Wig-free portraits empower women

By Jamie Gumbrecht, CNN

Updated 2327 GMT (0727 HKT) April 5, 2016

Pammy is one of the women with alopecia who posed without a wig for photographer Christoph Soeder. His "Unfading" series gave them confidence, he said: "It really emphasizes people's individuality. It just increases their uniqueness."
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Pammy is one of the women with alopecia who posed without a wig for photographer Christoph Soeder. His "Unfading" series gave them confidence, he said: "It really emphasizes people's individuality. It just increases their uniqueness."
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Emily S. is a student studying in York, England. More than 147 million people worldwide have or will develop alopecia areata, according to the National Alopecia Areata Foundation. For some, hair falls out in clumps, then grows back, only to fall out again. Others lose hair from their head, eyelashes and eyebrows.
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Emily S. is a student studying in York, England. More than 147 million people worldwide have or will develop alopecia areata, according to the National Alopecia Areata Foundation. For some, hair falls out in clumps, then grows back, only to fall out again. Others lose hair from their head, eyelashes and eyebrows.
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Emily P. works as a nurse at a hospital in Swindon, England. She told Soeder that her work in intensive care helped her accept her condition and put it into context, he said.
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Emily P. works as a nurse at a hospital in Swindon, England. She told Soeder that her work in intensive care helped her accept her condition and put it into context, he said.
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Siobain works in a care home for the elderly. Hair loss can be especially difficult for women, Soeder said. A couple of his subjects said they never took their wigs off in front of others.
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Siobain works in a care home for the elderly. Hair loss can be especially difficult for women, Soeder said. A couple of his subjects said they never took their wigs off in front of others.
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Gwennan runs an alopecia support group in Cardiff, Wales. "I tried wigs, and for a couple of years it was a confidence tonic to me," she told Soeder. "I felt happier and more able to face the world, because I was normal again. No one noticed me as I blended in with everyone else. Unfortunately for me, this was short-lived. I am not saying that this is necessarily true for others. Wigs work for so many people, but for me it led me to believe that I was hiding my identity."
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Gwennan runs an alopecia support group in Cardiff, Wales. "I tried wigs, and for a couple of years it was a confidence tonic to me," she told Soeder. "I felt happier and more able to face the world, because I was normal again. No one noticed me as I blended in with everyone else. Unfortunately for me, this was short-lived. I am not saying that this is necessarily true for others. Wigs work for so many people, but for me it led me to believe that I was hiding my identity."
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Sarah is a fashion-design student in Wales. Soeder met her and photographed her at a wig shop.
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Sarah is a fashion-design student in Wales. Soeder met her and photographed her at a wig shop.
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Anne lost her hair in 2012 during a trip to Australia. Her husband, Simon, told Soeder that she left the UK with most of her hair and came back with none.
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Anne lost her hair in 2012 during a trip to Australia. Her husband, Simon, told Soeder that she left the UK with most of her hair and came back with none.
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Gabrielle was diagnosed with alopecia when she was 4 years old. She hadn't met anyone else affected by the condition until this project, when she met Emily P. (from photo No. 3).
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Gabrielle was diagnosed with alopecia when she was 4 years old. She hadn't met anyone else affected by the condition until this project, when she met Emily P. (from photo No. 3).
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