Highlighting unheard voices through the lens

People scroll through photos for multiple hours a day without realizing the stories behind them. Nico Mendoza, a recent photojournalism graduate of Central Michigan University, has been perfecting the art of telling stories through photos to draw people’s attention to her subjects. Her efforts are clearly paying off as she competed against professional photojournalists throughout Michigan and placed third in Sports Action and second in Multimedia in the 2025 Michigan Press Photo Association (MPPA) Pictures of the Year contest. 

Mendoza chose photojournalism as a major because of the unique stories and experiences photos can tell. In addition, “people can’t argue a photo since it is evidence of something happening.” Mendoza said.  

As part of her photojournalism capstone project, Mendoza found herself at her first-ever CMU wrestling match. In one photo, she captured a collegiate wrestler being held with his head on the ground and his feet in the air. The second wrestler was using all of his strength to get the other to the ground. The photo was selected by the MPPA in recognition of its compelling framing, the focus, and the raw emotion it portrays.  

Mendoza’s path at CMU started with a goal to learn to use photojournalism to spread awareness about segregation and discriminatory policies. By interviewing individuals who had experienced racism and microaggressions, she was able to share their stories through photographs. “I didn’t see a lot of people that looked like me, a person of color struggling with gender identity, and I wanted to represent the shy individuals,” Mendoza said.  

This project culminated in Mendoza’s capstone project for her art minor.  Her multimedia video called “How Color Paints Your World,” with over 30 portraits of people of color and interviews describing their experiences dealing with racism, was awarded second place by the MPPA. Mendoza was inspired by Platon, the Greek photographer, who shot black-and-white stylistic photos.   

Mendoza appreciates the opportunities she received at CMU and looks forward to making more contributions in the world of photojournalism.