Everyday People · Fatherhood · Family · Legacy
Proud Poppas.
Fathers are part of the family record. Their presence deserves to be seen, remembered, and passed forward.
Proud Poppas is a long-running portrait, family, and community project by Tyrone “Zire” McCants documenting active fatherhood, connection, responsibility, guidance, and the relationships fathers build with their children.
Photography and project direction by Tyrone “Zire” McCants · Zire Photography and Graphics
Why Proud Poppas
Fatherhood is more than being present in the photograph.
It is care. Guidance. Protection. Patience. Accountability. Showing up again tomorrow.
The portraits create a visual record, but the larger project has always been about what fathers say, what children experience, and how family memory is built over time.
Portraits + Reflections
Fathers and their children.
Six portraits. Six ways of describing what active fatherhood looks like from inside a family.
Ed with Jacob
Providing care and helping a child learn and grow.
Michael & Michelle
Setting a good example through his own choices.
Gaby, Justin & Matthew
Supporting his children as they pursue their dreams.
Ronald & Tachelle
Being emotionally and mentally engaged, as well as physically present.
Kris with Rianna & Cloe
Practicing patience and valuing the simple moments.
Joel with Jaia
Recognizing a child’s need for his love and protection.
The Family Record
Keep the moments you cannot repeat.
A child grows. A familiar laugh changes. The way a small hand fits inside a larger one becomes a memory.
A photograph gives a family something to return to: a face, an embrace, a relationship, a moment they recognize as their own.
Project History · Brooklyn, 2011
From portraits to community.
In 2011, the Brooklyn Borough President recognized Proud Poppas with a proclamation honoring its work with fathers and families.
The project expanded beyond the portraits into workshops, mentoring, conversations, and shared family experiences.
Discuss a fatherhood or family project →Related Story · Publish · TWIHHP · BLINK NY
Remembering Pumpkinhead
Culture is something we share.
A father and son share a moment beside the stage. The larger feature follows Brooklyn MC Robert “Pumpkinhead” Diaz through performance, family, and the community carrying his memory forward.
Proud Poppas United · New Book
REBUILD.
When a Man Loses Everything but Refuses to Lose Himself
Proud Poppas began by asking men what active fatherhood means. REBUILD carries that conversation forward into what happens when a man is tested by loss, disruption, pressure, grief, financial strain, relationship change, or the need to begin again.
Written by Tyrone “Zire” McCants, the book is a practical field manual built around responsibility, standards, purpose, fatherhood, rebuilding, and the decisions a man makes next.
REBUILD is published through the Proud Poppas fatherhood and legacy work. Amazon pricing may vary at checkout.
Create · Document · Collaborate
Your family has a story of its own.
Tell ZPG who you would like to photograph, what matters to your family, or what kind of fatherhood, community, archive, or cultural project you want to create.
Family Portraits
Plan photographs with fathers, children, and generations together. Share your location, preferred timing, and ideas for the session.
Explore Portrait Sessions →Community Stories
Discuss a portrait, documentary, fatherhood, oral-history, or community project for an organization, family gathering, or cultural initiative.
Discuss a Community Project →Exhibitions & Image Use
Ask about a photograph, proposed exhibition, publication, archive use, or licensing request. Permissions and terms are confirmed after review.
Start an Archive Inquiry →