Page 3 - Darren Soh's Interview with Kanto_Neat

For our ASEAN readers, can you recount how you found yourself in the realm of architectural
photography?

I started my photography career as an intern and then a temp staff at The Straits Times. This lasted from
1997 to 2001, and during that time, all I wanted to be was a photojournalist. But circumstances led me to
the freelancer’s path earlier than I expected, and so, from 2001 to 2005, I did every kind of photography job
that paid so I could continue working as a photographer. I shot weddings, events, products, and did a ton
of magazine work. In 2006, I bought myself a 4×5 large format film camera and taught myself how to use it.

I quickly realized that the best images of the 4×5 camera were photographs of buildings as they did
not move and could withstand the camera’s long setup times. The image quality of the negative
or positive produced by this camera was also absolutely amazing, and I started to photograph
architecture with it. This image of (the now demolished) water slides at the then already shut
down Big Splash remains one of my most favorite images made on the 4×5. Big Splash was
built in 1977, and its 85-meter-long water slide was said to be the world’s longest and tallest
when it was first completed. Shortly after I shot this photo, the slides were removed forever.

Big Splash (1977)