landscape – Ming Thein

Photoessay: A Swiss landscape or two

August 9, 2012 by Ming Thein

On a recent assignment in Switzerland, I had the occasional break, and the even more occasional bit of interesting weather – fog or sun, it was either 5 C or 25 C with nothing in between – so I made the most of it by doing a spot of landscape work. I was surprised to discover that the Swiss countryside in summer really does look like the postcards – intensely blue skies, emerald meadows, and lots of cows. It’s positively bucolic, but in a good way.

Landscape photography is tough without a car or sufficient time to do some hiking. Part of the time was spent outside Geneva in the very scenic Vallee du Joux, home to a number of the old watchmaking manufactures. The big body of water is the Lac du Joux, which is as still as a mirror in the early mornings, but can get quite choppy once the mid-afternoon breezes start to blow. I’m told that as idyllic as it seems in summer, it hits -20 C at times in winter, and there’s nothing to see but white. I suspect I might have some problems with the small buttons on the OM-D in that weather, though.

This was the second time I’ve used Zeiss lenses on M4/3 – I actually find the ZF2s work better than the ZMs because they’re mostly telecentric designs. The 21/2.8 is particularly good, actually – it has very refined contrast that the Panasonic 20/1.7 lacks. (You’re probably wondering why I didn’t use that lens – I can put the 21 on the D800E and the 85 on the OM-D, swap them, and have a very nicely spaced set of 21, 42, 85 and 190mm 🙂 I still maintain that so far, the best color I’ve seen comes from Olympus bodies and Zeiss lenses…now if only they’d make some M4/3 AF glass. Preferably a fast 28mm equivalent…MT

This series was shot with an Olympus OM-D, Panasonic 20/1.7, Zeiss ZF.2 21/2.8 Distagon and ZF.2 85/1.4 Planar via adaptor.

One of those trees that fell in the forest which we never hear about

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Filed Under: On Photography Tagged With: e-m5, landscape, micro 4/3, micro four thirds, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, olympus, om-d, photo, photoessay, thein, zeiss

Book review: Supercell by Kevin Erskine

June 18, 2012 by Ming Thein

Image from Amazon.

Suppose you only ever photographed one subject in your life – hell, you’re not even a photographer by training or trade – what would your images look like? Supercell is the answer. Kevin Erskine is a farmer living in the American midwest, who also happens to be a storm enthusiast (storm chaser? I have no idea what these types of people are called).

What’s unique about this book is that Erskine photographs nothing but clouds and storms – he might well be great at portraits too, but it seems unlikely judging from the text. I must admit that a huge part of the appeal of this book for me stems from the subject – granted, the images are technically competent and nicely printed, but I want to look at the clouds, not the photograph. It’s one of those collections whose images speak for themselves – it’s rare, but you can actually look through the image, through the ink, through the page, through the book, and into the scene itself – nothing more, and nothing less.

Image from Amazon

And you know what, I really, really like it. To be honest, this book isn’t for everybody. Many viewers will find it extremely boring; page after page after page of nothing but clouds, tornadoes, rain, and myriad other forms of atmospheric precipitation. But to a huge Magritte fan like myself, who lives in the tropics and sees nothing but perhaps two or three common varieties of cumulus (and if you’re lucky, the occasional cirrocumulus) – it’s like looking at pornography. I can only imagine how much more interesting my cityscapes would be against a backdrop of enormous dramatic clouds; the interplay of light and shadow off the glass facades of modern architecture. Alas, Erskine’s problem is perhaps the opposite of mine: he has no end of clouds to play with, but nary any more construction than a grain silo or barn – the equivalent to our local clouds.

Image from Amazon

Almost all of the images in the book were shot with a wide angle, large-format camera; there really is no other way to capture the scale and majesty of the formations otherwise. I’m curious though, with such a slow method of working, how on earth does he get out of the way of the weather in time? It must be a pretty near thing in some of the images.

