Rob Woodcox's latest collection of photos have captivated viewers around the world. This earnest, kind hearted explorer from a small town near Detroit is taking his photography and using it to fight the good fight in a world full of noise.

As a dedication to victims of universal queer hate crimes, Woodcox uses his photographs as a solidarity stance to symbolize his belief in love and equality.

These photographs were intended to encourage people to recognize the interconnectivity between one another.

His fine art images have been featured on dozens of magazines and media sites, but what makes Woodcox’s work unique is his ability to make viewers question where the subjects come from by incorporating “strange or interesting elements.” These elements are inspired by real-life experiences and dreams. There will be more inspired photographs to come as Woodcox is currently on a 3-month tour around the 5 continents.

When discussing why photography stood out to him among other various forms of art, he says “Photography feels either like a fluke or destiny. I had no idea why I was so determined to try it when I entered college- I had never even handled a DSLR camera. Perhaps it was my love for art without talent for painting or drawing. I wanted to try something that would allow me to express myself more readily than those art forms.” If you noticed he prefers to shoot portraits, there is a reason for that too. He believes that portraiture takes photography to the next level because it allows for a more captivating story to be told.

With the title “What Are We Becoming?” photos like the one above truly speak to Woodcox’s sole purpose of photography.

“My purpose in photographing is to share my deepest truths, my most authentic self with the world. Being an artist is like a political act against common culture and doing what is expected; I have grown tired of our corrupt society and politics and I think sharing a brighter version of how life could be through my art is the best way to respond without contributing to the negative culture.”

While society may be overrun with electronic devices and the age of technology has caused us all to collect and connect online, it’s important to give our eyes a break from the screen and our mind a rest from overused unhelpful social media.

Building upon creating a brighter future, Woodcox shares his ideals about social justice issues around the globe, how it’s affecting us, and what he’s doing about it.

“I believe we are all connected and share similar experiences, no matter what our backgrounds. Everyone needs resources to survive or thrive, and we all want love in some form. I’ve been so fortunate to experience the beauty of humanity in 48 US states and 18 countries thus far, and everywhere I am greeted in different ways, yet with the same longing for inclusion and recognition. Social justice is common sense – everyone deserves to be treated equally and with respect.  The fact that people are segregated based on race, religion, gender, sexual preference, nationality, is a crime heavily thanks to corrupt governments and societies not supporting their diverse communities.”

Woodcox doesn’t beat around the bush when talking about subjects that are relevant, and most importantly need to be discussed in order to be changed!

“I think if most people were asked to directly hurt someone, they wouldn’t, but being disconnected through distance, voting systems, and the internet makes it easier for people to harm others with their words and political actions. My photos are a small way for me to share my ideas and try to bridge the gap between different communities; I’ve built such a large and diverse community behind my work, and perhaps sharing aspects of one community will help a different community understand better their differences and similarities, and will hopefully inspire others to accept each other regardless.”

If you’re interested in seeing more of Woodcox’s work, make sure to check his Flickr profile! He is also wonderful enough to share the knowledge in a few useful tutorials which will be shared via Flickr, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc.