Cape Town, South Africa – Two men are standing in front of me in women’s underwear. They are busy stuffing their bra’s and deciding between each other how large they should make their breasts. One says he likes his breasts small so that men don’t try to grab them. Interesting I thought. Most women I know dream of having larger breasts. Why? As a non-breasted human I can only think it’s for aesthetics, as they look pretty impractical to me once they pass a certain size. And why would one want better aesthetics? Two reasons I can think of are to feel better/more comfortable about oneself, or to help draw attention to oneself – correct me if I’m wrong please ladies! But getting back to the point, here I am with two people in front of me who, if I had not just seen them naked I could have easily believed to be women. They also have the opportunity to decide how much attention they want to bring to themselves, and how comfortable they are with themselves. And the answer is: ‘not that much’ attention, and a ‘very’ comfortable with oneself thank you. Just like any hetero or homosexual person dresses to express something about themselves, these people are too. They are not intentionally going out of their way to make statements, their biology is doing that for them contrasted in a society that decides what is appropriate to look like.

Its only minutes before the pageant starts and I recommend to the ‘ladies’ to not let men grab their breasts, and do what they have to to prevent that infliction. After all, isn’t that what any woman would want?

Its Gay Pride time again in Cape Town which translates to a very colourful 2 weeks of fun, self-expression and activism. It kicked off on Saturday with the Mr and Miss Gay Pride Beauty Pageant which was incredible. Its come a long way since I first photographed it in 2006 in the back streets of Bonteheuwel. The event is now professionally choreographed, hosted in a prime venue, and all of this is before we start talking about the quality of the contestants. If you’ve never taken part before, and regardless of your sexual preference I suggest you check out the Pride Calendar (http://www.capetownpride.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=6&Itemid=14) and prepare yourself for an experience like none other. Following is a very rough edit of pictures I’m still sifting through. I thought I’d show a few backstage shots since the performance shots would do insult to the actual event. Enjoy!