Submitted by Shawn/Shauna, the model. Photography by Gary Kaupman

“I was in the mountains of South Carolina hiking with a few friends and enjoying the day.”

Submitted by Itziko, the model and artist

“I’ve always wanted to have a portrait of myself as a boxer, ‘a gentleman’s sport’. Well, not all of us are gentlemen, maybe more like gentlequeers…”

Submitted by M, the model and photographer

“I caught a separate personality in the uncanny lighting of my washroom.”

Submitted by Josh /Joshie, the model and photographer

You can call me… Corey

I identify as… both/and.

As far as third-person pronouns go, … xhe (pronounced like che, but kind of with a sibilant “s” sound. Derived from Castellano.)

I’m attracted to… both/and.

When people talk about me, I want them to… learn something about anything.

I want people to understand… themselves.

About Corey
I’ve lived in Spain, and I’ve seen a lot of Europe.
I’ve been skydiving, base jumping, and hang gliding.
I love to be outside.
I feel at one with nature when I’m kayaking.
I’m really active and I hate to sit around.
If I’m not working, I’m working on a project.
Woodworking.
I’ve built some guitars, next I’ll try a cello.
Speaking of instruments, I can play a lot of them.
I garden.
I cook.
I’m the most detail oriented doodler you’ll ever meet.
I’m a sucker for elegant lines, luxurious fabrics, and rich leathers,
which inevitably makes me a shoe whore.

» Define yourself. «

You can call me… Reneta Scian, Reneta, or Renee for short.

I identify as… a woman.

As far as third-person pronouns go, … I prefer female pronouns, her, she, or my name.

I’m attracted to… primarily androgynous and masculine females, but I find femme girls cute too.  Transmen, as long as they treat me like a lady. I like cute boys, and ironically find rugged men pretty hot, though I don’t know if I’d ever date one.  Other transwomen are attractive to me on as well.  I am effectively attracted to people who take the traditional male role in the relationship, which I refer to as the lead role.  It’s just what I am happy with and has nothing to do with gender.

When people talk about me, I want them to… not judge me for being different.  I want them to see that I am a woman for regardless of the things that make me masculinized or feminized, but society has a propensity to label me with heinous names as though I am a criminal.  They call me a transsexual, a tranny, t-girl, or worse, “A really gender confused man.”  I want them to know, I have never been confused about my gender, but that it is they who are confused about my gender.

I want people to understand… that the icons of masculinity and femininity they covet makes them all look inferior in juxtaposition.  Why covet an impossible to attain Duke Nukem-ish person as the icon of maleness, and a Japanese Pop idol as the icon of femaleness. There are only a handful (less than 1 : 1,000,000) in the world’s population that can even measure up.  It’s ludicrous, and not to mention unfeasible and unhealthy.  We have to love the lives and bodies we have, so expecting us to live up to the gender binary and following such fallacious icons borders on criminal.  Some people need to change their bodies to live a fully functional life, some don’t.  If you don’t, good for you.  Expecting me, however, to play the cards dealt to me from a deck stacked against me is wrong.  Like medical treatments done everyday to make peoples lives better, conforming my body to my true gender identity is just as important.

About Reneta
I am me.  I can’t not be me.  Most of my life I was in a fight between myself, and what the world would allow me to be.  I am a kind and gentle spirit faced with a world of hatred and hostility for me.  I guess, some days I am waiting for a knight in shining armor to come and rescue me. If I was a fantasy character, I would be both the heroine and the damsel in distress (most likely because I have noble intentions and the grace of a boulder rolling down a hill).  I can be a klutz, and if you see me going more than 5 minutes without limping, tripping, spilling, falling or bumping something then you have witnessed a miracle. 

If I was a superheroine, I’d be the one to swoop in to save the day, tweak my ankle upon landing and topple into a Starbucks, only stopping when a dense enough object resists my forward momentum.  I am a nerd, and a geek, but I am by far socially inept, I just tend to remain anonymous.  I am the girl who sits in the corner and has people approach her.  I like flattery, but it’ll get you no where, actions speak louder than words.  I can tell more about you from your eyes, lips and face, your body language, and demeanor than I can from anything you say in the first 5 minutes.  I am an empath, you can’t hide your feelings from me, but you can hide why your feeling it.

» Define yourself. «

Submitted by Julie

Someone wrote…

Being able to pencil “genderqueer” into the “other” section for gender was like having an anvil lifted off my stomach. I didn’t even know that I felt the weight until it was gone.

What’s your experience?

And what are you thinking about gender right now?

