The Embrace Project
Photography For Women Living with Cancer
Gentle, deeply personal sessions to help you be seen as the woman you still are, beyond the appointments, the treatment and everything cancer tries to take.
It began in a chemo chair.
Three years ago, I was diagnosed with cancer. I know how it turns your world upside down, and what the treatment asks of your body and your mind. I know how it can take your confidence, your joy, even your sense of self.
Sitting in chemo for seven hours at a time gave me plenty of time to listen, and to begin to understand what the women around me were facing. There were the obvious things: body changes, scars, fear. But there were quieter ones too, the things nobody talks about. Communication. Intimacy. Self-love.
And I realised I had a skill that could make a difference. I’d seen first-hand the impact that empathetic, beautiful photography can have.
Photography could help these women find a little self-love again. It could say the things to their friends and family that are so hard to put into words. It could create a lasting memory of who they are, in spite of everything cancer tries to steal.
That’s how the Embrace Project was born.
What are Embrace Sessions like?
Sessions are shaped around you.
There’s no set formula. Every Embrace session is tailored and personal, because every woman’s experience of cancer is different. We’ll talk first about what you’d like it to be for you. For some women, that might be:
To be seen. Not the patient, but the person screaming to get out from under the appointments, the anxieties and the well-meant comments. The woman you still are inside.
To see your body differently. A gentle way to look beyond the parts you might focus on after treatment, and to find something to love again.
To start a difficult conversation. Images can open conversations with children or partners that are hard to begin with words.
To tell your story. Your cancer journey, told your way, for yourself or to share.
To feel like you again. Happier, more confident, and able to see what others see when they look at you.
To celebrate. A simple celebration of who you are here today, and how you want people to remember you.
You don’t have to know which one it is before we start. Many women discover it during the session.
How it works
At your pace, on your terms
A private chat first. We talk about you, your treatment, how you’re feeling and what you’d love the session to give you. There’s no commitment.
Planned around you. We’ll pick a day that works with your treatment and energy levels. If you need to change it at short notice, that’s completely fine.
Your session. It’s unhurried and private, in The Cowshed. You set the pace, and we can stop and rest whenever you need. If you need a chaperone to help you that's absolutely fine. If you are receiving palliative care and need me to travel to you, we can discuss arrangements.
Your images. You decide what’s kept, what’s shared and who sees them. Nothing is ever shared without your written permission.
Each photography session is timed for an hour, but if it takes longer because you need to rest or you need to stop after 20 minutes, that's what we will do.
The studio has level, step-free access and free parking right outside. Tell me about any physical needs, such as scars, a port, a stoma, hair loss, fatigue or pain, and I’ll adapt everything around you..
What it Costs
I won’t pretend otherwise: making each Embrace experience as personal and meaningful as possible takes time. I spend around ten hours on every woman who comes through my door, from our first chat through to her finished images.
Every Embrace experience includes:
A private consultation, planned around you
An unhurried, tailored session at The Cowshed
Your full gallery of images, with printing rights
Your favourite photograph as a large art print
Worth well over £600.
Self-funded: £150. I offer two self-funded sessions each month at £150, which covers my basic costs. Places are limited, so message me to check availability.
The Trial Sessions
The women who trialled these sessions for me were incredible. We laughed, we cried, we danced and we celebrated.
Each of the women completed a questionnaire before and after. The feedback blew me away. The impact reached further than any of us expected, well beyond what we’d set out to achieve in each session.
Alongside a real boost in self-love, some mums found they could finally have conversations with their children that they’d been struggling to start.
One woman told me the session had saved her marriage. It gave her and her husband a way to talk about the intimacy they’d lost, and gave her the confidence to let him see her body for the first time since her surgery.
Another said it made her realise she had begun to hate her scar and her body, and that she’d been punishing herself for being ill. Seeing herself through the camera helped her start to let that go.
A note about what this is and isn't
I’m a photographer, not a qualified therapist or a medical professional. The Embrace Project is designed to sit alongside the care and support you already have, not to replace it. Many women find it a meaningful extra source of support, and I’m always happy to point you towards other organisations if you need them.
I am a naturally empathetic person, but I will not open conversations that I am not skilled enough to answer, and I won't give advice. I may encourage you to consider, "What would happen if..." or suggest positive affirmations, just as I do for all my clients.
For Charities and Funders
I believe in these sessions as an additional support mechanism for women living with cancer, and the trial sessions showed me how much they can give.
At the moment I can offer two self-funded places a month at £150, which covers only my basic costs.
Sponsorship would let me reach more women, and give each of them the time she deserves, while keeping the studio running.
My next goal is to secure charity funding so I can extend the project’s reach. Funding would let me offer more sessions, and give each woman the time she deserves to create something that’s right for her, while keeping the studio running.
What your sponsorship provides:
£250 sponsors one woman’s complete Embrace experience. That includes:
Around ten hours of my time, from the first conversation to the final images
A tailored session at a private, accessible studio
Her full gallery of images, with printing rights
A large art print of her favourite photograph
That’s an experience worth well over £600, for £250.
If you work in the charity sector, or know someone who funds projects like this, I’d love to talk. A full project outline, with trial feedback, is available on request.
Help me reach more women
You're still here
Whether you’re mid-treatment, years beyond it, or somewhere in between, I’d love to hear from you. Message me for a private, no-pressure chat. Nothing is decided until you’re ready. Mostly, I send you love and best wishes. Liz x
Rebelliously Sensual
Rediscovery through Photography
liz@rebelliously-sensual.co.uk
Rebelliously Sensual is a trading name of Photography by Liz Ltd
Company number: 07856361 Registered in England and Wales
© 2026. All rights reserved.
Rebelliously Sensual
The Cowshed, Llancayo Court, Usk. Monmouthshire, South Wales. NP15 1HY
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