Tia Devine 

I met Tia in college while I was at a drag show at Hamburger Mary's. I was instantly drawn to her confidence, strong demeanor and sex appeal. We met for coffee and got to know one another. After that, I started photographing her. Tia is a transgender woman living in Orlando, Fla. In 2011, she performed regularly at drag shows across Florida. As a child, she used to wear her mother's high-heels, try on her clothes and play with makeup when her mother wasn't home. Tia first came out as gay man but later decided to become who she felt she always was - a woman. We fell out of contact for years, but in 2017, I reached back out to her and started to photograph her again. We constantly go in and out of each other's life. But her story will always be an ongoing story for me. She was the first person to trust me to tell her story, and because of that, I will always consider her a friend.