“What does it mean to go into cultures that you don’t exist in, and tell those stories? And how do we have a critical relationship so that we learn?” -Laverne Cox

I’ve been pondering the words of actress and activist Laverne Cox for awhile. Even before I had ever heard them, this thought was on my mind. How do I create an all-inclusive environment with my photography? What does it mean to be able to tell the stories of people and places, when I myself do not exist in their culture or spaces? How can I do this work and create a space for allyship? What do I have to still learn? How careful do I have to be with identities and faces on social media when filming protests? What does it mean to be welcomed into these communities?

First of all, it’s an absolute privilege to be invited to the table at all. I acknowledge my privilege when I am invited to events or am able to sit on the sidelines of a Pride parade, protest, or rally and photograph communities that I am not necessarily a member of. It’s an honor to be able to use my platform to fight for the rights of LGBTQ teachers in the Seattle Archdiocese. It’s privilege to be able to post about BLACK LIVES MATTER protests and rallies and not have to worry about retaliation from my primarily liberal neighbors in my suburban Seattle neighborhood. I didn’t earn the privilege to tell these stories through blood, sweat, tears, or toil. I didn’t actually earn anything at all. I hope to earn trust, and I hope to be able to give this and future stories the justice they deserve. If I don’t, I hope I am corrected and given the opportunity to do better next time. I am so grateful that this beautiful person, Bradford Weber, trusted me enough to help me tell this story, and hopefully many more to come.

The first time ever I saw your face…

It wasn’t until June 2019 that I got to attend my first Pride as a photographer. With my best friend and our two boys in tow, we made the trek to downtown Seattle in our rainbow attire and “Free Mom Hugs” shirts. I knew it would be a wonderful day, but I had no idea that I would fall head-over-heels for a female impersonator unlike any other I’d ever seen before. And I had no idea that meeting this Queen would change the trajectory of my art forever. We parked and headed towards the start of the parade, made our way to the Downtown Macy’s storefront, and would eventually claim our bit of cement for the day. It was on 4th Avenue that I first saw her (him).He was the most stunning vision in sequins and jewels for days. His skin was literally dripping in diamonds and his head was adorned with the most beautiful fascinator I had ever seen. Long peacock feathers gathered atop a veritable crown that molded itself perfectly to his Daenarys Targaryan wig. His makeup, flawless. His gown, regal. He was confident, proud, and surrounded by a crowd of lenses and iPhone flashes. Everything disappeared. The city noise, the crowd, the flashes. I had tunnel vision, and all I could see was this muse before me. I was able to work my way into the crowd and ended up perfectly positioning myself to take a glorious full body shot, when click, nothing. In my negligence and haste that morning, I had forgotten to pack an SD card. My opportunity was lost. My shot never fired off.

I dropped my boy off with my friends and hightailed it to the nearest Target to purchase a replacement SD card. But as I ran the city blocks to and from the store, I could not stop beating myself up over that missed photo that I had convinced myself was my photographic purpose of the day. Everyone has been here. You are so ready to light the world on fire, but you forgot your torch. Forgetting my SD card was that moment. I licked my novice wounds and was determined to enjoy the rest of the day. The costumes, the dancing, the smiles, the hugs. It was glorious, and it was wonderful to share it with my son who looked on with joy and wonder in his 10-year old eyes. It was in this moment that I decided that Pride would be something that I would take part in every year, in some form or another. And then, my bestie smacked me on the arm as my vision rode by atop his yellow, convertible chariot. I snapped away and thanked the universe for the opportunity to capture the person that stole my heart.

Seattle Pride, June 30, 2019

There’s always that shot that you want to edit as soon as possible when you’ve finished a session or event. You know when you nail something. My Peacock Muse, as I affectionately dubbed him, was that shot for me. I quickly processed the files, threw them on Instagram, and crossed my fingers, hoping that someone, somewhere would stumble across my photos and tag my mystery muse. I googled appropriate LGBTQ hashtags. I used as many hashtags as I was allowed (30): #pride #seattlepride #drag #dragqueen... Everything I could think of that would draw attention to these photos. It happened almost instantly. @Queenritalarue @bradfordweber was placed in the comment section by a good friend of his. Just like that, I as put into contact with this amazingly talented artist, and my obsession with his art just grew from there. Oh my goodness, how on earth did I stumble upon this genius? How did I get this lucky? A huge photography crush was born and I would court him for a year. And in so doing, an unlikely friendship would develop.

