Ray McEachern has been documenting faces for years. A career photographer shooting everything from engagements to weddings to births, it seemed a dream come true. That was until Ray, born Raylene, turned the lens on himself, and more specifically his gender.
As a transgender man, McEachern has been open about his transition, even marking his coming out with a YouTube video.
His career however, saw a slow decline as clients weren’t as eager to work with “someone who looked like a 17-year old boy,” he says with a laugh.
“I realized I had been afforded a closeness with people, and extra praise when representing as female. I had to reinvent myself, change my branding,” he explains from Random Hearts Studio in the heart of East Van, where his focus is now a combined photography and film project titled Spectrum Documentary, shedding light on those who identify outside of standard gender definitions.
What makes this project different from other documentaries, as awareness about what it means to be transgender grows, is the distinction between gender and sexuality. Separating the two is important because as McEachern says, “this is not just a trans issue, this is a societal issue.”
McEachern began with shooting portraits from participants who wish to contribute their stories to the project, and it is these photos gradually circulating via social media that is garnering interest and getting the word out.
Filming began in January and will continue for a full year, with bi-monthly meetings to discuss the direction of the film, share ideas, and provide a safe space to freely talk and present oneself.
“The aim is to give a face to gender diverse individuals, there is so much beauty in that,” McEachern says. “There is a large scope between male and female and I have an opportunity to have a platform to show this.”
His vision is that this is not just a representation of transgender men and women, because “everyone is valid and the unity of sharing our stories engages people in a conversation. It shouldn’t be scary, or taboo, or even sexual.”
“Gender, sexuality – they each have a spectrum of their own.”
