Different Is Beautiful
I created this series in 2019 to promote self love and embrace our unique qualities.
The series began in Yellowknife, NT, Canada. I asked 39 people to pick their favourite place, indoors our outside. Each person came dressed in whatever made them feel the most comfortable. The photoshoots ranged from 5 to 45 minutes depending on the shoot details. I asked each person one question to go with the photo we would capture, "What is one quality you love about yourself?" It's one of the hardest questions I've ever asked myself and it made me rethink how I saw myself.
Over the last 3 years, I've had the opportunity to photograph over 100 people around the world. Each person, uniquely themselves, opening up their hearts and allowing me to get to know more vulnerable sides and photograph them. It's been an incredibly rewarding series filled with memories that will last a lifetime.
Different is beautiful – Embrace your unique qualities that make you!
DANIELLE GILLARD
"The quality I love most about myself is my genuine love for life. Being able to see life in a beautiful way and capturing that beauty to share with others through my photography is something so special for me."
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Aurélien Bassang
"So, I can say that I am hypersensitive, for years it’s been really difficult to understand my feelings and to deal with it sometimes. But since, i am happy to say that it’s a gift. I discovered I can feel things around me, and I can help people. I can feel their emotions and better understand them for it. I want to use my gift in my work to help as many people as I can."
Perth, Australia
Dave Zethof
“One quality I love about myself is my ability to find happiness and joy in life. I value my sense of humour and I am really grateful that my life is full of laughter and connection. Even if I can’t be around the people I love every day I can still feel close because I’m able to find comfort through that bond we share."
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Lynn Denby
"Self love- I have learnt over the years to accept myself for who I am, to love my body, including all of my 'imperfections'. Understanding that not everyone is the same and thats ok."
Perth, Australia
Dion Kester
“What I love about myself is that I am looking for boundaries and looking to cross them. I would be lying if I said I never took it too far and sometimes I would hurt someone or get negative reactions which resulted in me not expressing myself too much, but later I realised that it's really good for progress, it helped me get new perspectives and it might result in some great conversations or stimulate you to think further.”
Perth, Australia
Gavin Lutz
"My favourite quality about myself is kind of a blessing and a curse. I am never satisfied. As soon as I accomplish something or realize I’ve plateaued I look for the next peak or next challenge. I do not like to just coast through life as I feel I am just asleep at the wheel. This is great in a professional setting or when I’m out for an adventure but not exactly what you’d want in your personal life!"
Canmore, AB, Canada
Sarah Anne
"I'd say my best quality is that I never lose hope, I'm able to only keep the good out of the bad."
Mildura, Australia
Michael Bokor
"When push comes to shove, I shove! I grew up on a farm and know the value of hard work (thanks mom and dad). I never give up, and if I think it needs to be done, it will be. Get ready home reno’s, decorating challenges, and that kink in your neck because if I think its a problem, I’ll solve it."
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Maureen Tonge
" 'Generosity of Spirit' I'll elaborate: It's really important to me to give back; to acknowledge with gratitude the myriad blessings in my life. One of the ways I give back is to teach: yoga and art, specifically. It brings me great joy to share my knowledge with others. And also, it's become even more important to me to give back to this amazing community I've called home for 27 years."
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Allie Hinchey
"My emotional intelligence. It’s been a long, arduous journey to self-understanding and I still stumble regularly, but it has been paramount and ubiquitous in both my personal growth and my relationships."
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Wessam Bou-Saleh
"What I love about myself, is the stubborn belief that people are good. And that, I'm starting to believe in myself and my abilities. I always feel desperately hopeless that I won't be able to accomplish something, then at the last minute, I'll do it. And I'll be proud - most of the time."
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Milou Bautler
“I am proud of my never ending smile. For me, a smile represents happiness, gratitude and positivity. One single smile can change everything, it can make others happy. So smile as much as you can, because it’s free and it looks gorgeous on everyone!”
