"You are in control of your happiness," Helen said to me when we first spoke on the phone to explore the possibility of her participating in our 50 Over 50 & Fabulous Modern Glamour Photography project. "I love the project and that it's geared towards women 50+," she said. "This is a new chapter in my life, and I'm not going to just sit down." And then, when I met Helen in person for her style & concept consultation, as soon as she walked in the door, I knew that she had a great sense of style, just from her sunglasses. And was I right or was I right! I mean, just look at those silver-studded, heeled boots that she's wearing below!
One of the really great things about our 50 Over 50 & Fabulous Modern Glamour Photography Project is that the sessions are 3 hours long, compared to our normal 1-hr portrait photography sessions. And what that means is that while we can still do some of the more "standard" portraiture, we also have lots of time for some really creative, out-of-the-box photography as well!
With Helen, we did some fun things with fabrics, both draping them on her to fashion a gown as well as simply throwing a piece of fabric at her and capturing it mid-fall! The fun thing about fabric tossing is that every single image is entirely different, because the fabric never falls the same! And then, Helen also agreed to let me paint her! Yes, that's real paint on her face!
Stay tuned for another blog post with photographs of her final printed artwork, and in the meantime, scroll down below for a transcript of her first video interview!
Transcript of 1st Video Interview
Irene (Beauty Photographer):
Let's start with your name, age and then just give me a short history of you.
Helen:
My name is Helen Wooten. I don't know if I should say 59 and a half, or should I say 60. So I'm gonna say 60. I was born in North Carolina. I'm the oldest of six children. I got married at 49, got divorced at 59. And I'm okay with that.
Getting divorced late in life, I thought, omg, I gotta go back out in the dating scene. But it was just like riding the bike for me. I fell off and just got back on. So I decided to sign up for a dating site and that’s where I met Gerald, and we’ve just been hanging out ever since.
Irene (Glamour Photographer):
So when you turned 50, 10 years ago, how did you celebrate that, and how did it feel?
Helen:
I felt great! I hosted a brunch at Perry restaurant in Washington, DC. They have a drag queen, Queen brunch. We did that for my 50th, and it was a blast!
Irene (Beauty Photographer):
So you didn't have any trepidation about turning 50?
Helen:
No! I dove right into it. My husband at that time bought me a spin bike for my birthday. And everybody said, aren't you upset that he bought you a spin bike? I was like, No! I love it. You should have seen it when he tried to hide it from me. I saw it was a spin bike, and I was like, Yes! This is the best piece of exercise equipment.
Irene (Glamour Photographer):
Well, how do you think that your relationship to time has changed as you've gotten older?
Helen:
I think it sped up! Last night.. I was thinking, boy I'm gonna be 60 in a couple more weeks. Where has time gone?! Time waits on no one. So to me, you know, life changes, events happen, and it just keeps going.
Irene (Beauty Photographer):
What do you think is the one piece of advice that you would give to your 20something self?
Helen:
Live your life on your own terms and don’t worry about other people's opinion. Just go for it!
At 20, you're somewhat looking for validation from people. Sometimes when you look for advice from some people, they give me all these excuses of why you shouldn't do it, so you’re gonna take that in and say, well…maybe I shouldn't do that. That's a little risky.
So I would just tell myself, you know, live your life.
Irene (Glamour Photographer):
When do you think in your life you have felt the most confident?
Helen:
50! That was when I said, no more what if’s. It’s ok to say NO. You just can't be everything to everybody.
Irene (Beauty Photographer):
What's your favorite trait about yourself today?
Helen:
I'm very outspoken and kindhearted.
Irene (Beauty Photographer):
Are there any myths that you want to bust about the over 50s?
Helen:
Yes….!
Irene (Glamour Photographer):
Haha, Give it to me.
Helen:
I felt this way when I was probably 20…, that people who were 50 are no longer into having sex. And that older people like being alone because they say… when you get to a certain age you are set in your ways, and you don't want to be bothered with people. That's not true.
And 50-year-old women are still sexy!
Irene (Beauty Photographer):
So is there anything else that you want other younger women to know about being 50 Plus?
Helen:
Life doesn't stop at 50! It keeps going. And continue to love yourself and do things that you want to do.
Irene (Glamour Photographer):
So what made you decide to participate in the 50 over 50 and Fabulous Project?
Helen:
Sisterhood! I’m gonna meet different people from different backgrounds, different races, different body images.
Irene (Beauty Photographer):
What excites you the most about the 50 over 50 and fabulous projects right at this moment?
Helen:
To exchange information with the other women and develop a professional or social relationship. I'm excited to meet other women that have decided to take this plunge into the milestone of another birthday.
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