See Me | The portaits, plus outtakes - Photo Gallery

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Buy this image ALANNA LAUGHREY, 16, Kansas School for the Deaf

When Alanna Laughrey was a little girl, she was afraid to talk in public. Kids would sometimes laugh at her, making cracks about how her mouth twitched and her arms and hands moved in the air to form words. “When I was growing up, I worried about what people thought of me,” she says through American Sign Language interpreter Lori Colwell. “Now, I’ve learned not to care.” JILL TOYOSHIBA | The Kansas City Star

Buy this image CANDACE VILLANUEVA, 17, Sumner Academy

She stands just over 5 feet tall and weighs right at 100 pounds. So small growing up that her parents wanted her in karate so she could protect herself. Her sister took karate, too. “We are small, and people like to step on small people,” says Candace Villanueva, 17, a certified brown belt. Growing up shy and reserved, Candace was the girl in dance class who came alive on the floor but kept to herself in a crowd. So often, Candace felt as small as her stature: until sophomore year at Sumner Academy in Kansas City, Kan. That’s when she tried to enroll in dance class at the high school and it was full. She would have to take debate. At first, she admits, she wasn’t very good. Then she got it. Debate and forensics “helped me find who I am, helped define myself,” she says. “Even though I’m small, I still have a voice. My strength is my voice.” JILL TOYOSHIBA | The Kansas City Star

Buy this image GEORELL BULLOCK, 15, Van Horn High School

GeoRell Bullock admits it gets to him when people judge before they know him. “Some people think you’re a bad person, and you’re not,” says GeoRell, 15, a freshman at Van Horn High School in Independence. “They judge either the color of your skin or how you look on the outside.” But then he grins and gives it a positive spin. Pretty sure of himself. “Maybe it makes me more confident about myself to prove them wrong,” he says, his soft-spoken voice making him seem much younger than his age. “I want to show people who I am if they want to be like that.” JILL TOYOSHIBA | The Kansas City Star

Buy this image RAIHANNAH SHUAIB, 16, Islamic School of Greater Kansas City

Raihannah Shuaib, 16, sees people eyeing her at the grocery store. Or glancing at her when she’s hanging out with friends. Some are judging her. Others just may be curious. “People are always asking me what I’m wearing,” says the teen who wants to study computer science. “They say, ‘How come you wear this?’ “I tell them our lord tells us we have to,” says Raihannah, a Muslim, whose father is African-American and mother Fiji/Indian. “I tell them it’s about modesty.” JILL TOYOSHIBA | The Kansas City Star

Buy this image BUBBA STARLING, 18, Gardner-Edgerton High School

When Bubba Starling was a kid, his parents didn’t believe in video games. They didn’t want him inside all day just lying around. “They’d say, ‘Go outside, pick up a football or a ball, do something,” Bubba, 18, says. How smart do Jim and Debbie Starling look now? A senior at Gardner-Edgerton High, Bubba is considered the sixth best high school quarterback in the country. When it comes to a dual threat, a quarterback who can pass and rush, he jumps up to No. 3. Ten Division 1 schools courted him before he even started his senior year. He’s made a verbal commitment to Nebraska (where he would play football and baseball). Around Gardner, in Johnson County, he has movie star status, where little girls want their picture taken with him. Through it all, Bubba shrugs a little and smiles a lot. “People ask for my autograph and I’m like, ‘I’ve never signed an autograph before. What do you want me to do?’ ” he says. “People here are really supportive." JILL TOYOSHIBA | The Kansas City Star

Buy this image ZACHARY NICKERSON, 14, Rockhurst High School

Zachary Nickerson owns four sewing machines, two mannequins. He has designed and created dresses that people actually buy and wear. And if it came down to playing video games or making a run to a Jo-Ann fabric store? Not even close. He’s different, no doubt. And you know what? He’s cool with it. “I’ve always dealt with, ‘Should I stop doing this, or stop doing that, and then people will think I’m cooler?’ ” says Zachary, 14, dressed in a black vest, paisley pink tie and white shirt. “But why live your life when you’re actually living through someone else? I don’t see the point in that.” JILL TOYOSHIBA | The Kansas City Star

Buy this image PAUL LISBON, 16, Pembroke Hill High School

Paul Lisbon wants to be a diplomat. Twin brother David wants to be an architect. The two 16-year-olds definitely look alike. But they push — and their parents encourage — separate identities. They go to different high schools, have different friends and different interests. David’s cool to be in jeans and stylish T-shirts, and more times than not, Paul may go for khakis and a collared shirt. When their dad tells them to get in the car, they’re going somewhere, Paul asks where, what they’ll be doing and how long will they be gone.“Paul has to know everything,” says David, who goes to Rockhurst High School. “I don’t really have to know.” For David’s part, he just makes sure he’s wearing a clean shirt, is dressed for the weather and has grabbed his iPod. Paul, a Pembroke Hill junior, is a current events junkie, especially when it comes to politics and can’t wait to vote. He read everything he could on the mid-term elections, soaking in various opinions and facts. He also likes Christmas music and could listen to it (and does sometimes) year-round. The song “Christmas in Kansas City” is a favorite on his iPod. “David thinks when you listen to Christmas music it ruins the authenticity of the season when it comes around,” Paul says, shaking his head. JILL TOYOSHIBA | The Kansas City Star

Buy this image DAVID LISBON, 16, Rockhurst High School

Buy this image HEAVEN LEIGH FRIEND, 17, Park Hill South High School

Heaven Friend thinks the world is made up of people trapped in snow globes. Others put us in these glass bubbles, she says, always seeing us the same way. If we dress preppy, must be rich. Wear all black, we’re gloomy and depressed — emotional, emo. So the Park Hill South senior does her best to break out of any globe others put her in. She’s a cheerleading captain on game day, maybe an emo with edgy hair and black eye liner on the weekend. And she’ll put on a pencil skirt and blouse when she wants to be business-y. “I don’t have a specific clique, a specific look or personality,” Heaven, 17, says, wearing her cheerleading outfit on this day. “I don’t want to be stuck to one particular style because I’m not just one style. … It’s fun to cross it over.” JILL TOYOSHIBA | The Kansas City Star

Buy this image Photographer Jill Toyoshiba: "Alanna Laughrey asked to be photographed at the Borders bookstore in Olathe, where she goes to read Manga and other books a couple of times per week. We communicated through her dad, who translated in sign language, and by writing notes when her dad stepped away." JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image Photographer Jill Toyoshiba: "I took a few extra photos for the audio slideshow. But I thought I should ask her if she liked these as well. She said she liked the tilted horizon, and asked if I could tilt the horizon with her looking at the camera." JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image Alanna also loves checker-patterned things. She liked a tighter perspective shot among the books. Her dad said, "That's Alanna" when he saw her holding her braid. We had just about selected this photo. JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image All Bubba Starling advised for his photo was "something athletic." The football field at school was locked, so I decided to make the most of the time of day. He had the option of wearing a jersey or keeping what he had on. He kept what he had on, despite it being windy, and eventually chilly. We experimented with tossing the football. JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image Bubba was a good sport and was quick to laugh during the shoot. JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image Candace Villanueva thought that the tree she and her sister used to play in as kids would be where her portrait should be. When we arrived she said that she wanted to appear "confident and sophisticated." JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image We tried a few different things but I thought we needed to isolate her and the tree more from the environment. JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image She was a trouper and managed to get up there with a little help. She looked striking. We thought a big smile wouldn't convey confident and sophisticated as well, so we took a number without smiling. JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image GeoRell Bullock wanted to be photographed at the BMX track with his bike. But that didn't work out logistically. So, because he also plays football, he suggested the school field. It threatened to rain, and we even had run to the car with the gear at one point. JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image After we finished the mirror shot, I said I thought maybe her photo should have more energy in it because she is an incredibly busy person. She thought about what she could do and revealed that she'll sometimes stand on her bed and sing and dance to music (with moderate volume, of course). JILL TOYOSHIBA | The Kansas City Star

Buy this image Heaven later said that some of the really energetic photos wouldn't reflect who she is because she isn't that hyper. So we ended up with the mirror shot, which shows Heaven's life at this point. JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image David, who is older, went first. Paul picked his spot - in front of this painting in their house. David wanted to be photographed against a white wall, but it was very close to the painting. I suggested keeping the painting in so he would appear part of a whole, with Paul on the side of the painting he picked. They posed according to their personalities. David's first attempts at the jumping (with iPod, of course) didn't quite work. JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image Paul picked the left side of the painting. He tried a number of poses, using props such as a newspaper, a briefcase, a book... We decided the apple shot wasn't quite the one, though. JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image After the interview, the twins, Paul (left) and David Lisbon, wanted to do a photo of themselves in the car they share. Their expressions capture their personalities in this photo. JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image Raihannah Shuaib told me that she wanted to be photographed outside. When I got there, she surprised me by saying that she wanted her friends to be in the photo, too. JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image Raihannah was the first of the teens to be photographed, and I wondered how a portrait with several girls could fit this story on self-identity. But I agreed, because it was her vision that was important. She deeply connected to her friends at the Islamic school. My only concern was that it was clear she was the focal point. JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image Despite having several of his clothing designs hanging on one wall and three big red lips on another, Zachary Nickerson directed me to the area you see. Although I made a couple of pose suggestions, he was the only one of the teens so far who really did art direct his photo! JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star

Buy this image At some point during the shoot, Zachary felt that the black vest he was wearing created too much black in his look. He changed to a gray vest and played around with the hat. JILL TOYOSHIBA/Kansas City Star