Self-confidence and uncertainty exist in tandem in Hellen van Meene’s carefully staged portraits of girls in the midst of the physical and psychological transitions between childhood and adulthood. Paired with van Meene’s use of soft fabrics and lighting, the portraits offer a dreamlike view of the subjects that reflects a level of trust between photographer and model. In describing this relationship, she says, “I really love my subjects. If I couldn’t give myself to them, then they couldn’t give themselves to me—and making the work would be impossible!” Using only the available natural light in a room, van Meene’s style has been compared to Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer.