Love and Equality: The Faces of Same-Sex Marriage is a series of portraits of same-sex couples at home. 

I began this project in January 2007. At that time, Massachusetts was the only state in the US with marriage rights for same-sex couples. Since then, over 18,000 couples have been married in Massachusetts and thousands more have married in Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire, Iowa, New York, and Washington D.C. There are advocates fighting to legalize same-sex marriage in states across the nation, and on May 9th, 2012, President Obama made history by declaring that he supports marriage for same-sex couples. Progress is being made, but there are also people fighting against same-sex marriage. Most recently, the state of North Carolina voted to amend their constitution to define marriage solely as a union between a man and a woman. 

These portraits show same-sex couples living their lives just as opposite-sex couples do, in their own homes with their children and pets. The families in these photos allowed me to go into their homes and reveal their worlds. My hope is that getting to know these couples through these intimate portraits will illustrate that same-sex marriage poses no threat to traditional marriage and that marriage equality is a right worth fighting for.

This summer, I will be exhibiting this body of work at the Yellow Peril Gallery in Providence, RI from June 14th to July 15th. I will also be producing a postcard book to accompany the exhibition. I'm raising funds to help cover the costs of printing and framing the photographs and producing the book. 

Thank you to my husband, my family, and my friends for supporting me and this project over the years. I couldn't have done this without you! And a great big thank you to the Yellow Peril Gallery for giving me this wonderful opportunity.

Oh, and that fantastic music was composed specifically for this video by my husband, Ryan Vernon.