I know soft shadows are not supported by the UILabel out of the box, on the iPhone. So what would be the best way to implement my own one?
EDIT:
_nameLabel = [[UILabel alloc] initWithFrame:CGRectZero];
_nameLabel.font = [UIFont boldSystemFontOfSize:19.0f];
_nameLabel.textColor = [UIColor whiteColor];
_nameLabel.backgroundColor = [UIColor clearColor];
_nameLabel.shadowColor = [UIColor colorWithWhite:0 alpha:0.2];
_nameLabel.shadowOffset = CGSizeMake(0, 1);
i think you should use the [UIColor colorWithWhite:0 alpha:0.2] to set the alpha value.