Photographers often have to place themselves on the front line to capture images that will forever be part of Thai history.
The Bangkok Post did not have a single photographer when it opened its doors in 1946. It used to buy all its pictures, but in 1962 the photographic section was born.
For more than five decades, talented photographers have captured beautiful images that lifted the spirits of readers and delivered powerful photographs that froze key moments in Thai history. They won numerous domestic and international awards but, more importantly, gave the Post its heart and soul.
(From “Shutterbugs on the Front Line” by Sarot Meksophawannakul, published in the Bangkok Post on the occasion of its 70th anniversary on August 1, 2016)
1/35 Flood-man and dog: The picture of a man trying to save his two pet puppies in Chachoengsao during the big flood in 1995, won Bangkok Post’s photographer Apichit Jinakul a runner-up prize from Thailand’s Journalists Association.
2/35 In July 2006, Princess Ubolratana greets the then-His Royal Highness Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn at Siriraj hospital where His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej was hospitalised for a spine operation. The picture won the first runner-up prize in the royal activities category, from the Mass Media Photographers Association of Thailand. APICHIT JINAKUL
3/35 Former Pheu Thai Party chairman Gen Chavalit Yongchaiyudh laughs heartily with party-list MP Sanoh Thienthong in this photo which won the second runner-up prize from the Mass Media Photographer Association of Thailand. PATIPAT JANTHONG
4/35 A mother’s anguish: Bang-ern Buathong kicks Suthi Boonprom, 23, as Mr Suthi asks for her forgiveness for raping and killing her daughter, Apatsara Todej, 20, who was found dead in Bang Kapi district on the morning of Feb 4, 2013. The photograph claimed the second prize in the crime category from the Mass Media Photographers Association of Thailand. Surapol Promsaka Na Sakolnakorn
5/35 Fleeing the floods: A female student and a man are caught trying to jumping over floodwater to reach the footpath from a bus in Pathum Thani’s Rangsit district. APICHIT JINAKUL
6/35 Villagers in Don Chedi district of Suphan Buri herd cattle along the dried-up Khlong Makham to another water source 7km from the canal. The photo won an honourable mention at the Isra Amantakul Awards. PATIPAT JANTHONG
7/35 Thick smoke billows from a fire blazing through a garbage dump on Praksa Road in Samut Prakan. The fire forced many residents living near the dump to evacuate. The picture received an honourable mention from Thailand’s Journalists Association. THANARAK KHUNTON
8/35 Ramkhamhaeng University student Thanawut Klingchua sets fire on himself to protest against the Chatichai Choonhavan government for allegedly failing to manage the economy thus causing hardship. The photo, taken in 1990 by Kosol Nakachol, was named the Isra Award’s Photo of the Year.
9/35 At around 7.15am on Wednesday, June 14, 1995, Pran Nok boat landing sank. Thirty people were drowned, most of them school children, when they became trapped under the submerged roof of the Chao Phraya River express boat jetty. Many more were injured as the jetty sank under the weight of rushhour commuters. APICHART JINAKUL
10/35 Anti-government protesters hand flowers, national flags and whistles to soldiers through a barbed-wire barricade in front of the Defence Ministry in 2013. The ministry prohibited soldiers from receiving any items from the demonstrators. APICHART JINAKUL
11/35 A man and woman dressed in white civil servant ceremonial uniforms comfort one another as they watch white smoke billowing from the royal crematorium during the royal cremation of His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej in 2017. WICHAN CHAROENKIATPAKUL
12/35 A crowd scrambling to grab ‘‘ang pao’’, a traditional red envelope containing money, during the Chinese New Year celebration in Yaowarat. The photo, taken by Somchai Laopaisarntaksin, took the first prize in a competition organised by the Mass Media Photographers Association of Thailand.
13/35 A lady tries her best to shield a portrait of His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej from driving rain at Sanam Luang where mourners gathered in the early evening to pay their respects to the monarch. The picture of the ‘’umbrella lady’’ taken by Patipat Janthong won best photo at the Isra Amantakul Awards in 2016.
14/35 His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej and his favourite pet dog Khun Tongdaeng take a walk around the Suwannachat therapeutic swimming pool at Kasetsart University. The photo, published in Post Today, won the King’s trophy for overall best picture at a competition for press and television photographers in 2006.
