Changi photographer:WWII prisoner

[mo]

It is a book about a man (George Aspinall) who used a hidden Kodak 2 camera and what ever film (he used xray film) and chemicals he could find during his days as a prisoner in Changi and while working on the Burma railway.I have the old book but it is being re released.Now this is a man who loved his photography and recorded some images that may never have been seen if it was not for his courage.I would like to know if there are similar photography books out there?

Changi Photographer: George Aspinall's Record of Captivity isbn 9780733302879 (this is the old ISBN) Co Author Tim Bowden

[Attila]

Do you think is this real story , he could hide camera in prisoner camp ? I doubt really.

[iangreenhalgh1]

Oh yes, it is possible, the British prisoners in German camps built and hid radios and also used cameras, they used to trade with the guards, items from Red Cross parcels for cameras, but they used them to produce identity card photographs for false documents used by escapees. The German prisoners in British camps also built and hid radios.

When you put a lot of energetic young men in one place for years on end you will see stunning levels of ingenuity, remember that they actually built a full-size working glider in the attic space of Colditz Castle.



Mo, I know of this book of photos of Colditz, but they were taken by a local photographer rather than the prisoners, I'm sure it's fascinating though:

[mo]

Thanks Ian.I find these books encouraging, for what these guys faced and then to be courageous enough to photograph it!

Yes Attila it is real ,I was trying to find a link to show the few photos that survived and appear in the book, of the leg ulcers suffered,the Japanese guards,POW's while in Singapore.He eventually broke up the camera and destroyed it due to the Japanese secret police.... because of the risk to himself and others.

Here is a link that shows a few of his photos
http://www.abc.net.au/changi/life/photographer.htm

[maxcastle]

Presumably a pinhole camera could be constructed quite easily, and the lens from reading glasses might be used. I suppose what should be remembered about the prisoners in a lot of these camps is that they were not professional soldiers. many were expert craftsmen or had a knowledge of labs etc from their previous life, this is portrayed in an exaggerated way in "the great escape" movie but in essence it captures the wide range of abilities these people had. There were a number of observers and photographers shot down during reconnissance missions, i would assume they kept up their profession in whatever small way they could while interrned.

[Farside]

As we know, the developing of film isn't too difficult, even in a prison camp, it's the fixing that's a challenge. I'm utterly sure I read in some book of a similar nature to the one under discussion how the author managed to fix the images using available chemicals.
I simply don't recall what it was though, and that vexes me, because as an alternative to standard fixer it would be very interesting, along with alternative home/domestic chemicals to develop with.
When I messed around with caffenol I tried to find any info on alternative fixing, but none came up.

[mo]

Hi Dave
From what I have read when he found the x-ray film he also found some developer and fixer...this he used until he finally had to destroy the camera.Sadly there is no reference to any other ways of fixing the film.He apparently found the fixer by sniffing the bottles until he found what he thought was the right one!

[maxcastle]