Off topic – Ming Thein

OT: first anniversary!

August 15, 2018 by Ming Thein 14 Comments

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With some relief and a big exhalation of breath, it seems the horological venture has survived the first year; let me tell you it hasn’t been easy given we’re effectively trying to start something in an industry that doesn’t have any ecosystem in our country, competing directly against much better funded and experienced players. There have been no end of surprises – both good and bad – for the moment culminating in a nomination for a GPHG* prize for our flagship 19.01. We’re celebrating with a watch (of course) or more specifically two (one is good, more is better) variants of the automatic GMT 17.03 – both in the ever popular blue, with revised and refined dial and hands, and an experiment – because experimentation is what keeps us going. I heat blued 25 grade 2 titanium cases with a blowtorch, resulting in something rather special (and something I wanted to do with my own Ochs und Junior some time ago, but we had the wrong alloy). We made 125 of the regular titanium cased blue dial, and 25 of the Ultra Blue – unfortunately the Ultra Blue sold out within about an hour of announcement, and we have a very long wait list**, but the Blue is available right now at www.ming.watch. I leave you with specifications after the jump and the customary images; experimented with some new lighting techniques in this set, too. MT

*Grand Prix de Horologerie de Geneve, which is effectively the Oscars of the watch world.
**I seem to be very good at shooting myself in the foot when it comes to estimating demand and edition sizes.

The continued adventures of the traveling audiophile: going wireless

June 30, 2018 by Ming Thein 50 Comments

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As with everything, it’s very easy to go off the deep end with audio – even personal, in-ear audio – and land up in a position where you have an extremely expensive piece of hardware that has zero secondary value (anything custom, for instance) and feel compelled that you have to make that decision before trying all options. And even if you’re lucky enough to be able to try all feasible options, 10-15 minutes of listening and A-B comparisons in an often less that representative (let alone ideal) location simply aren’t enough to make an informed decision. It also doesn’t help that you (I, at least) hit fatigue after perhaps half a dozen samples and can’t really hear the difference anymore – even if I might have fairly acute hearing on a normal day. But, I digress before I’ve even started. Last year’s move to the iPhone 7 and its forced choices of a) no charging with music if you use the Lighting to 3.5 adaptor, b) charging if you use the bulky as hell USB multiport thing and a small amp such as an AudioQuest Dragonfly Red, or c) wireless – has left me with a messy solution when travelling, which with involvement in three businesses in four countries and international clients, I seem to be doing even more of these days.

Creativity by the yard

April 16, 2018 by Ming Thein 14 Comments

The split

I’ve heard it said more than once that the world is divided into three kinds of people: those who create, those who support, and those who criticise. The former see the world differently and as a result land up being mostly societal misfits; at least until you become successful (which is nearly never, since the deck is stacked against you for reasons I will explain later). The corporate world wants to have the output and the commercial results, but is unprepared to support the infrastructure and requirements. The second group forms the majority of the population: ‘support’ can mean anything from consumption and patronage to supplier of key enablers such a services, environment or tools. And the latter – some serve as useful moderating reality checks and balances, but most just become bitter and jealous internet trolls. Today’s post is several things: an exploration of these roles, a series of suggestions from the point of view of a creative, and perhaps an apology (excuse?) for my wandering attention.

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Filed Under: Articles, Off topic, On Photography Tagged With: article, creativity, essay, medium, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, opinion, photography, thein

Off topic: Presenting the MING 17.03

February 11, 2018 by Ming Thein 23 Comments

I’m pleased to report that my horological venture has very much taken on a life of its own, and though it lives on its own site, I’m also aware that there’s quite a bit of crossover between photographers and watch enthusiasts. I also owe a big thanks to those of you who’ve supported this venture in its first and second iterations. Our latest piece is a sportier everyday wearer, with automatic winding convenience and a second timezone for travel. It’s also highly luminous in the dark.

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Filed Under: Off topic Tagged With: 17.03, horology, ming, ming 17.03, ming thein, ming.watch, mingthein.com, thein, watches

Off topic: Presenting the MING 19.01

November 3, 2017 by Ming Thein 28 Comments

MING 19.01 3

Many of you will know that I’ve recently brought my interest in watches full circle with the launch of my own watch brand earlier in the year. We were surprised and humbled by the response, but also fortunate as we had another project in the works at the same time: something at the other end of the spectrum, and our flagship: the 19.01. Whilst the 17.01 was designed to be an honest watch that brought a lot of the features valued by collectors to a more accessible price point, the reality is there were a lot of things I wanted to do that I simply couldn’t because of production cost restrictions. This is not the case with the 19.01, which was designed without compromises ad to be something very special in a world that’s already got a lot of very special watches. This is of course not a simple task, and required something special aesthetically, mechanically and stylistically consistent with previous designs so as to fit within the MING lineup.

