Looking for the young Chinese next door

Photojournalist Desmond Lim talks about his experience working on a story about Chinese nationals in Singapore

By Desmond Lim
Photojournalist
deslim@sph.com.sg

 

1) How did you come up with the idea for the project?

The idea for the project came about through our usual photographers' informal idea-storming sessions. People often ask where ideas come from. But really, it's hard to pinpoint because sometimes ideas bounce around so much we end up with a mishmash of everyone's inputs. As far as I remember for this project, it started out with my interest in doing something about young people in Singapore, particularly about the children of rich expats here. My colleague, Samuel, then suggested focusing on young Chinese in Singapore and we decided to go

Gone Too Soon

Alphonsus Chern explores the length of the KTM railway tracks in Singapore

By Alphonsus Chern
Photojournalist
achern@sph.com.sg

 

One of the things I really wanted to do in my teens was to walk the length of the KTM railway tracks from Woodlands to Tanjong Pagar.

It seemed, at that time, a daunting task.

The discomfort of walking on large pieces of gravel for over twenty kilometres, the searing noon-day heat, and the possibility of getting hit by a train coming round a bend were thoughts that made me put aside this challenge.

The masters of KTM Bukit Timah

Alphonsus Chern reminisces the good old days of the KTM station at Bukit Timah

By Alphonsus Chern
Photojournalist
achern@sph.com.sg

 

I remember well enough the pride and conviction in Mr Hashim Muji's voice when I spoke to him way back in 2007.   “How long do you think the trains will run through Singapore?” I asked.   Declared the KTM Bukit Timah station master, “Another 900 years!”   Mr Hashim and his family moved from Kelantan to Singapore in the 70s, when his father found a job as a porter at the Tanjong Pagar train terminus.   He himself joined the KTM in 1986 as a goods checker, and

A tragic loss to photojournalism

Michael Sargent remembers Chris Hondros, a photojournalist who was killed in Libya.

By Michael Sargent
Picture Editor
msarge@sph.com.sg

 

Today, I was profoundly saddened to learn I've lost a dear friend and former colleague at Getty Images. Chris Hondros, a soft spoken and articulate professional, passed away doing what he loved most, documenting conflict and strife. A passionate photojournalist, Chris not only cared about the subjects he covered, he cared about those he covered as well, many of whom he stayed in touch with over the years.

Yesterday afternoon, Chris and photojournalist Tim Hetherington, were killed by injuries sustained from a rocket propelled grenade in Misurata, Libya, while covering the plight of the rebel forces there. 

I was both honoured and

The power of pictures

Michael Sargent talks about the emotional effect of pictures over words

By Michael Sargent
Picture Editor
msarge@sph.com.sg

 

There's some debate over the origin of the phrase "A picture is worth a thousand words." Some say it originated from an Emperor of the Xia Dynasty in China about 4,000 years ago and others insist it was the translation of a phrase by Napoleon Bonaparte, implying the same thing. Regardless, it's a phrase that holds many truths, as demonstrated over the years in visual reporting, i.e. photojournalism.

The most recent examples of this have been from the earthquake and Tsunami in Japan. What words could possibly describe what the pictures and video footage have shown us from this catastrophic disaster?

Telling the Budget in Lego

Lim Wui Liang recounts his experience on producing a video about Budget 2011 in Lego

By Lim Wui Liang
Executive Photojournalist
lwliang@sph.com.sg

 

When it comes to Budget coverage, the way it is done has always been more or less the same each year.

Photographers would take portrait pictures of Singaporeans from all walks of life, to go with stories on how the measures would affect the newsmakers. The artists will take the facts and figures and transform them into infographics or diagrams.

The end product is a package that is several pages thick.

Hard climb for a harbour pilot

Ashleigh Sim shadows a female harbour pilot up a shaky rope ladder onto a container ship, and finds the big climb a small challenge compared to the responsibilities that lie ahead

By Albert Sim
Executive Photojournalist
alsim@sph.com.sg

 

The slippery rope ladder seemed to stretch towards infinity ahead of me.

It was raining, but thankfully the sea wasn't rough. I had expected worse.

The camera equipment in my backpack started to weigh heavily on my mind.

Have you read your camera manual?

Michael Sargent on understanding your camera inside out

By Michael Sargent
Picture Editor
msarge@sph.com.sg

 

Digital photography has made it possible to take some very good quality pictures with rather inexpensive, compact cameras, and even hand phones. While these devices are capable of taking technically sound pictures and video, the benefits don't really shine, if you don't fully understand the capabilities of the device, or how it works.

A case in point. My in-laws were recently in town and to no surprise, we found ourselves at the Night Safari. One of the attractions was a performance by the nocturnal creatures; animals that use the cover of darkness to hunt and explore their surroundings. "Please, no flash

Choosing to ride

Kevin Lim on making the choice to ride motorcycles

By Kevin Lim
Photojournalist
cplim.k@gmail.com

 

My mother's elder brother would be 60 this year.

He would have witnessed his daughter’s marriage and later, the birth of twin grandsons, but he died at 23 in a motorcycle accident after fracturing his skull when he tried to avoid a suddenly errant pedestrian.

His daughter - my cousin - was not even born then.

Cherish your health

Neo Xiaobin photographs a breast cancer patient, and reflects on personal health

By Neo Xiaobin
Photojournalist
xiaobinn@sph.com.sg

 

I never met my paternal grandmother.

She was 50 when she passed away in 1979 due to advanced breast cancer. She was uneducated and the family struggled with finances.

So, she quietly did what she thought best.