Image from Amazon

If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to live in the great empty plains, or wanted to, then this is the book for you. It’s as much about the infinite fractal variety in nature as it is about the powerful beauty of clouds. And if you don’t like clouds, or prefer to live in the city, then it would at least make a great present for your meteorologist. MT

Filed Under: On Photography Tagged With: book review, kevin erskine, landscape, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, storm, supercell, thein

Photoessay: Landscapes with the Leica M-Monochrom

May 28, 2012 by Ming Thein

Sadly the M-Monochrom had to go home on Wednesday, but I did get a chance to make another quick set of images with it. Landscapes with the MM are slightly tricky, as the subtle tonal variations that normally make a nice landscape don’t work in luminance-only B&W. Instead, you have to force yourself to look for those extremely contrasty scenes which you’d probably normally be avoiding with a color camera and conversion.

I also want to address one of the major criticisms I saw on my earlier review regarding lack of mid-gray tonal variation: given limited time to shoot and lots of rain, I only managed to get the camera out around midday – which in the tropics, means extremely harsh light. This is of course the enemy of nice mid tones; there’s only so much you can do here under these conditions. Furthermore, web compression is not doing the images any favors – the subtle differences are being crushed into those 8×8 pixel JPEG blocks. The files do look a LOT better at full size, uncompressed on a good monitor. I suspect they will print even better still, but I haven’t had time to do this yet.

Now here’s a thought: Why doesn’t Leica do an X2 Monochrom for people who want B&W-only resolution, tonality and acuity, but would also like AF and a more compact package? MT

This set shot with the Leica M-Monochrom, 50/2 APO and Zeiss 28/2.8.

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Filed Under: Leica, On Photography Tagged With: landscape, leica, m-monochrom, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, mm, photo, photoessay, thein

Photoessay: A study of wave action

May 18, 2012 by Ming Thein

Some experiments into how the same subject can be simultaneously not the same. A bit of contemplative photography while on vacation. Or perhaps I just like water and waves for the same reasons I like clouds. Sometimes, we don’t need to think too much about it – just shoot. I need to go on holiday more often; but then again, don’t we all? MT

This series shot with an Olympus E-PM1 Pen Mini at Tanjung Jara, on the east coast of peninsular Malaysia.

Filed Under: On Photography Tagged With: beach, compact, landscape, micro 4/3, micro four thirds, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, ocean, olympus, pen mini, photo, photoessay, photography, sea, seascape, thein

A gentle reminder: the print offer ends next week!

May 12, 2012 by Ming Thein

Seeing the wood from the trees. Leica M9-P, 21/3.4 Super Elmar ASPH

Both of the prints you see in this post will be up for as a limited run. (These things help me keep the site running – creating content takes time I can’t use for anything else, and I really want to keep the site ad-free to maintain the picture viewing experience; also, it helps you decorate your walls 🙂

The print offer will be limited to 20 copies of each image, at 16×24″ (A2) printed on 20×30″ paper. Here’s the kicker: the prints will be done on 380gsm matte fine art paper, printed with 200 year archival grade pigment ink on a HP production class machine. The look of the black on the paper is indescribable – I’ve never seen anything like it before, and I knew I had to make some prints with this. There are no reflections anywhere, which means the image is so much more viewable. The blacks are dense and chalk-pastel like, with fine tonal transitions. All prints will be numbered and signed. (And no, there will be no black borders around the images in the final print).

Schonbrunn Fog, Vienna. Leica M9-P, 28/2.8 ASPH

The price for either print is US$550 net to me for the 16×24″, or US$300 for the 12×18″ size – including shipping worldwide via courier in a sturdy tube. To keep things simple, payment can be made via Paypal to [email protected], which means you can either use your Paypal balance or a credit card.

Please include in the message field which image you’d like, plus your shipping address, contact email address and telephone number. I’ll email a confirmation as soon as I a payment from you. If you’d like multiple copies or multiple images, that’s great too – you just make one payment.

