General Work Samples
Visual Journalist
directory
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Seven Samples
Mingson Lau poses for a photo atop Piestewa Peak.
Photos For: The Arizona Republic/azcentral.com Stories By: azcentral staff
From 2022 to 2023, I worked on multiple assignments for The Arizona Republic/azcentral.com, covering the Phoenix metro housing crisis. Unaffordable housing, ineffective housing programs, homelessness and hotter summers were themes that permeated the area. Most memorable was the intimate opportunity I had to photograph "The Zone" just days before the start of its removal. Temperatures that afternoon reached the 90s. Phoenix recorded its hottest summer in 2023, with 54 consecutive days of 110 degrees Fahrenheit or higher.
RESPONSIBILITIES: Photography
This classroom photo assignment documenting a Phoenix shelter cat inspired an ongoing personal project explaining how cats colonized the city. Arizona's warm climate allows cats to breed year-round, leading to a proliferation of strays in the valley. I am developing a video explaining the urban cat ecosystem of feral, stray, and house cats and the intricate network of initiatives supporting and rescuing them.
RESPONSIBILITIES: Photography, videography, video editing, reporting
Arizona Makers: Didgeridoo-makers use local agave in their staple product
Multimedia Projects For: Arizona Highways, The Arizona Republic/azcentral.com
Brad and Wendy Evans discuss their online didgeridoo business, Endless Breath Didges, which uses local, sustainably-sourced agave.
This piece was part of a multimedia story for Arizona Highways (involving text, photos and video) on how makers use "making" as a form of occupational therapy to help with the likes of stress, depression, alcoholism, and TBI. Written story here.
RESPONSIBILITIES: Photography, videography, video editing, reporting, feature writing