Ides of Gender: Part II

By Zach Oren

Ides of Gender is a photo series celebrating everyone under the trans umbrella – binary and non-binary. Since 2017, I set out to document the rich diversity within the trans community and have had the privilege of photographing over 700 folx in all 49 continental US states, as well as Hawai’i, Puerto Rico, and Washington D.C.

There’s an obsession with trans bodies that society often feels entitled to – objectified and scrutinized to the point of physical harm. Being cisgender, I had a responsibility to photograph each person honestly and with utmost integrity. From the very beginning, the series has been a collaborative exercise in trust – trusting that a complete stranger will show up and share their authentic self. Extracting their own truth and facing my camera intimately, I never had to take anyone’s photograph. It was generously given to me.

Since moving to the US, my pursuit of community and self-expression has been constant. Being on the road working on Ides of Gender for the past eight years, ended up – unexpectedly – validating my own queerness and intersectionality. I see myself in all of these portraits. I hope you see your own journey mirrored back within these lives.

Representation matters. Visibility matters.

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Name, Age – Location, Location

Individual passage 

Name, age

Location, location

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Name, Age – Location, Location

Individual passage 

Name, age

Location, location

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Name, Age – Location, Location

Individual passage 

Name, age

Location, location

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Name, Age – Location, Location

Individual passage 

Name, age

Location, location

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Name, Age – Location, Location

Individual passage 

Name, age

Location, location

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Name, Age – Location, Location

Individual passage 

Name, age

Location, location

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Name, Age – Location, Location

Individual passage 

Name, age

Location, location

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Name, Age – Location, Location

Individual passage 

Name, age

Location, location

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Bio: Zach Oren is an immigrant, queer photographer based in LA. He is a self-taught artist and loves taking portraits in natural light, where documentary meets editorial. Using his own intersectionality – queer, poz, feminist, Middle Eastern – his intent and (literal) focus is to highlight the immense and diverse beauty in underrepresented voices that are too often overlooked. Zach’s portraits have been exhibited all over the US and shown in several publications. Follow Zach at www.zachoren.com or Instagram: @idesofgender