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The Changi Camera
Inside Changi and the Thai-Burma Railway.
In THE CHANGI CAMERA, acclaimed author Tim Bowden presents a unique record of one Australian soldier's experience of the fall of Singapore, captivity in Changi and enduring the hell of the Thai-Burma Railway. George Aspinall was a keen photographer and, even in the very worst of conditions, he managed to take photos, process them and so preserve for later generations the reality of incarceration.
Along with George's own memories of those years, Tim Bowden has written a gripping and authoritative overview of what happened in Changi and on the Railway.
This powerful narrative and unique collection of almost one hundred photographs combine to give us a raw and graphic account of just what George and thousands of his fellow Australians endured.
In THE CHANGI CAMERA, acclaimed author Tim Bowden presents a unique record of one Australian soldier's experience of the fall of Singapore, captivity in Changi and enduring the hell of the Thai-Burma Railway. George Aspinall was a keen photographer and, even in the very worst of conditions, he managed to take photos, process them and so preserve for later generations the reality of incarceration.
Along with George's own memories of those years, Tim Bowden has written a gripping and authoritative overview of what happened in Changi and on the Railway.
This powerful narrative and unique collection of almost one hundred photographs combine to give us a raw and graphic account of just what George and thousands of his fellow Australians endured.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 2012
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About the author
Tim Bowden
37 books6 followersTimothy Gibson Bowden was an Australian author, radio and television broadcaster and producer, and oral historian.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
July 22, 2021
This is a book in two parts. The first half describes the unimaginably bad conditions in which POWs were kept after the fall of Singapore; the second half is written by George Aspinall who succeeded in bringing his camera into successive camps and recording some of the everyday lives of the Allied troops.
The photos are sometimes rather faint but the fact that Mr. Aspinall managed to take photos at all is amazing. When he ran out of film, he experimented with xray film that he found in the Singapore warehouse that the prisoners worked to clear out. He also managed to find developing and fixing fluids, again experimenting with quantities and development times until he could produce reasonable prints.
He even took his camera with him to the Thai-Burman railway, hidden in a homemade belt with a pocket in the back. However, when his group was due to return to one of the camps on the Changi peninsula, they were searched by the dreaded Japanese police force. The camera was not found during the first search but Mr. Aspinall was unwilling to take the risk a second time, instead preferring to smash his prized possession and scatter the remains in places of concealment. He did, however, manage to save his negatives and some of his work was used at the Japanese war crimes trial.
This book gives an insight into so many aspects of camp life that are usually ignored in favour of lengthy descriptions of beatings and torture. Here, little space is given over to excessive violence, instead focussing on the measures taken to try and achieve survival.
I thoroughly recommend this work.
The photos are sometimes rather faint but the fact that Mr. Aspinall managed to take photos at all is amazing. When he ran out of film, he experimented with xray film that he found in the Singapore warehouse that the prisoners worked to clear out. He also managed to find developing and fixing fluids, again experimenting with quantities and development times until he could produce reasonable prints.
He even took his camera with him to the Thai-Burman railway, hidden in a homemade belt with a pocket in the back. However, when his group was due to return to one of the camps on the Changi peninsula, they were searched by the dreaded Japanese police force. The camera was not found during the first search but Mr. Aspinall was unwilling to take the risk a second time, instead preferring to smash his prized possession and scatter the remains in places of concealment. He did, however, manage to save his negatives and some of his work was used at the Japanese war crimes trial.
This book gives an insight into so many aspects of camp life that are usually ignored in favour of lengthy descriptions of beatings and torture. Here, little space is given over to excessive violence, instead focussing on the measures taken to try and achieve survival.
I thoroughly recommend this work.
August 23, 2020
Purchase The Changi Camera here for just $12!
A powerful record of the experience of an Australian POW during the fall of Singapore, incarceration at Changi and the Thai-Burma Railway. George Aspinall was a keen photographer and despite terrible conditions managed to take photos and preserve his film during his incarceration. The film was buried before the end of the war and afterwards he returned to claim it. An amazing story highlighting the brutality of war.
Meaghan - The Book Grocer
A powerful record of the experience of an Australian POW during the fall of Singapore, incarceration at Changi and the Thai-Burma Railway. George Aspinall was a keen photographer and despite terrible conditions managed to take photos and preserve his film during his incarceration. The film was buried before the end of the war and afterwards he returned to claim it. An amazing story highlighting the brutality of war.
Meaghan - The Book Grocer
July 9, 2023
This book is in 2 part, an over view of the POW experience at Changi and then A fascinating look at the POW experience from a first hand account.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews