"Beauty is not in the face; beauty is a light in the heart." -Kahlil Gibran

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My name is Jennifer Mendoza Stanelle. I photograph families, from newborns to great, great grandparents.

My goal is to create a portrait with you that captures where your family is in this moment in time, whether that is diapers, little league, braces, or beyond. My photographs are about you.

Visit my Portfolio pages for samples of my work. Keep in mind that if you choose to work with me, your photos will not be reproductions of what you see there. Your portraits will be as unique as your family. Just like you, my work is always evolving.

Follow me here on the blog (posts are below). You can also join me on Facebook or Twitter, and more recently on Pinterest. In addition to photography, I am interested in being the best wife, mom, sister, friend, daughter and member of my community - locally and globally - I can be. I don't claim to be superwoman, by any means. It's a crazy juggling act in which I'm doing the best I can. Occasionally, I will blog about things that relate to those topics as well.

And to answer one of the questions I get asked most: You can call me Jen, Jenny, Jennifer, Mendoza or Stanelle. I get and respond to them all!

Photos of me by Elle Photography.

Real Beauty

Posted on August 6, 2009

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I love Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty. Their “Evolution” video, in particular, speaks so loudly and clearly to the fact that so much of what is presented to us as beautiful is doctored, manipulated, photoshopped…

I try so hard to keep this in mind when I am shooting, editing and post-processing my photographs. Not to mention in my life in general, when I’m judging myself and others, or trying to live up to expectations (sometimes I don’t even know whose). That beautiful doesn’t necessarily mean flawless, or vice versa.

I wish I could embed the video here, but it’s either not possible or I’m just not savvy enough to figure it out. Do follow the link and check out the video. It’s worth 2 clicks and one minute, fourteen seconds of your time.

“Evolution”

The pic above is one of me that T took recently. It’s one that on my first look, I say, “ooh, I hate this or don’t like that.” But if I take away those filters that tell me what I’m supposed to look like, then I can appreciate myself, the picture, the moment it captured for what they are. Beautiful and real. The sun spots on my cheeks show that A) I didn’t touch it up, and B) even brown people get freckles and should wear sunblock!



Leave a Comment

5 Comments so far

  • tracie @ tsj photography says:
    August 6, 2009 at 8:15 am - Reply

    i love this post!! we often ARE too critical of ourselves and we need to learn to embrace every flaw as meaningful.

    crow’s feet … we have a life of laughter
    sun spots … we get to live & enjoy the sun
    a little weight … we have food to eat

    amen to this!!

  • Tracy Stephens says:
    August 6, 2009 at 1:33 pm - Reply

    Thank you so much for this post! I personally think this picture is beautiful! I love Dove’s Campaign. Thank you for this reminder! Not only is it important for girls to feel pretty, but also so boys learn what real beauty is. Thanks for sharing.

  • Mom T says:
    August 6, 2009 at 5:24 pm - Reply

    I totally agree!

    Awesome pic of you too! It does capture “you”!!

  • Jennifer Mendoza Stanelle says:
    August 6, 2009 at 6:23 pm - Reply

    Thanks, ladies, for the comments. I cringed a little when I hit “publish” and saw my face next to the title. But that is the point, right? To accept and love what we are, and not fret about what we think we’re supposed to be and yet can never achieve (at least not on a daily basis and without a whole lot of help).

  • Amanda F. says:
    August 8, 2009 at 4:49 pm - Reply

    Totally wrote an A paper on the Dove Campaign and “Evolution” for English 1101. Love the post as well!









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