Landyn Pan Photography

Landyn Pan, He/Him/His, Trans. Born in China, Raised in Seattle, Currently Living in NYC. I post only original photography.

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Trans Adam & Eve

Photo by Landyn Pan and Katie Nishida

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I'm glad I made the decision to participate in the Women's March at our nation's Capitol on Jan 21st. In all honesty, I was still frustrated by the lack of Black Lives Matter, anti-Islamophobic, and trans-inclusive signage, and no discussion about how more than half America’s white women voted for Trump. So I decided to spend the majority of my time meeting and photographing children (majority of whom made their own signs), and these are some shots I got of the messages they shared!

Photos by Landyn Pan.

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Awkwardly fumbling through the process of unlearning all that white supremacy has taught me to believe. One day, I'll finally blossom into myself and get to hang with the cool kids. As for today, at least I'm no longer attracted to white women with bad politics. Thank Brown Jesus for that! Self portrait inspired by my transformative summer building new community in LA.

Photo by Landyn Pan, assisted by Rose Mackenzie.

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We Stole a Spaceship and Now We (Don’t?) Regret Everything: a story about never fitting in and never wanting to.

Photos by Landyn Pan. Shot at Coyote’s Flying Saucer Retrievals and Repairs (Jacumba, CA). @spookybanana

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Some people at my school wrapped yarn around two trees. Looks kinda cool.

Photo by Landyn Pan.

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Awesome sketch of @spookybanana based on our photoset: http://landyn-pan.tumblr.com/post/135364504617/mixing-traditional-chinese-clothes-with-current

By Marvel storyboard revisionist Alex Chiu @chiumonster! Thanks so much, we love it!

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“ This board is a mix of labels that I’ve given myself, and labels others have placed on me. I have a love-hate relationship with all of them. Labels are inherently limiting- they force us to section off aspects of our humanity into tiny, appetizing parcels for others to chew on. But my labels have liberated me. They let me communicate who I am.”

Photo by Landyn Pan.

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An innovative, independently run literary & arts journal dedicated to the electric.

Come read about what goes into my photography concepts and my thoughts on androgyny, the trans masculine community, and more! Thanks Noah and Winter Tangerine for interviewing me.

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“No matter who you are, just be you.” -Max Mandel

Photo by Landyn Pan

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UPDATE:

Big, big congrats to my friend Moon Mandel for coming out as transfem a few days ago! Her words:

Today is Valentine's Day, a day dedicated to love, but a day in which somehow romantic love is tragically stressed over self-love, leading to an overwhelming pull towards needing to find love in someone else. Against this pattern, in an act of extreme self-love I'm going to be honest with you all and with myself -- possibly more honest than I've ever been before.

I've spent the majority of the 21 years I've been gifted on this Earth in a fog, even at the zenith of happiness, all of my experiences were overcast with the fact that I felt unable to connect with the skin I was born into, incapable of showing myself pure and unconditional love. I felt trapped, my self-image and my self-worth nonexistent -- my reflection an unrecognizable shadow capable solely of conjuring apathy and despair.

Today I made a choice; a choice that I've wrestled with thousands of times, a choice to leave all of that haze behind and to show the world (and myself) the real me. So, right now, in this specific cross-section of the Internet, this is me coming out to you -- I'm transgender, and never have I been happier and more able to honestly say that I love myself. It is with such honor that I introduce you to the next chapter of my life; Moon. Preferred gender pronouns; she/her/her's // they/them/their's.

To everyone who's helped me along my life journey, even those who I've only talked to once or momentarily shared a passing glance, thank you so much for all of your incredible energy and compassion. I know that the road ahead of me is going to be a difficult walk, but it's the voyage I was born for.

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Hey Landyn love your awesome work! You mentioned you were trans, just wondering if you document your transition? I'm an Asian trans and I find that there's not much representation of Asian trans especially of the Chinese ethnicity. What are your thoughts on this?

First of all, thanksfor your compliment!

Secondly, Iunfortunately am not the best at regularly documenting my transition, but Ihave a few things on my personal Instagram @theLanpan.

You’re definitely notthe only one who feels that there’s a lack of representation of Asian trans (orany POC trans) people among the online trans communities. Naturally, most ofthe popular trans bloggers/YouTubers are white, very masculine, cis-passing(sometimes stealth) binary trans men who have cis femme girlfriends who theylook super heteronormative with. I can’t really look at their transitionresults as a prediction of mine because they look too different from me and I couldnever listen to their social tips or coming out tips because my parents weren’traised in their culture.

The fact that they arethe only popular trans bloggers also gives a real disappointingly narrow viewof what transness and transmasculinity is. This is part of the reason why I’vestarted to appear in so much of my own photography recently.

Soon though, I really,really want to do a project on transmasculinity and how different people fitinto it and navigate it. It is nowhere near concrete, but I would want toexplore what masculinity means and is defined by different trans masc people.And it’d go into how to deal with it in a healthy way. This project would beintended for all of us who aren’t white, who don’t want to fit into heteroculture, or want to be cis-passing and want to find other ways of validatingour identities that don’t include completely assimilating into cis male cultureand white masculinity. So…stay tuned for that sometime in the 2016 year!

[slow-sweet-sour]

For the Anon—

Here’s a list of some people through whom you might find inspiration/representation/encouragement. I gathered their names here because they have literally kept me alive through feeling I am not alone (I am a Chinese trans boy, huzzah). When I came out I thought I was the only trans Asian boy in the world and I was so lonely. So I hope you and the people I have named here do not mind me pointing you to them. Representation matters so so much to me. (Disclaimer: If you are on this list and don’t want to be, let me know and I will edit the post. Or if you want to be added to the list lol. Another disclaimer—I don’t know what a lot of you specifically identify or don’t identify as, I went by your pronouns and bios on your blogs. I recognize I cast a pretty wide net here.)

So here are some rad trans Asian people, as well as some Asian peeps might not identify as trans but challenge the gender binary with their existence/how they present. Show them some love and support!

On Tumblr:

Lee || @lovinglee

Leo || @isupersheng

A.L. || @undoing-gender

Lea || @omgleopolitan

Kylie || @transgirlnextdoor

Milo || @trangst

Sunny || @sxn-ny

Sunny and Izzie || @sunzie

Tobias || @rebuildtobias

Nate || @n8-h

Airin || @airinyung

Allen || @blugreytiger

Julian || @addictedtofittedsheets

Zhane || @el-zhane

Kamini || @mahakami

Chelsea || @chelseaxchang

Rory || @smallgayworld

Jasmine || @mittens-the-kittens

Ray || @bombchelle

Erwin || @erwinobviously

Chico Chi || @thisischi

Schuyler || @pinkmantaray

Cooper || @photographicalanalysisoflife

Alexis || @boi-haired

Jin Jin || @homosexual-homosexuwhale

Kay || @brownroundboi

Eli || @iamtheidolqueen

Airin || @airinyung

+ @thesacenatividad posts a lot of awesome pictures.

On Instagram:

Alex || @alexle_asianist

Elliot || @sirmoof

Yusei || @yusei_power

Emet || @archetypal_antithesis

Emery || @emerysans

Skylar || @mr.transtastic

Ethan || @imethanw

Evie || @transician

Jes || @jesthekid

Jordan || @luckypandacub

Kaden || @catlikeacat

Kendall || @kendallthehuman

Leon || @leoneliaswu

Nathaniel || @natehoang

Skylar || @sophie870222

@810sky

@x1521x

@twitchlikeme

@ryudiculous

… @landyn-pan if you don’t mind reblogging so the Anon sees? Thank you!

Oh and Landyn thank you for existing, for your work and your photography and your style. I think you’re amazeballs.

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Road tripped to Salvation Mountain! Well worth the 3 hour drive.

Photos by Landyn Pan

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Hey Landyn love your awesome work! You mentioned you were trans, just wondering if you document your transition? I'm an Asian trans and I find that there's not much representation of Asian trans especially of the Chinese ethnicity. What are your thoughts on this?

First of all, thanksfor your compliment!

Secondly, Iunfortunately am not the best at regularly documenting my transition, but Ihave a few things on my personal Instagram @theLanpan.

You’re definitely notthe only one who feels that there’s a lack of representation of Asian trans (orany POC trans) people among the online trans communities. Naturally, most ofthe popular trans bloggers/YouTubers are white, very masculine, cis-passing(sometimes stealth) binary trans men who have cis femme girlfriends who theylook super heteronormative with. I can’t really look at their transitionresults as a prediction of mine because they look too different from me and I couldnever listen to their social tips or coming out tips because my parents weren’traised in their culture.

The fact that they arethe only popular trans bloggers also gives a real disappointingly narrow viewof what transness and transmasculinity is. This is part of the reason why I’vestarted to appear in so much of my own photography recently.

Soon though, I really,really want to do a project on transmasculinity and how different people fitinto it and navigate it. It is nowhere near concrete, but I would want toexplore what masculinity means and is defined by different trans masc people.And it’d go into how to deal with it in a healthy way. This project would beintended for all of us who aren’t white, who don’t want to fit into heteroculture, or want to be cis-passing and want to find other ways of validatingour identities that don’t include completely assimilating into cis male cultureand white masculinity. So...stay tuned for that sometime in the 2016 year!

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ive been SO obsessed with the modernized chinese outfit concept and i'm so happy i saw your photos that feature that. you're amazing i love your work!

Thank you! If I had more money to buy more authentic Chinese clothes, I’d totally do more of that.

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First photoshoot of 2016!

Photos by Landyn Pan

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hey I hope this doesn't come off weird but you seem like a really cool person to spend time with! also your photography is great and you cover a content not a lot of photographers do so thank you for representing!

Thank you so much! 

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Behind the scenes at my kissing shoot: http://landyn-pan.tumblr.com/post/130177250567/trans-people-have-unique-histories-cultures-and

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Love the work. What is your favorite place to shoot out here in LA? Have you done the doors cave or Topanga ranch?

Thanks! I don’t have a favorite place to shoot around here, but I prefer locations in the middle of the desert to locations within the city. 

I haven’t visited those places, but I might check them out.