Arizona Photojournalist of the Year

Michael Chow, The Arizona Republic

This is the sixth time Michael Chow has been named Arizona Photojournalist of the Year. He has been a finalist for the award 13 times and also has been named the National Press Photographers Association Region 10 Photographer of the Year.  

      Chow, 40, has been a staff photographer for The Arizona Republic and late Phoenix Gazette since 1989. 

The POY judges, the photo staff of the Charlotte Observer, called Chow’s portfolio “a clear winner. It led off with a very strong story (Confronting Death). One judge said, ‘This was the only story that made me gasp, that I got an emotional charge from.’ Judges also thought The Minutemen story was a different approach to another side of the immigration controversy.

Singles in this portfolio were also strong, with no weak images. The key aspect of this folio was good storytelling throughout in both singles and stories.”

      A graduate of San Jose State University's photojournalism program, Chow briefly worked for the Tacoma News Tribune.  He is married to Republic photographer Cheryl Evans and they have three kids: Brandon, 7, Samantha, 4, and Tyler, nearly 5 months.

First runner-up

Pat Shannahan, The Arizona Republic

Pat Shannahan, 28, has been a staff photojournalist at The Arizona Republic for five years. He has been named Photographer of the Year twice, including last year.

Judges had high praise for Stemming the Tide, Shannahans’ story about immigration. The images were different than ones they'd seen before, judges said.

“Overall, this portfolio was well edited, with excellent singles,” judges wrote.

Before joining The Republic he was the chief photographer at The Vicksburg Post in Vicksburg, Mississippi. He graduated from ASU in 1999.

Second runner-up

Mark Henle, The Arizona Republic

Mark Henle, 49, has been a staff photographer for The Arizona Republic and the late Phoenix Gazette since 1983. He was named Arizona Photographer of the Year in 1990.

Judges  said they were “impressed with the stories (Polygamy and Breaking the Silence) in Henle’s portfolio. “The story ideas were unique, and the photographer did an excellent job of in-depth reporting in the images,” they wrote

Henle started his photography career at the age of 14, working for his family’s bi-weekly newspaper in Marshall, MN. He majored in economics at South Dakota State University and interned with the National Geographic Society. He and his wife, Marcy, live in Tempe. They have three grown children.