Culture & Leisure

The percentage of the Hong Kong population currently living in public housing estates is 33.5%, and some of them are scheduled for redevelopment in the coming years. A series of initiatives have been triggered to preserve the memories, stories, and uniqueness associated with the estates before they are redeveloped. Aiko Kan Pui-shan, 35, who grew up in Yat Tung Estate in Tung Chung, has travelled to 230 public housing estates so far. Believing the most important and nostalgic thing about public housing estates is their memories, she set up a social media account to share her travels with the public. “I hope to make more videos of the public housing before they are redeveloped. It would be a pity if nothing is left and we forget what the estate looks like,” said Kan. Kan is also the author of Exploring Hong Kong’s Public Housing, a book that tells the history and anecdotes of the estates’ origins. She uses hand-drawn maps to portray the scenery and introduce it to a wider audience. “I published the book to share what I have seen and heard from my travels to public housing because I believe that books are something that can be passed on forever,” said Kan. “It is a good opportunity to present to the public what I have in mind for the housing estates.” “I believe that every era has a collective memory. If it has to be torn down in the future, or if it has to face redevelopment, I can say it symbolises the end of an era,” she added. In 1954, following the devastating Shek Kip Mei shantytown fire that left 53,000 residents without a home, the Hong Kong government took its initial step towards providing housing solutions. It commenced the construction of bungalows and resettlement blocks, which …

Old fashioned roll film cameras are the new craze among young people in Hong Kong. Social Media Posts that carried the hashtag of “film photography” reached over 86,000 in total.  Film cameras, first sold and popularised by the American company, Eastman-Kodak Co. In 1888, images captured by a roll film camera needed to be processed in a dark room.  The process is called albumen print, papers need to be printed with a layer with egg white and salt to ensure the smoothness of the surface. After the chemical reaction between silver nitrate and salt is exposed to the sun, a print is finally complete. Tang Pik-san has been using film photography since 2022 . It costs him HK$500 every month. “The biggest difference between film and digital cameras is that you can’t check the photo result immediately, which makes the photograph process mindful to me. I can simply focus on the composition of the photograph,”  Tang said. The cheapest digital camera is around HK$3,000, while a disposable film camera costs around HK$100.  Developing the film costs around HK$50, Tang said starting  film photography is relatively cheaper.   College student, Stephen Fu, 20, tried film photography for the first time four years ago. “At first it was just for fun, then I realized that film photography is completely different from digital photography. It was slower, quieter, which I love,” Fu said. For Fu, the biggest charm of the film camera is the connection between the user and the camera. “Film cameras make me think carefully every time when I press the shutter, making the time of shooting more precious,” he said. The sale of film cameras in the Chinese market increased by 3.6% over the past two years, according to The Film Camera Report 2025. The sale of products related to photographic …