Parisian photographer Stephane Domingues set off on a worldwide journey last May to document the lives of 30-year-olds for his project “Being30YO“. Why 30? Domingues told A+:
“I think that the 30’s is the decade during which you assert yourself. You become who you want to be — after spending your 20s learning who you were (be it your taste, values or interests) and building your life (studies or first jobs).”
Check out some of the 30-year-olds Domingues has met so far:
Monique. Cape Town, South Africa.
“Getting to my 30s, I really want to have children and I actually plan to.”
Gaston. Ushuaia, Argentina.
“I always forget my age!! But I think that we get experienced and become more mature.”
Andualem. Bahir Dar, Ethiopia.
“I had some prejudices about the different religions: Protestants, Orthodoxes and Muslims. Whereas now I do think that all human beings are the same. […] I do not stick to one vision anymore.”
Magdalena. Puerto Tranquilo, Chile.
“The only thing that changed is that, when someone ask my age, I try to avoid saying it.”
Zoltan. Budapest, Hungary.
“My friends told me, ‘after 30, it is like on the B side of a K7, all things are going down.’ I don’t see it happening for me.”
Sindani. Masai Village, Tanzania.
“Family life is the most important thing for me. I have five children of approximately thirteen, ten, eight, four and two years old.”
Stefanie. New York, United States.
“I don’t really care about being 30, I am confident enough to just do not care.”
Paola. Lima, Peru.
“Ten years ago, I thought by my 30s, I would be living in the USA in my own house; married to the boyfriend I was with (we dated for almost 8 years), with children and working as a medical biller. Today, my life is totally different. I live in Peru, I work as a hostel manager and I am single without kids. I am so happy and proud of the person I became.”
Anne. Paris, France.
“I am 30, I don’t feel old, I’m young at heart… That’s what really matters.”
Budget. Manchewe, Malawi.
“I had my first kid at the age of 29 and I hadn’t any idea of how to raise children. For me, this is the real turning point!”
Janice. San Paulo, Brazil.
“I have a lot to do in a really short time… Travel as much as possible, get married and have children and write a book… I need dreams to be happy!”
Bori. South Omo Valley, Ethiopia.
“Until I get enough cows, I am young.”
Maceo. Los Angeles, USA.
“They say that in your 30’s you settle in your identity, and I feel that’s very much truth…”
Ines. Salta, Argentina.
“I am so proud of who I became, I feel much more independent than the model I imagined.”
Kevin. Cape Town, South Africa.
“I don’t feel old, just more experienced and that’s really a good thing!”
Check out more photos and read their full stories at Being30YO.com.