Perth, Australia
BECKY
"When Dani & I first began taking pictures, I felt super awkward and didn't really know what to do with myself. Should I be smiling? Should I be serious? My lovely insecurities making their uninvited appearance at the photoshoot. You know how that goes. Then Dani asked me to sit by the tree, and she proceeded by asking me if I was comfortable sharing with her what I wanted to write about. As I carried on explaining my thoughts to her, my energy shifted and I felt this vulnerability and gratefulness carry over. 2020 was a really hard one for me, as I'm sure it was for pretty much the entire planet. But alongside the pandemic, life challenged me with a lot of other personal stimuli. But with all of this chaos, came a lot of personal growth that I will forever be grateful for. For the first time in a long time, I have come to understand and appreciate all that I am and all that I have accomplished. I have learned to be vulnerable and present for every moment life gifts me with, good and bad. I've learned to be as empathetic towards myself as much as I am to others. Most of all, I have found peace with understanding that through the hardest moments in life, the times when you hurt the most... those moments will grant you some of the greatest growths to your journey of life on this chaotic planet. The beauty of Ying and Yang. Love is a meeting of two souls, fully accepting the dark and the light within each other and ourselves. Be patient, be kind & send love to yourself and every other little earthling. Thank you Danni for making me a part of this project."
Montreal, QC, Canada
Julaine Louise
"I love my ability to connect with a feeling, a place, an idea, a stranger, someone familiar, myself... And help to facilitate a connection among others"
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Patrick Bluck
"I have been going through some stuff before we left for vacation and it would probably be my extremely loving character, not to sound lame but if I date someone it's because I genuinely love them and when we break up i'm shattered, but I think in the end, intense love will pay off for me. So my favourite quality is my ability to love intensely and genuinely, because I don't think a lot of people do that today."
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Olivia Williams
“One quality I love about myself is that I always try to be joyful. I believe life is better spent laughing and smiling with those you cherish most, you never know who could use a friendly face or a kind smile and if I can spend my days uplifting those around me I can’t imagine a better way to spend my life.”
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Taylor Green
"I’m going to break this down and be really real wit’ y’all… When Dani first asked me to be a part of her project I felt uncomfortable because I was unsure what I loved most about myself. If it were to be physical, I would have to say my eyes, so I focused on that for a while, but something about this morning had me feeling so emotional, and so I got my pen and started rambling on in my journal (which I haven’t done in years). As I sat there, trying to come up with something to write for this photo, 2 sides of me were fighting one another. Almost every positive thought I had was quickly contradicted with a negative one. Yesterday, I had felt confident in what I would write for my photo and today… I felt like a broken mess with constant self-doubt. And then it hit me, I realized what I loved most about my self. My self-awareness. I am able to identify when I am not okay, and not lie to myself. I can recognize my emotions and I always try my best to take a step back to understand them. As I was writing this affirmative sentence down, I felt a switch in my brain and began recognizing many more self-admirations.
I admire my desire for constant growth; not knowing everything and hearing, learning, and growing from others; my self-growth during these last few months as I am beginning to feel more and more like myself; that I now understand that communication can be scary and uncomfortable at times but even more uncomfortable without.
I have let my anxiety and insecurities overcome me for SO long so I thank Dani for this opportunity to share with you and to step out of my comfort zone because before even writing this down, I don’t know if I truly believed or recognized any of the things above. I am beginning a journey towards self-love and I have a long road ahead of me but now at least I know I am capable. I will struggle and it won’t be easy, but I will come back to this photo to remember."
Canmore, AB, Canada
Kae Noelle
“One quality I love about myself is my ability to find happiness and joy in life. I value my sense of humour and I am really grateful that my life is full of laughter and connection. Even if I can’t be around the people I love every day I can still feel close because I’m able to find comfort through that bond we share."
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Nikki Callas
"Self love: loving a photo of yourself even when it’s not your best angle and your outfit ain’t doing a thing for ya. I really struggled with putting something that I love about myself into words - but that’s the whole point of this, isn’t it? I love that on most days (not all days, I am only human of course) I can have a positive outlook on life. Don’t be fooled, it took me a long time to get here. Being positive or energetic doesn’t mean I’m happy all day every day. It means being able to look on the bright side of things, and having the strength to love myself on the worst of days."
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Derk Hefting
“The thing I like most about myself is my ability to look at the bigger picture instead of digging into a single problem. Instead of ignoring different opinions or views from other individuals, I would instead always try to understand why they think that way. By doing so you can stay open to the world and expand your knowledge. And your mind will stay balanced.”
Perth, Australia
Troy Sutherland
"As I reflect on this question, I think of how challenging it is for individuals to love themselves greatly, making it difficult to love for others. We must continue to evaluate and reflect upon our own lives to understand the true meaning of self-love. Self-love for me was taught over time. Growing up in a divorced family, with siblings that took precedent, it was difficult to love myself while others received the world. It has taught me many lessons that I have grown to cherish. I am most proud of my determination and utter drive to succeed, if not, give everything that I have. If I commit to a task, a project, a person, or a career I will give everything within my power and more. I live by the motto “everything in life is worth overdoing, moderation is for cowards.” This can be a blessing and a curse but it is something I am very proud of. It is very easy to be unmotivated or give up when the going gets tough but for me, that’s when the tough gets going. I am very proud of the person I have become and strive every moment to love myself unconditionally regardless of the situation."
Canmore, AB, Canada
Zack Gillard
"I think one thing I love about myself is my optimism to always see the best in life and keep moving forward."
Perth, Australia
Karen Depew
"One quality I love about myself is my ability to connect with people. Wether it’s my closest friends and family, or the stranger sitting next to me on an airplane, I find that people open up to me because I think they feel that I am genuinely interested in who they are as a person and what they have to say....and I am!!"
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Alison Levitt
“My ability to move forward.”
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Jeremie Drainville
"The quality I love about myself is my willingness and ability to change. I know that I have the ability to become the best version of myself as well as the ability to strive for greater things about myself, for myself. Finding these qualities have given me the ability to love myself more every day."
Nelson, BC, Canada
Meghan Elizabeth
“The thing I love most about myself is the depth of love I’m able to feel for others."
Perth, Australia
Ady McLeod
“One element that I love about myself is my sense of community."
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Maxime Rinn
"I think I love about myself how compassionate I am, don't know how to describe it better. But the word compassionate probably does it best. I don't know if an adjective is good tho ..."
Perth, Australia
Angela Lafleur-Nowell
"Optimism - my ability to carry a sense of hope and confidence about the future and situations that uplifts my friends, family & coworkers."
Perth, Australia
Brittney Clark
"To me, there’s nothing better than sitting back and watching your friends have an amazing time and knowing that you were the one who brought it to life. I’m a planner and I love it: parties, travels, dinners, you name it. Making sure that my friends are taken care of and are always having a good time is what I do best."
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Madison Anthony
"My favourite quality about myself would have to be my resilience. Having gone through so much and being able to jump right back to who I truly am, really amazes me."
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Sadetło Scott
"In my culture, the ability to listen well is a desired trait. I love being there for my friends and family as an active listener, giving them the space to express their thoughts and feelings without judgement. For that reason, what I love most about myself is my open heart and open ears."
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Ryan James
"No matter what might go on in life, I am grateful I can always find happiness and joy within. I value my positive outlook on everyday matters and making the most of what I have in life right now. I enjoy transferring my positive energy to others when they might need it the most. I like my smile, I smile a lot, even if I may not want to. A life changing event taught me to enjoy every moment."
Perth, Australia
Jenna Blanchard
“I do my best to practice Authenticity, in whichever way that looks.. matching from the inside out.”
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Kim Legler
"The one quality that I love about myself is my creativity. It has given me purpose in my life, and allowed me to share the beauty that I see in the world with others.”
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Anke Dings
“I love my enthusiasm/positivity. I always try to see the positive side of something.”
Perth, Australia
Jonas Giegerich
"One quality I love about myself it's my happiness in nearly all situations. I‘m happy with myself and love to make people happier with the way I am. It’s a mix of my sense of humour, being clumsy but also my kindness and helpfulness."
Perth, Australia
Kelsey Howard
"You know those occasions you spend with your folks and it dawns on you that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree? Yeah, well, I’m just like my father: silly. I love that in my everyday life, I find the silliness in every moment. Knock Knock….. Who’s there Smell Mop……………. Get it?"
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Teegan Rendell
"One quality I love about myself would be my legs. They have carried me to new places around the world and allowed me to express myself through dance."
Yellowknife, NT, Canada
Ben Freeman
“Choosing one quality that I love about myself is very difficult as I am very happy with the person that I am and pinpointing only one quality is tough. However the one quality I love about myself and take the most pride in over and above everything else is my loyalty to my friends and family, knowing that I will be open and honest but also that they can rely on me to be there whenever they need me.”
Perth, Australia
Trixie Pacis
“Good question! I guess the thing I love most about myself is my openness. I've always been drawn to new things, new people, and new places. Without a doubt, this kind of uninhibited exploration has shaped the person I am today and made the most wonderful memories. I've also navigated my life with an openness to whatever may come. Based on my experiences, it seems to me that the universe rewards positivity, kindness, curiosity, and a sense of adventure. Because of this, my approach to life is simple (something I've grown to appreciate about myself)—I put my best out into the universe and embrace what comes in return. I hope I'll always live simply, with openness to the unplanned and unknown. It's been working so far!”
Icefield Parkway, AB, Canada
