LOS ANGELES, CA- We live in a time when photography and the tools that make images are so ubiquitous that they’ve become the dominant form of communication. This accessibility is both a gift and a burden. On one hand, everyone now has the means to tell their own story, to document and share their experience instantly with the world. On the other, the sheer volume of images we create has diluted the impact of any single photograph. In a landscape flooded with billions of images, it can be difficult for an image to hold our attention, let alone leave a lasting emotional mark.
Believe it or not, there was once a time when a single photograph could define an era, a movement, or a moment of reckoning. However, with the constant stream of content we are bombarded with, that’s increasingly rare. But with Battle of La Migra, Nate manages to do exactly that. These images cut through the noise; they carry weight, urgency, and presence. They remind us that photography still has the power to bear witness, to confront, to provoke, and to endure.
Battle of La Migra situates itself firmly within the political and social climate of our current moment, as our nation is experiencing democratic erosion and we teeter on the edge of permanent authoritarian rule. Nate turns his lens toward the Anti-ICE Protests in Los Angeles during the summer of 2025, not as an outsider, but as an embedded observer navigating the heat, tension, and humanity of the streets. His photographs push beyond static documentation—they pulse and throb like a heartbeat. They capture motion, emotion, and atmosphere with a raw immediacy that combines both the visual language of reportage and the kinetic energy of his concert photography.
There’s a charged rhythm to these images: smoke, blurred movement, faces caught between defiance and exhaustion. But alongside the chaos of resistance, there’s tenderness and humanity—the small gestures of solidarity and care that reveal a community’s resilience. Nate’s sensitivity to these contrasts is what gives his work staying power. He doesn’t romanticize the struggle, nor does he sensationalize the violence. Instead, he shows us what it means to be there in the middle of it all, camera in hand, eyes open, unflinching.
Photography has always been called upon to meet the moment, to help us see more clearly the world as it is. Battle of La Migra does just that. It’s both a document and an act of resistance, a visual record that insists on being seen and remembered. In a time when so many images flicker past us and disappear, Nate’s photographs stay with you. They demand that you look longer, and that you not look away.
Nathan Ross’ Photo Exhibition, THE BATTLE OF LA MIGRA will be shown October 11th at El Callejon Gallery on October 11th from 5-10PM. It is free to the public.
New Nathan Ross’ portfolio HERE.
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