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Filed Under: Off topic Tagged With: 19.01, horology, ming, ming thein, ming.watch, mingthein.com, off topic, thein, watch, watches

Life after Olympus

September 11, 2017 by Robin Wong 23 Comments

I left Olympus Malaysia not too long ago, which came as a surprise to many, and subsequently Ming Thein on this awesome photography site as an active contributor. Since then, I’ve been asked by many curious people how my life has been, what I’ve been doing, which manufacturer I’ve jumped ship to (Sony? Fujifilm? *gasp*) and how the hell I can still afford that expensive cup of coffee? [Read more…]

Filed Under: Off topic, Robin Wong, Uncategorized Tagged With: life after olympus, mingthein.com, opinion, robin, Robin Wong, wong

Off topic: Presenting the MING 17.01

August 13, 2017 by Ming Thein 91 Comments

Many of you might be aware of my historical preoccupation with mechanical watches: it’s arguably what started me photographing seriously in the first place. Which is why after nearly two years in gestation (and just in this form) I’m very proud to present my latest project: the 17.01. It’s the first of a new line of watches designed by me, made in Switzerland and funded by a group of fellow collectors, but brought to life with the aid of individuals who’ve been in the industry for a long time. To avoid the bunch of cliches that are typically used during new watch launches: it’s an honest watch that tells the time reliably and has the benefit of experience behind it – nothing more, nothing less.

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Filed Under: Off topic Tagged With: 17.01, ming, ming thein, ming.watch, mingthein.com, thein, watch

Welcoming a new partner: Robin Wong

June 7, 2017 by Ming Thein 119 Comments

I have some very big news for you today. Robin Wong – M4/3 expert, street shooter, fellow Malaysian and all round nice guy – will be joining the site as a contributor. I believe our strengths and coverage are complimentary but not really overlapping, which means extended coverage and a different perspective for our loyal readers, and yes, including new product reviews (which is something that I of course cannot do in my current position). Robin is somebody I’ve always enjoyed a strong relationship with and wanted to collaborate with, though this would of course have been problematic whilst he worked for Olympus. Thus for purely selfish reasons, I was quite happy with the news of his going independent. Having done the same thing myself more than five years ago now, and under quite different – and ironically, easier – professional photography market circumstances, I’m glad to he sees enough potential to make the jump and happy to be able to support him. In the coming weeks you’ll see of course new content from him, and a reshuffling of the site to accommodate an archive for his work. Robin’s existing site will of course continue on as an archive of previous work.

Please join me in welcoming him on board! 🙂 MT

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Filed Under: Off topic Tagged With: changes, contributor, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, robin, Robin Wong, thein, wong

The design process

May 23, 2017 by Ming Thein 38 Comments

Not a camera, but a watch is as good an example as any – perhaps more so, especially when you’re producing just one and it has to satisfy the most demanding client: the designer.

Whenever a photographer ‘has some ideas about camera design’, they often forget they’re only seeing one small portion of the puzzle. Inevitably, there are significant other considerations beyond the obvious – sometimes to the point of being physically impossible or functionally incompatible with their own intended result. At this point, having significantly more involvement in the design process will allow me to clarify why some things are the way they are, why some things should or don’t change, and where manufacturers shouldn’t have any excuses. Think of it as a candid ‘message from the other side of the fence’.

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Filed Under: Articles, hasselblad, Off topic Tagged With: article, camera design, choices, curation, design, essay, hasselblad, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, opinion, thein

Off topic: on coffee

April 11, 2017 by Ming Thein 102 Comments

Anybody who spends any length of time in the creative industry will soon realise that it’s really coffee, not money, that fuels everything from ad campaigns to shoots to postproduction. Models don’t shun it like energy drinks because you can have it without sugar, and in small (espresso) volumes, and it’s still just as potent. It’s also legal and relatively easy to obtain when travelling, and you can bring your own without being questioned about what those pills or powders are. I’ve long been reliant on the drink (finance and consulting run on it, too) but only in the last couple of years developed more than a passing interest in it. Like the drink, think of today’s post as a little refresher/ break from the photographic content…

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