He captured some of the defining moments of modern Asia's history, dodged bullets and rioting crowds and was known personally by prime ministers.
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Along the way, legendary Singaporean cameraman Willie Phua taught more than one generation of ABC foreign correspondents how best to ply their difficult trade.
Bob Wurth was one Australian journalist who benefited from the veteran cameraman's skill, and paid the ultimate tribute by writing a book on the now-88-year-old. On Tuesday he will join Mr Phua for a one-off public conversation at the National Museum.
"He was our tutor of all things Asia, not just news coverage," he said.
"One of the great lessons was to not get angry, or not to show anger anyway, even when you're being stonewalled; he would get his way by having a smile on his face and talking reasonably," he said.
Mr Wurth, who spent seven years as an ABC correspondent based out of Singapore, was with Mr Phua in India during the Hindu riots in 1984. At the time up to 1000 people were killed following the assassination of Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards.
He said Mr Phua captured on film the fire-bombing of a picture theatre, before the rioters turned their attention on the cameraman and started to tip over the car the pair were in.
"What they wanted was our video, and Willie was quick thinking and threw a tape out the window and they all cheered," he said.
"It was a blank, we were able to drive away and kept the footage."
In addition to time in conflicts from Vietnam to Afghanistan, Mr Phua later told Mr Wurth he believes he was one of only two cameramen who filmed the iconic 'Tank Man' protester who briefly held back a line of Chinese tanks in Tiananmen Square in 1989. Mr Phua (pronounced "p-wha") had disobeyed the Chinese authorities to return to his hotel balcony.
He received an honorary Medal of the Order of Australia for his services to broadcasting in 1996, having first worked with the ABC in 1963.
"No one did more than Willie Phua to put ABC correspondents in Asia on Australian TV sets," ABC's Tony Eastley said at the time of the honour.
Four of Mr Phua's cameras will be displayed in the National Museum's Main Hall until September as part of the museum's first collaboration with the National Museum of Singapore.
Mr Phua will be in conversation with Mr Wurth between 12.30pm and 1.30pm on June 14 at the National Museum's Visions Theatre, with limited tickets to the free event available through Eventbrite.
