Capturing the Eye-Popping Density of Hong Kong’s Tower Blocks

Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated areas in the world, with an overall density of an estimated 6,300 people per square kilometer. More than 7 million people live on about 1,108 square kilometers (427 square miles) of land, and 29.1% of the Hong Kong population lives in public rental housing estates.

To start off a 3.5-week trip and before heading to Southeast Asia, my friend Michael Sheffels and I stopped in Hong Kong for 4 days to see the area and explore the Kowloon side as well.

This was our last, longest and most urban stop before heading into the quiet country. For years I have seen amazing pictures and series of these public housing/apartment tower blocks being built and knew that they were something I wanted to see and document for myself. Rather than just creating stills from these, I went with the goal of taking abstract videos and displaying them more like art, showing off their true scale.

Please enjoy my short film above as well as a few of my favorite stills captured:

All the images are shot with either the Canon 5DS R or the Canon 1D X Mark II with Canon 100-400mm and the aerials are shot with the DJI Mavic Pro 2. The video was all shot with the DJI Mavic and Polar Pro ND Filters.

We only visited a tiny blip of these housing areas and complexes. After only being there for a short time, there is so much more I want to see. I can’t wait to go back.

P.S. You can view this full project and purchase prints on its webpage.

About the author: Toby Harriman is an aerial director who lives in San Francisco and Alaska. The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author. You can find more of Harriman’s work on his website and Instagram.