S’porean Architecture Photographer Wins Apple’s Global Photoshoot Challenge

By
Boon Hun
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Local architecture and landscape photographer Darren Soh landed a spot in the world stage after being recognised by tech giant Apple.

All because of a competition that pitted him against people from around the world.

The Shot on iPhone Challenge:

iPhone photographers around the world shared their best photos for the Shot on iPhone Challenge, capturing remarkable moments with the world’s most popular camera.

The 10 selected winners will be featured on billboards in select cities, in Apple retail stores and online.

The winning shots came from a range of models, from iPhone XS Max to iPhone 7, showcasing the quality of cameras across the line.

The list of winners was named on Tuesday, 26 Feb, and Mr Soh, 42, was the only winner from Asia.

Other than Singapore, the top 10 winners in the campaign hail from across the world, including Germany, Belarus, Israel and the US, with photographs capturing city scenery, animals, creative reflections, the beauty of the ordinary and more.

Image: CY Yang

His winning photo is this reflection shot of an HDB in Potong Pasir, Singapore, with a crow flying past.

A Lucky Shot

It was a shot that ‘happened by chance’, according to the photographer.

Darren was walking by Potong Pasir Community Club at that time, and the basketball court was being washed.

He decided then that it would be nice to take a few shots of the HDB flats with the sloped rooftops. It just so happened that a crow flew past and he had managed to capture it.

It was then that he knew this was the shot he wanted to send in.

Beyond the Aesthetics

Both a storyteller and a photographer, Soh wanted to weave a narrative of the rich history behind Singapore’s public housing.

Unlike most other photographers who upload their photos purely to showcase their sense of aesthetics, Soh wanted to bring out the unique design of HDB flats across the country. He understood that not many Singaporeans are aware of the history behind the HDB apartments they live in.

“I think because we really live in them and we breathe in them all the time, we tend to take them for granted,” Soh explained in a Straits Times article.

Thus, Soh aims to add bite-sized bits of history into his captions, engaging viewers both in sight and mind.

Singaporean Pride

There is something very Singaporean about HDB flats.

Most of Mr Soh’s delight in winning the competition is the very fact that the picture that won was that of the HDB flats.

“Above me being the photographer that made the picture, I’m very happy that there is this global photo competition, where billions of people will look at the winning entries and the subject of the only winning entry [from Asia] is of our HDB flats.”

Focusing On What Matters

Humble yet passionate about his work, Mr Soh’s heart for photography and Singapore is to inspire conversations about the history and significance of each building, especially in the face of estate redevelopment.

“It’s one of the things I’ve been trying to talk about and to get more people to talk about. In a country where the land on which any building is standing on is worth more than the building itself, they will inevitably be redeveloped,” said Soh.

“Is this the only way? Is tearing down an old building and building a new one the only way we can unlock the value of the land?”

You can check out his recently established project, ‘Before It All Goes’ here.

The international panel of judges for the Apple Global Photoshoot Challenge include Pete Souza, Austin Mann, Annet de Graaf, Luísa Dörr, Chen Man, Phil Schiller, Kaiann Drance, Brooks Kraft, Sebastien Marineau-Mes, Jon McCormack and Arem Duplessis.

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Boon Hun
Email: [email protected]
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