THE QUEEN HAS ARRIVED…

In June 2020, I attended an All Black Live Matter march in downtown Seattle with my dear friend and assistant, Ingrid. The protest was similar to all the other protests we had attended before. A panel of speakers gave their reasons and accounting for the protest. They started as they almost always do, by reminding everyone in attendance that they are sitting on stolen and occupied land. That this land belongs to the Duwamish tribe and is named after a great Duwamish chief, Chief Si'ahl. I love that BLM and ABLM protests always start by acknowledging that. One speaker sang like a rock star, and one of them moved me to epiphany.

Movements are not free. Causes need money, time, and talent to take off. Activists need someone to bankroll them so that they can keep fighting. But I am a fledgling professional photographer and a teacher. I don’t have a lot of capitol myself, and I have a family to support. But I also have big dreams. So I contacted Bradford about a photoshoot project that I needed his help with. The deal was simple. This was a model call, but would only include one specific model: Queen Rita LaRue. All the photographs taken would be included in an online gallery and he would be given all the files and a print release. Bradford could use all of these photos in his professional portfolio, on social media platforms, and in print as long as I could use them to market myself and the project we wanted to launch. Bradford and I would create a professional portfolio free of charge. And this would be the catalyst for a full-scale event inviting other members of the LGBTQ entertainment community to a weekend-long, portfolio-building session, free of charge. This is how I would donate my money and my time to a cause so dear to my heart. Bradford agreed to be the face of our project and we made plans.

The days before the shoot were rainy and overcast, but Monday, July 13th had sunshine in the forecast. We met at Juanita Bay Park in Kirkland, Washington at 6:30 pm. When Bradford, aka Queen Rita LaRue stepped out of the car, I knew we were going to have the most wonderful session:

The moment Queen Rita LaRue stepped out of the car.

Bradford Weber is the genius behind Queen Rita LaRue, and I don’t use the term genius lightly. He is a genius. He is a make-up artist, a seamstress, and a hat maker. He creates all of his looks, either through found objects, thrift store purchases, or as he told me, “Give me a Dollar Store and a glue gun, and honey, I can make anything.” And he can. Every hat, every crown, every look is designed by him from start to finish. He’s a beautiful man, even without his makeup. His features are sharp and yet sweet. His voice is gentle and kind, and he can really sing. He loves to sing. He’s incredibly smart and one of the nicest people I have ever met, believing wholeheartedly in that mantra that you attract what you put out into the world. He is gracious, humble, sweet, and yet fierce, confident, and bold. He is a force of old-world glamour and modern sex appeal. And he poses like he was born for fame.

We worked together for weeks prior to the session to curate specific looks. I scoured through LaRue’s instagram and took screenshots of the looks that I was interested in. Bradford sent me photos of looks that he wanted to see in his portfolio. We spoke daily, sometimes multiple times a day. He would send me ideas and videos, and I would send him ideas and thoughts. At this point, we had never officially met in person, but we felt like life-long friends. I told him I wanted a sexy look and a ballgown, and he could choose whatever third look he wanted. He went to work. The genius of a performing drag queen is unreal. There is so much artistry to female impersonation, from costuming, to hair, to makeup. And Branford, though only in his third year of performing in drag, was born for this. He is a prodigy, and he is a true performer. He sent me a selfie of the above look and I was done. That look would automatically become the hero image of our campaign. The second look he let me choose. As I was going through his social media, I fell in love with this gold, strapless ballgown and coat. The last look, I left up to him. The only caveat that Bradford had for me was that we needed to end the session in the water. He wanted beautiful water shots in his portfolio.

The reason we chose Juanita Bay Park and Juanita Beach Park in Kirkland was for the scene changes and access to water. I love shooting in these parks. They are so beautiful and have access to water, open fields, and large trees of so many varieties. There is a lot of green, so that can sometimes be hard to work with, but on this day, right before sunset, every scene was incredibly beautiful and bathed in warm, golden, wonderful light. It was so fun to move from park bench, to open field, to tree-covered bridges, to water all within one area:

Scene changes at Juanita Bay and Juanita Beach Parks. Kirkland, Washington

This was one of the best photoshoots of my life. I have never done anything like this, and I have never taken photos like this before. In the coming weeks, these photos will be used for a Katie Niemer Photography event. We will be inviting people to our portfolio-building event via an online screening process. At this time, we have limited space (10 slots), but will adjust and put forth more dates should the need arise. Look for information to come. I want to thank Bradford Weber for taking a chance on me, for allowing me into his magical world, and for being a part of our creative event. We love you so much, and we are so happy that you are lending your face and your creativity to this project. You are an amazing person and you are going to go so far in life! We can’t wait to watch you fly and succeed.