You can call me… Bree.

I identify as… someone who loves equally and thinks that no matter your gender, size, shape, hair color, tattoos, or what you consider yourself, you’re perfect.

As far as third-person pronouns go, … IDK!!

I’m attracted to… femm girls who are true to themselves, and are not skinny little girls. I like my women healthy :]

When people talk about me, I want them to… think of me as someone who is the best they can be. Someone who is always honest and true to who they really are.

I want people to understand… no matter what you see on the outside of me, I am equal and will always welcome them with open arms!!

About Bree
I am a honest and truthful person, who just wants to be the one people rely on when they are alone and need a friend. I am me, I don’t care what anyone thinks or labels me as. 

» Define yourself. «

Submitted by CJ, the model and photographer

“this is me. people call me cassidy but my REAL name is CJ. i bind myself when nobodys watching and smile when people ‘mistake’ me for a boy. no one knows about these feelings.”

Dezu asks…

I was recently working a position that required me to speak to people over the phone. At one point I addressed someone as “ma’am,” only to realize they were biologically male. After stumbling over myself apologizing, it hit me that it was kind of ludicrous and hypocritical for me to be using “sir” and “ma’am,” with how much I try not to make any assumptions (especially binary) about people’s gender.

That being the context, does anyone in this lovely community have any ideas or experiences relating to circumventing this issue, either with alternatives to these binary/presumptuous terms, or simply a way around having to use terms like that at all?

Please post your response in the comments below.

» Ask Genderfork «

Submitted by Danelle, the model

“I did this photo shoot for an assignment on the stereotypes of dykes; here I am representing a lot of those stereotypes such as style, tattoos, short hair, the overall look. This is how I dress, this is me, but I’m poking fun at how I am guilty of being a stereotype.”

Submitted by antoinette elizabeth, the model and photographer

Someone wrote…

I just want to be accepted for being myself. Is that too much to ask?

What’s your experience?

And what are you thinking about gender right now?

Submitted by Mr. Who, the model and photographer

You can call me… Nora

I identify as… Lord knows. Definitely not a lady, though that is how everyone knows me.

As far as third-person pronouns go, … whatever works. As a Pisces, I don’t really like to step on anyone’s toes, so I probably won’t correct you (although my mother definitely will).

I’m attracted to… feminine women who are a little older than me. Masculine men hold a certain glamour for me as well, but I think I just want to look like them.  Belief in religion, small stature, baking ability, and nice hair definitely draw me to a person. Laughing at my jokes/making me laugh will really snare me, as will hiding in my shoulder when a movie scares you. Anything that validates my masculinity (complimenting my strength, telling me how handsome my jacket looks, etc) makes me like someone a lot too. Also, confidence is hot, and definitely an underrated quality. When I tell you how good you look, I mean it and you should own it, not shrug it off.

When people talk about me, I want them to… not really pay attention to how I look (unless you think I’m cute, then go ahead!). It is so much easier for me to be a real person in public when I am not constantly worrying about how people are perceiving me in the moment. I hate feeling like I have to justify or explain myself. I want people to be genuine with me, because I always try my hardest to do the same.

I want people to understand… that not everything revolves around which bathroom I choose to enter. The world is a little harder for me to navigate, and I am not asking for sympathy or anger when I tell you to watch my back when we go in the women’s changing room at Target, I really just need you to stop the sales lady from evicting me as I try on my Levi’s. I will tell you if I want to change my pronouns, so stop asking.

About Nora
I am a politically moderate, Christian, 19-year-old gay female who does almost anything possible to deny their sex. I think that there are good Catholics out there (I am one), and that sometimes people who you think will be real jerks are actually sort of sweet and genuine (I am one of those too). I want to be an Army doctor, and I hate that my obvious gender identity issues might bar me from helping people that I believe really deserve it. I think that one day I will make a really great parent, and my father will make a really great grandparent, and I want to have kids as soon as I am in a stable situation. I like to think I am pretty interesting, and I wonder if you agree.

» Define yourself. «

Submitted by Chrissie, the model and photographer

Someone wrote…

I feel like I have a public gender and a private gender, and neither one is more or less true than the other.

What’s your experience?

And what are you thinking about gender right now?

Submitted by Eli, the model and photographer

“It’s the military. You have to look the same, act the same, and be the same as everybody else. Uncle Sam doesn’t care how you feel about your body and its relation to society. I’m a Senior Airman in the Air National Guard. I feel invalidated.”

Submitted by Meg/Maxwell, the co-model and photographer