At the end of April, Britain Uncovered had the pleasure of collaborating with London-based photographer, Aurelija Zuba, for our biggest body positivity photoshoot to date! On this occasion, we found ourselves at the swanky Factory Studio apartment in the East End of London, and with four individuals on hand ready to step in front of the camera – all in the name of body positivity and self-love – we could sense from the get-go that this would be a day to remember. Here’s an exclusive look at how our day unfolded.
It would be somewhat of an understatement to say that we were overwhelmed by the response we received to our call-out for models ahead of this latest shoot of ours, and – although we wish we could have included absolutely anyone and everyone who expressed an interest – we ultimately settled for four individuals who had all been involved with Britain Uncovered in some way or another in the recent past.
As ever, our mission for the day was to once again promote the virtues of body confidence in an entirely desexualised manner, as it’s our continued belief that these types of experiences – and learning to accept yourself in your own skin, despite any perceived insecurities or hang-ups you may have – can make a big impact on an individual’s overall perceptions of themselves going forwards. Photoshoots such as these can provide a massive boost to an individual's self-esteem and can help people of all shapes and sizes to accept themselves exactly as they are, and the resulting mental health benefits can prove invaluable and have long-lasting implications, in the best possible sense.
Since launching in 2020, Britain Uncovered has continued to champion the importance of clothes-free experiences such as these, and in an effort to continue practicing what we preach via the likes of these types of photoshoots, we can only hope that the confidence shown by the individuals modelling for us on the day will resonate with everyone reading and help spark some newfound confidence in all of our readers as well.
Part One – Elizabeth
Images © Aurelija Zuba Photography
Long-term readers of the site will no doubt remember that we’ve collaborated with body positivity model, Elizabeth, on a number of occasions, including at the photoshoot which officially launched our site back in October 2020.
Meeting up with Elizabeth shortly before noon on the day of our latest shoot, we took some time ahead of our visit to the Factory Studio to pop into town for a coffee and our first ever interview with the model. During our chat, Elizabeth recalled many of her past modelling experiences, along with her own thoughts about how photoshoots such as these can open up conversations around body image and inspire other people to feel more empowered to try out these types of experiences for themselves too.
Despite revealing during the course of our conversation that she always feels “really nervous” about shoots of this nature, due to a few insecurities and concerns about the way her body looks, none of that seemed remotely apparent when the shoot got underway, and we continue to be impressed with how confident and empowered Elizabeth seems in front of the camera! Although admitting to us during our interview that she didn’t feel like model material upon first starting out a few years back, it’s clear that by pushing herself beyond her comfort zone and continuing to model on such a regular basis, Elizabeth has reaped the rewards of the process, and it’s so gratifying to hear that she’s helped inspire friends and family along the way too.
Part Two – Eloise and Alice
Images © Aurelija Zuba Photography
The middle portion of our day featured two friends who first met in Montreal, Canada, several years ago – and in the time since, they’ve collaborated with one another on a number of fantastic projects that have also included a strong focus on the body; which, perhaps most notably, resulted in Eloise modelling for Alice’s excellent Write Me A Novel exhibition and photoshoot in Brighton last summer (which we spoke with Alice about during our interview last year).
The project, which is based on the idea that a writer is never alone in the creation of their work, involved words and text being written across Eloise and the other models' bodies – and participation made such an emotional impact that Eloise later decided to have some of these words permanently etched onto their skin, and the resulting tattoo cements the permanence and importance of Write Me A Novel and ensures that its spirit will live on!
We also had the immense pleasure of interviewing Eloise down in Brighton last autumn, and the poet, documentarist and activist provided us with some really fascinating perspectives relating to body positivity; and in particular, some important observations on the need for greater body diversity. Our interview with Eloise can be found by clicking here.
Having two friends share the spotlight together made for a really interesting dynamic and undoubtedly resulted in some of our favourite photos from the day. The images above perfectly capture the essence of joyfulness and body freedom that we were seeking, and the air of liberation showcased in these photographs is a fine example of precisely how uplifting experiences such as these can be.
Part Three – Verity
Images © Aurelija Zuba Photography
Last, but by absolutely no means least, we once again had the honour of being joined by Verity, the most prolific model in Britain Uncovered’s history and another individual who we absolutely love working with.
As one of the original models for Sophie Tea’s nude catwalk event in Shoreditch back in 2019, Verity has gone on to champion the self-love cause in so many different ways – and in addition to posing for several of our own body positivity photoshoots along the way, Verity is also the founder of The Body Confidence Issue, a social media initiative designed to help people overcome their body hang-ups by discussing lumps, bumps, rolls, unflattering angles the reality of social media.
Always incredibly relaxed in front of the camera, Verity was able to find her rhythm straight away and comes across totally at ease while promoting the body confidence cause – and I genuinely feel that with each of the shoots Verity has been involved in over the years, her confidence has grown leaps and bounds with every new experience.
To hear more about Verity’s relationship with her body, along with further details of the night she took part in Sophie Tea’s naked catwalk event, click here for our full interview which was originally published back in 2020.
Before bringing things to a close, I’m also pleased to present a small selection of behind the scenes images from the day captured by yours truly, each of which offers a further peek into proceedings and provides a little glimpse into how everything came together!
I would like to express a huge thank you to Aurelija, our amazingly talented photographer, for working so tirelessly and for so generously hosting this photoshoot on behalf of Britain Uncovered. To see more of Aurelija’s work, please give the photographer a follow on Instagram over at @aurelija.photography.
An additional thanks to Elizabeth, Alice, Eloise and Verity for your participation on the day and for all your important contributions both before and after the photoshoot took place – we couldn’t have done it with you!