Bald is beautiful: this photo series will change the way you look at Alopecia

Hair loss can have devastating effects on self-confidence, but a photography project is showing the subject in a new light.

"The Alopecia Project" is a series of portraits by UK photographer Daniel Regan that provide an intimate perspective on the autoimmune condition that can cause people to lose their locks in addition to facial and body hair. It features men, women and children.

Regan has been taking the stunning black and white portraits for around four years, but the project has recently been getting much more attention following the release of a book, "Alopecia Uncovered," containing 39 of the shots accompanied by analytical texts by art psychotherapist Jennifer Chambers.

"There is a huge amount of shame associated with alopecia, especially for women," writes Regan on the project's site. "When a woman loses not only their hair but also their eyebrows and eyelashes they immediately begin to feel like less of a woman. Parts of the body that our society places so much pressure on, that apparently epitomise the very concept of femininity, are lost and there is little help offered to sufferers in the way of psychological therapies for a disease that can cause significant damage to self-esteem."

The portraits show some women with tattooed eyebrows and false eyelashes, while others opt for a completely bare look. Some have opted to celebrate their baldness with scalp tattoos, while others accessorize with jewelry and facial piercings. Various states and stages of the condition are visible across the project, with some of the subjects sporting patches of hair or extremely cropped styles.

"Alopecia Uncovered" is available to purchase from alopecia-uncovered.com. For more information see: danielregan.com or alopecia-uncovered.com