Mohsin Raza

Mohsin Raza

Based
Lahore, Pakistan
Born
Lahore, Pakistan
Status
Photographer
“For me, timing is everything - one has to be on time to get the real picture.”

Beat

I cover news, sports and features.

One Shot

. Lahore, Pakistan. REUTERS/Mohsin Raza
Azra, 68, looks at her dead pet bird in a cage at her home, which was burnt by a mob two days earlier, in Badami Bagh, Lahore March 11, 2013.
“A mob had torched a Christian neighbourhood. I saw buildings that were totally destroyed and people searching through the debris. I saw Azra, standing near the damaged kitchen of her burnt house. I feel that she was saying to her dead pet: ‘I wish I could have saved you’.”

Profile

When I was young I used to go along with my father to visit a newspaper office and meet his photographer friends. Sitting with my father and watching them process their films and prints I got excited, from then on photography was always on my mind.

There were no specific photography institutes here, so I started learning the basics by visiting local newspapers.

In 1984, then-general Zia ul Haq imposed martial law in Pakistan. People from all walks of life came out to the streets and strongly condemned this coup by starting protest and rallies against it. It was my first assignment.

Covering the 1988 flooding which forced thousands of people to flee their homes left a huge mark on me.

From front page to the spread, I always keep our clients’ needs in mind when pointing my lens.

For me, timing is everything - one has to be on time to get the real picture.

I am where I am because of my mother’s prayers, and she is the person I respect the most.