I’ll be closing the print offer in one week at the end of May, and shipping shortly thereafter. First come first served! Remember, these images will not be offered for sale again at this size. Thanks for your support everybody! MT

Filed Under: Leica, Off topic, POTD Tagged With: landscape, leica, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, potd, print offer, thein

Photoessay: Seascapes

May 10, 2012 by Ming Thein

Inspired by Hiroshi Sugimoto. The South China Sea, off the east coast of Malaysia at Tanjung Jara.

This series shot with an Olympus E-PM1 Pen Mini and the 14-42 kit lens.

Limited fine art print offer! (and POTD)

April 28, 2012 by Ming Thein

Seeing the wood from the trees. Leica M9-P, 21/3.4 Super Elmar ASPH

Today’s POTD fell out of a test run for the 21/3.4 Super Elmar ASPH, which I’ll be reviewing in the next few weeks. Initial impressions: hugely impressive, especially in the corners. I see almost no optical flaws anywhere, at f4 – which is just half a stop down from wide open.

I’m also happy to announce a new partnership with Giclee Art in Malaysia (a HP print ambassador) and master printmaker Wesley Wong. The work I’ve seen is stunning – he will be printing the images for my upcoming exhibition.

Schonbrunn Fog, Vienna. Leica M9-P, 28/2.8 ASPH

The price for either print is US$550 net to me including shipping worldwide via courier in a sturdy tube. To keep things simple, payment can be made via Paypal to [email protected], which means you can either use your Paypal balance or a credit card.

I’ll be closing the print offer at the end of May, and shipping shortly thereafter. First come first served! Remember, these images will not be offered for sale again at this size. Thanks for your support everybody! MT

Filed Under: Leica, Off topic, POTD Tagged With: landscape, leica, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, potd, print offer, thein

POTD: If you’re not getting wet, you’re probably not close enough.

April 20, 2012 by Ming Thein

Wave action. Olympus E-PM1 Pen Mini, 14-42 kit lens…at 14mm.

Sometimes risks are necessary for experimentation. Just don’t do it with any gear that would be critical if dead, unless you absolutely have to get the shot. MT

Filed Under: POTD Tagged With: beach, landscape, m4/3, micro four thirds, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, olympus, potd, thein, water, waves

POTD: Hommage a Hiroshi Sugimoto

April 17, 2012 by Ming Thein

Seascape. Part of a full set coming up later. Olympus E-PM1 Pen Mini, 14-42 kit lens.

The sea is one of those odd subjects – like the sky – that’s seemingly full of infinite variation, but at the same time is instantly identifiable for what it is. I could take a thousand images of the sea, and none of them would be the same – but you’d know instantly that it was the sea. Even if the processing was the same, which I’d never do because it’d be boring.

What you don’t immediately notice here is that to achieve this perspective, the shot was taken at 14mm and just inches above the water, about 30m away from the beach and out to sea. (Interestingly, the EXIF data records the subject as being 4.3 billion meters away – I’d say that’s infinity, and in fact, further away than the moon.) Not exactly the least hazardous environment for photographic equipment! I suppose the only reason I even attempted this series was the relatively low cost of the equipment at risk; no way would I do it with an M9, for instance. I didn’t take anything heavier in the way of photographic equipment because it was meant to be a break. But at the same time, I don’t think I’d be able to truly relax unless I knew I had the ability to make the shot if the opportunity arose.

Sometimes we need time in a different physical location to reset our seeing process, if nothing else. MT

Filed Under: POTD Tagged With: landscape, micro 4/3, micro four thirds, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, olympus, photo, potd, seascape, thein

POTD: Vacation time

April 12, 2012 by Ming Thein

Tanjung Jara beach, Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia. Nikon D700 and 85/1.4 D

I’m off to the beach for a few days for a short vacation (the same beach in the image, coincidentally) and to practice my hommages a ~~Daido Moriyama~~ Hiroshi Sugimoto (I have no idea how I got that one mixed up). I’ll still have internet access though, so please keep commenting. There’s also a couple of very interesting posts completed and scheduled, including an On Assignment covering shooting watches with the Leica M9-P system – I wouldn’t leave you guys without something to read, would I? 🙂 MT