This is who I am.

The boyfriend turned the camera on me today to make up for all the times I've turned it on him. This was the only photo that survived my cull. He's kept others, because HE likes them. Doesn't mean I have to agree though. I'm a photographer, not a model. I don't do so well in front of the camera, rather than behind it.
Initially, my reaction to seeing this photo was pure disgust. But after a bit of reflection, I realised I actually really love it. For obscure reasons. It's raw, honest, and shows three things that are a big part of who I am. Music, tattoos, and scars.

Where most women would be photoshopping a photo like this to within an inch of reality, striving for what is perceived as perfection, I'm glad to actually show my imperfections for the first time, as I am nothing even remotely close to perfect. And I don't see the point in pretending to be. Or even trying to be. And the boyfriend has given me the confidence to be able to not just accept my imperfections, but embrace them, and let them show.
I generally hate my scars, self inflicted or otherwise. They are normally VERY well hidden, thanks to society's expectation that I remain clothed while in public. But they are unique to me, and tell MY story.
As do each of my nine tattoos. *
As does my music.

This is... Me. Stripped.

* The tattoo in this photo is one of my favourites, because of the story behind it. My aunt sam12345 and I have the same tattoo, in very similar spots, and got them done on the same day... Technically. She lives 11000 miles away from me, in another country. So I got mine done at 1pm January 28th, my time, and she got hers at 4pm, her time.
We have a very unique bond. She is someone I adore, someone I look up to. She has endured more than her fair share of crap. But she somehow keeps on keeping on. If I am even HALF the woman she is when I'm her age, I will be a very happy woman.
The sparrows are symbolic of the distance between us. Sailors used to get one after sailing 5000 miles, and another after 10000 miles. One sits slightly higher than the other, because she is in the northern hemisphere, while I am in the southern. And they are back to back, because, despite all the miles, we are there for each other...

"I'm trying to remember why I was afraid
To be myself, and let the covers fall away.
I guess I never had someone like you
To help me fit in my skin."
~ Naked ? Avril Lavigne