15/35 Hundreds of thousands of wellwishers fill the Royal Plaza and Ratchadamnoen Nok Avenue to pay tribute to His Majesty the then King Bhumibol Adulyadej on his 85th birthday anniversary in 2012. SITHIKORN WONGWUDTHIANUN
16/35 Triumphant return... Ratchanok Intanon, who is the first Thai badminton player to become No.1 in the world singles rankings and the first woman in the world to complete a hattrick of badminton titles after winning the Singapore Open badminton tournament in 2016 waves to supporters shortly after arriving at Don Mueang Airport yesterday. Wichan Charoenkiatpakul
17/35 Determined to exercise their right to vote, Jehngorbor Jehdueramae, 40, and her 81-year-old mother Waesoo wade through deep flood water to get to a polling booth in Talubo village of Muang district of Pattani yesterday. The photo won first prize in the Mental Health Week media competition run by the Department of Mental Health in 2008. JETJARAS NA RANONG
18/35 Firefighters spent more than seven hours putting out the fire from an exploding gas tanker of the Picnic Co which contained 4,000 litres of LPG. The truck crashed into the Khlong Ban Pa Bridge on the in-bound Pattanakarn Road. Three people were seriously injured in the 2012 accident. KOSOL NAKACHOL
19/35 This photograph of then 11th Infantry Regiment chief Apirat Kongsompong firing pepper spray at red shirt protesters who had stormed Thaicom satellite’s compound in Pathum Thani won the Mass Media Photographers Association’s best picture award in 2010. THITI WANNAMONTHA
20/35 A red-shirt protester attacks a monk who criticised his group for rallying in front of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) and blocking the way for pedestrians in the area. The photo won the top prize at the Isra Amantakul Awards in 2014. THITI WANNAMONTHA
21/35 Pass the tin-opener: A hungry water monitor at Lumpini Park tries to swallow a tortoise, impenetrable bony shell and all. But the water monitor couldn’t get to th esoft centre and eventually gave up. PATIPAT JANTHONG
22/35 Fans of Chelsea Football Club accidentally tumble into a lotus pond in front of Siriraj Hospital. Many fans scrambled to see the star players as the team signed a commemoration book for His Majesty the late King Bhumibol at the hospital and some fell into the pond during the rush. APICHART JINAKUL
23/35 A taxi is swamped in water as it makes its way through the heavily flooded Khlong 7 Road in Pathum Thani on Oct 29, 2011. The picture won the best photograph award from the Thai Crime Press association. APICHIT JINAKUL
24/35 Soccer fans gather at the Victory Monument to cheer on the Thai national team on a victory parade after winning the 2014 AFF-Suzuki Cup. PATTARAPONG CHATPATTARASILL
25/35 Blinded by delight...Cabinet members enjoy a humorous moment as Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwon raises his hand to cover his eyes amid strong sunlight after journalists teased him about his flashy watch and diamond ring. The items became controversial later as they were not listed in the DPM’s assets declaration. CHANAT KATANYU
26/35 A customer receives beauty treatment with snails at a spa in Chiang Mai. The Helix Aspersa Maxima snails, used in the treatment, are imported from France. The Department of Health Service Support recently warned that using imported snails in spa treatments must be approved by authorities to ensure hygiene and safety for customers. CHANAT KATANYU
27/35 An angry protester hits a riot policeman with a plank during a clash as police tried to block the protesters from entering Privy Council president Prem Tinsulanonda's residence. Tawatchai Kemgumnerd
28/35 One wheel in the air...Two tricycle racers are locked in a head-to-head contest during a special Loy Krathong festival event organised by the Nonthaburi municipality yesterday. TAWATCHAI KEMGUMNERD
29/35 Protesters lay face-down with their hands tied on the pavement outside Tak Bai police station, Narathiwat. More than 1,300 people were arrested, 77 died of suffocation while being transported to a military camp. TAWATCHAI KEMGUMNERD
30/35 Not a flying fish...Somchai Fakkhong, 29, the owner of a fish pond in Pathum Thani province, throws out a dead sawai fish after surveying damage caused to his business. His fish died en masse, causing losses initially estimated at two million baht. Factories were believed to have released untreated waste into an area where local residents raise fish. SOMCHAI POOMLARD
31/35 This picture of a soldier using a slingshot to stop red shirt protesters from advancing towards him won an honourable mention award from the Mass Media Photographers Association. SOMCHAI POOMLARD
32/35 Her Majesty the Queen carries a kid goat while officials look on. The Queen visited a demonstration farm in Ang Thong's Sawaengha district to encourage flood-affected residents to raise goats in a job creation scheme. SAROT MEKSOPHAWANNAKUL
33/35 Thais and foreigners releasing 20,000 floating lanterns during the one-month memorial ceremony of the December 2004 tsunami in Phangnga's Takua Pa district. The photo won the Silver IFRA Media Award for Best in Feature Photography in 2005. SAROT MEKSOPHAWANNAKUL
34/35 Red shirt protesters take over a military truck with one of them aiming a kick at a soldier who has his arms pinned. CHANAT KATANYU
35/35 Red-shirt leader Arisman Pongruengrong staging an escape from a hotel during the mass protest in 2010 won an honourable mention award from the Mass Media Photographers Association. APICHAI JINAKUL
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