HAIR TRANSPLANT FORUM

I have fair skin and thick dark hair (shafts). I am afraid that with the contrast in color between my hair and skin that if too many grafts were taken from my donor area it would be much more noticable than someone with light hair and light skin, where there is much less contrast.
I've seen some of the photos in the forum and have tried to see as many (post-surgery) photos of donor sites of people with dark hair and light skin (not very many), and the results look good, but im still kinda skeptical... how can you take so much hair from one area and move it to a thinning/bald area and still make both areas look natural and not make it noticable that surgery has been performed. I am actually very convinced that the recipient area will look good, but the donor area is still bothering me... I like to have my hair very short, Im shaving it right now, but after my procedure Id like to grow it out 1/4 to 1 inch or be able to still keep it pretty closely shaved and not have to worry that people can see missing hair from my donor area.
I had a consultation at the Atlanta office a couple/few years back and they told me I had a very good donor area, which is great and most recently (via photo consult) I was told I need 1500-1800 grafts over the front third of my head, but Im pretty sure that over the years i will need more procedures to keep up with my hairloss, and then what about the crown?? -these are the main reasons why I am so concerned about the donor site looking natural....
So anyway, some discussion about this would be great, and if there are any other post-op/post-healing photos of donor sites any one wants to upload so I can see them it would really help calm my nerves... Thanks!!!

First of all you should not be nervous...it is a killer for your general health and doesn't help your hair either
You must remember that we take photos with a high pixeled camera and in person it looks even better.
If after seeing all the photos you are still concerned then i suggest that you will step up and see real patients in person. That way you will get the best impression.
When people see my photos they say it's nice but when they see me in person they say WOW.
I am sure Brandi can help you set up a meeting with someone close to you, even if he will be a little far it's worth the travel. before you spend money on a surgery you need to make the best of your research.

how can you take so much hair from one area and move it to a thinning/bald area and still make both areas look natural and not make it noticable that surgery has been performed

Well, that depends on the surgeon's skills and technique, the surgeon will not remove the grafts from one limited area, he will go and take a few grafts from different regions of the donor area so the gaps will look natural. only if there is a real limited donor area we will try body hair and in extreme cases donor exchange. You can read about it here:
Hair Transplant Procedures