Series description
Enlighten presents modern alpine architecture as surreal man-made sculptures in the rough terrain of high altitude mountain areas. These photographs form part of a larger set of images, which I took over the course of 10 days, exploring contemporary building designs in remote mountain areas of the European Alps. My assistant and I had to climb to our chosen location every day, stay awake until late at night to capture the image and then descend in the morning to get to the next mountain. Every image was captured under the Milky Way, in the middle of the night, using a medium format camera. The buildings were lit by an LED light that I attached to a drone, with the resulting top lighting giving the structures an otherworldly feeling.
Biography
I am a professional photographer since 2012, specialized in architectural photography and drone operation for hotels and architects. I also work as a documentary photographer for the Saxony state capital Dresden. My passion projects evolve around impressive landscapes and majestic architecture.
My images have been awarded in the Hasselblad Masters 2021, Fineart Photography Awards 2021, Drone Talent Awards 2022 and SWPA 2023.
Bivak pod Skuto
Bivak pod Skuto is an emergency shelter designed by OFIS architects. Located in the Julian Alps in Slovenia, the shelter gives hikers a place to rest when the weather conditions get too dangerous in the mountains.
© Albrecht Voss, Germany, Shortlist, Professional competition, Architecture & Design, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards
Cappella Santa Maria degli Angeli
Cappella Santa Maria degli Angeli is a chapel in Italy, which was built in 1996 to a design by architect Mario Botta. It is reminiscent of the ancient castles in the region, which have overlooked the valleys for centuries. My favourite part of the image is the interaction between the winding path and the straight aisle that leads to the chapel.
© Albrecht Voss, Germany, Shortlist, Professional competition, Architecture & Design, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards
Edelraut Hut
Edelraut Hut is in Cima Cadini in Italy. The building needs to be completely self-sufficient, as it isn’t connected to any infrastructure, so it uses solar energy, a small water powerhouse and the melting water from the mountains. Once a week a helicopter brings food for the kitchen.
© Albrecht Voss, Germany, Shortlist, Professional competition, Architecture & Design, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards
007 Elements
007 Elements is a museum at Gaislachkogl, Austria, designed by Johann Obermoser architects. The museum shows how the James Bond movie ‘Spectre’ was filmed at the same mountain. To light the scene I used a single small LED placed next to a window while the museum was open; the rest of the light is from the rising moon.
© Albrecht Voss, Germany, Shortlist, Professional competition, Architecture & Design, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards
Monte Rosa Hut
Monte Rosa Hut is a high-altitude shelter designed by architect Andrea Deplazes, on a glacier in Switzerland. You have to hike over a mountain and cross the glacier to reach this remote building. My assistant had to keep running up and down the stairs in the building to keep the interior lights on, while I was controlling the camera and drone from outside.
© Albrecht Voss, Germany, Shortlist, Professional competition, Architecture & Design, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards
Oetzi Peak
Oetzi Peak is an art installation by Ólafur Elíason, which serves as a viewing platform for the majestic alpine vistas from Grawand mountain in Austria. During the shoot I saw similarities between the form of the building and the stars in the background, so I positioned my LED drone in a way that made the metal structure glow from inside, just like a star.
© Albrecht Voss, Germany, Shortlist, Professional competition, Architecture & Design, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards
Julier Tower
The Julier Tower was a temporary cultural event space at the Julier mountain pass in Switzerland. For five years the building hosted numerous concerts and theatre events, before the area got re-naturalised. We had a small window between two thunderstorms to capture this image with a clear view of the Milky Way.
© Albrecht Voss, Germany, Shortlist, Professional competition, Architecture & Design, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards