Wang Fuchun's black-and-white photographs reveal the lives of passengers on trains. [Photo by Wang Fuchun/provided to China Daily]

Guided by such a philosophy, Wang gave up landscape and wildlife photography to put all his energy into documentary photography.

"I would like to call myself the photographer nearest to people," Wang says.

According to Wang, the carriages in the 1990s could be crowded, muggy and smelly, yet the interactions between passengers neutralized the bitterness.

He wandered back and forth along the aisles of the trains observing the passengers, seeking to capture attractive and warmhearted moments: Men sharing cigarettes and alcohol, people playing cards, and parents trying to keep their kids amused were all framed in his viewfinder from a humane and humorous perspective.

"One thing I appreciate in his works is that by focusing on ordinary people, he presents a more positive perspective than merely showing the hardships," says Yuan Zi.