy’s character decides she’s had enough and starts ramming their car with hers.
The girls run back screaming at her, asking what she is doing, asking if she is crazy (haha).

Kathy’s character says,
“Face it, girls, I’m older and I have more insurance.”

I get that scene now.
I didn’t fully when I was in my 20s, and that’s okay. My 20 year old self kinda sided with the girls.
But you get to an age and suddenly, the bullshit is just that.
Bullshit.
I get Kathy’s character’s reaction now.

When you’re young the world makes you believe that you’ll always have things handed to you on a silver platter.
And sometimes, you will. And when that stops, you may feel powerless.
You may start to wilt.

But what’s truly powerful about aging is when you realize that you can buy yourself your own damn silver platter and not a single person or experience will be able to take that away from you.
You start to get loud. You start to take up SPACE.

And that’s the moment when you truly bloom.

This is the first installment of this series.
I haven’t fully figured out a name for it.
Bloom came to mind, because damn do I love flowers.

For now, I am calling the series: The Story of You

And now for the Story of Rani:

I met Rani through the studio Her Elevated in Sacramento.

If you don’t know, Her Elevated is one of the most magical and amazing spaces, and communities, here in Sac.
Uplifting, encouraging, full of heart and self-acceptance with a huge dose of ‘Let’s Elevate!”
If you are looking for a space that feels like home, look into Her Elevated.

Rani is a beautiful soul, inside and out. She embodies grace and strength.
She knows what she wants and when she isn’t sure what that is, she figures it out.
She doesn’t stay stuck and certainly doesn’t mind mixing things up to find what truly lights her soul on fire.
She won’t settle.
She embodies living life on her terms.
With a huge dose of spirituality, laughter and LOVE.

She is brave and beautiful and recently turned 40 (woohoo, welcome to the club!).
I love how she proudly and loudly celebrates her new Life Level.

Level 40!
*Power Up*

Rani is embracing a no makeup (light eye makeup and some lip color) and no retouching.
The images you see here are pretty much straight out of the camera.
I did adjustments for exposure, sharpening and color tones.
I cropped a bit.
I did a little dodging and burning, pretty much what I would have done in my darkroom a million years ago.
No skin smoothing, no filters.
No bullshit , all love.

I like Rani’s idea of radical acceptance.
It’s not easy, especially in a world that constantly tells you you need to fix something (ie. BUY something) – to be considered palatable to the masses.

There is a deep power in accepting yourself.
Especially as women in a world that views us as objects and entertainment.

Imagine a world where women are valued for their intrinsic worth, not simply for their appearance or their ability to entertain.
This is the world we should strive for.

The one that recognizes the rich story that lives within us all.

**If you are over 40 and identify as a woman or nonbinary and would like to tell your story, please reach out.
The sessions are complimentary. They can be as bold or as quiet as you would like the session to be.
If you have ideas or concepts, let me know! I love collaborating.
I’ll encourage a no-retouch approach (anything that would naturally heal will be addressed).
You show up how you feel comfortable showing up.
You don’t have to show skin, you don’t have to wear makeup, you don’t have to go make-up free, you don’t have to wear anything you don’t want to wear.
Want to hang out in the grocery store wearing the fanciest flounciest gown ever? Let’s do it.
Want a photo of you in the woods, or a vacant building, or your favorite place to get quiet and be one with yourself, let’s go!
Images will be posted on my blog and Instagram. I’ll ask which images you are okay with sharing prior to doing so.
You’ll receive a collection of untouched files, that you can use however you wish.
Let’s create together!**

Here are some more images from Rani’s session: