In Pictures: Stories from the 1960s and 70s, told through the lens of cleaner Lui Hock Seng

Mr Lui, 79, who works as a cleaner at Singapore Press Holdings (SPH), became interested in photography as a teenager in the late 1950s. The third of six children, he could not afford a camera until his eldest brother bought him a German-made Rolleiflex about 55 years ago. The top-of-the-range mechanical camera, which used photographic film unlike digital cameras today, cost $300 - a large sum in those days. These are his best shots taken with the camera.

A man steps out of his house built on stilts at the Merdaka Bridge. In the distance is the Fullerton Building in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.
A man steps out of his house built on stilts at the Merdaka Bridge. In the distance is the Fullerton Building in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.PHOTO: LUI HOCK SENG
A view from Merdeka Bridge in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.
A view from Merdeka Bridge in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s. PHOTO: LUI HOCK SENG
Left: A woman washing clothes near the well at a kampung in Tanah Merah in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s. Right: A fisherman rows his boat home near Merdeka Bridge in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.
Left: A woman washing clothes near the well at a kampung in Tanah Merah in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s. Right: A fisherman rows his boat home near Merdeka Bridge in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.PHOTO: LUI HOCK SENG
Workers hanging sheets to dry at Outram Road in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.
Workers hanging sheets to dry at Outram Road in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.PHOTO: LUI HOCK SENG
A man selling pork at the Teochew Market, taken in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.
A man selling pork at the Teochew Market, taken in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.PHOTO: LUI HOCK SENG
Photography club members rest under the shade of a tree in Jurong or Tuas near an attap house in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.
Photography club members rest under the shade of a tree in Jurong or Tuas near an attap house in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.PHOTO: LUI HOCK SENG
A man works near a storage of water pipes at Tanjong Pagar in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.
A man works near a storage of water pipes at Tanjong Pagar in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.PHOTO: LUI HOCK SENG
Left: Children playing at Bukit Merah in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s. Right: A begger in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.
Left: Children playing at Bukit Merah in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s. Right: A begger in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.PHOTO: LUI HOCK SENG
A mixture of fishing, cargo and passenger boats moored off Merdeka Bridge in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.
A mixture of fishing, cargo and passenger boats moored off Merdeka Bridge in Singapore in the 1960s or 70s.PHOTO: LUI HOCK SENG
Clarke Quay’s Teochew market in 1961.
Clarke Quay’s Teochew market in 1961.PHOTO: LUI HOCK SENG
Published
Oct 20, 2016, 7:30 pm SGT
 
 
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