24/03/2026
11 years ago on March 23rd at 3:18am Mr Lee Kuan Yew passed away. I was fortunate enough to be able to photograph him many times and contributed the lead photo in the TIME feature tribute when he passed away. That photo was not suppose to happen as it wasn’t planned but when I saw the shot whilst setting up inside the Istana , I just had to do it and without skipping a beat he obliged.
“ Make this fast Russel as he hates the heat! “ as a staffer whispered to me ! Pressure! Did I hurry? Of course not and I had him doing another shot right after outside!
“ What’s next Russel? “ he would ask me. I knew this was going to be historical and I wasn’t going to stop until you made me. Photo : Russel Wong
