photoessay – Ming Thein

Photoessay: New car time

August 21, 2012 by Ming Thein

I don’t normally shoot cars – I leave that to my good friend Darren Chang – but my wife recently got herself a new ride. Since I photograph everything that moves or doesn’t move as a matter of habit and for practice, I couldn’t help myself. The 6R Volkswagen Polo GTI is one of the best bang for the buck cars you can find here – 185bhp from a 1.4 turbocharged and supercharged four; it gets to 100km/h in the mid-six second range, and has a great growly exhaust note. Also, it’s a lot of fun. MT

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

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Filed Under: On Photography Tagged With: car, micro 4/3, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, olympus, photoessay, thein, volkswagen, vw

Photoessay: Hong Kong life in monochrome

August 15, 2012 by Ming Thein

The first set from my recent Hong Kong and Macau workshop. Click for larger versions or EXIF data via the flickr landing page. Enjoy! MT

Images shot with a Leica M9-P, Zeiss ZM 2.8/28 Biogon, ZM 2/50 Planar, Olympus OM-D and 45/1.8.

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Filed Under: Leica, On Photography Tagged With: black and white, bw, life, macau, micro 4/3, micro four thirds, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, monochrome, olympus, photoessay, photojournalism, pj, reportage, street, thein

Inspirations from older cameras: The Panasonic LX3

August 13, 2012 by Ming Thein

The Panasonic LX3 was one of what I like to think of as a matured, serious compact – it had a larger sensor with fewer pixels for better dynamic range and low light performance (notice I said ‘better’, not ‘good’). It had a fast and sharp 24-72/2-2.8 equivalent, with variable aspect ratios on a switch; one of the downsides of this piece of glass was the price and unpocketability thanks to the protruding lens barrel, but it was worth it. Great dynamic range for a compact, too, though color accuracy could be somewhat wanting at times.

Enjoy! All images can be clicked on for larger versions, or EXIF information. MT

Sunset

Distorted reality

Internal facade

Silhouettes

Under the awning

Look up

Pastel interior

Puddle

Traffic

Opposites

Untitled

Pipework

Ouch

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Filed Under: On Photography Tagged With: inspirations from an older camera, lumix, lx3, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, panasonic, photoessay, photography, thein

Photoessay: portrait of a chef – Fergus Henderson

August 11, 2012 by Ming Thein

Perhaps best known for his use of offal, bones, tails and other normally discarded parts of the animal, chef Fergus Henderson is one of the innovators of modern cuisine. His dishes are derivatives of traditional British food, usually paired with French wines. However, perhaps the most impressive thing about him is that he’s actually an excellent trained architect (from no other institution than the AA) but one day decided he preferred food – and despite being awarded a Michelin star for St. John restaurant in 2009, he was entirely self taught as a chef and has never worked in anybody else’s kitchen.

Henderson was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 1996, and has since undergone deep brain stimulation therapy which supposedly has increased his mobility in the kitchen – however, watching him work it’s clear that he wields most implements with difficulty (and in some cases, it’s just too dangerous) and relies on his deputy. However, when you talk to him, it’s clear that his disability has not diminished his ability, talent or passion for food – if anything, it’s enhanced it. He’s an animated, engaging speaker with a dry sense of humor and a disarming smile. I had the honor of running a food photography class with him once; it remains one of the most inspiring experiences of my photographic career to date.

All I can say is that I have enormous respect for the man, and his bone marrow and parsley salad (which he describes in strangely architectural terms) was quite excellent, too. MT

This series shot with a Leica M9-P, 35/1.4 ASPH FLE and Leica D-Lux 5 Titanium.

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Filed Under: Leica, On Photography Tagged With: chef, fergus henderson, food, leica, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, photo, photoessay, photography, portrait, st john, 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

Photoessay: Summer in Geneva

August 5, 2012 by Ming Thein

The sun comes out in Geneva (apparently quite rare). A quick travel series using the Olympus OM-D and 45/2.8 Macro – my backup lens while on assignment.

Enjoy! MT

As usual, all images can be clicked on for larger versions.

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Filed Under: On Photography Tagged With: geneva, m4/3, micro four thirds, ming, mingthein.com, photo, photoessay, photography, switzerland, thein

Inspirations from older cameras: the Nikon D3, part two

August 3, 2012 by Ming Thein

Part two of of this series. Part one was here.

Exclamation mark. D3, 300/2.8 VR

Untitled. D3, 24-70

Rest. D3, 105VR

Satay man. D3, 14-24

Suggestions of a watch. D3, 105VR

Tour de Langkawi 2009. D3, 24-70

The ‘hollywood’ shot. D3, 24-70

Virtual buildings. D3, 24-70

Blending in with nature. D3, 24-70

The proverbial rose. D3, 24-70

It can only be Fuji. D3, 24-70

Sunset. D3, 50/1.4 AFS

Children, Bangkok. D3, 14-24.

Live retouching. D3, 24-70.

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Filed Under: On Photography Tagged With: d3, inspirations from an older camera, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, nikon, photoessay, photography, thein

Inspirations from older cameras: the Nikon D3, part one

August 2, 2012 by Ming Thein

For me, the Nikon D3 is one of the cameras that revolutionized the way I shot – no longer was the camera the limitation in any way. It almost made things too easy; it forced me to rethink the way I shoot and stop trying to capture ‘everything’ in hyperreal detail and light (that was the previous challenge) and start moving myself to a more selective way of seeing. This was further reinforced by the Leica M8 that followed…

The D3 and D700 share the same sensor and much of their innards; the latter camera is still in service with me today, and used for things where I either don’t need the resolution or have to shoot under more demanding conditions than would be convenient with the D800E. And for anybody thinking of upgrading from an older DX camera, do it – you’re in for a treat.

Part one of the reinspiration is here. MT

Fushima-inarii, Kyoto. D3, 24-70

Hoan Kiem, Hanoi. D3, 70-300VR

Rain. Kuala Lumpur. D3, 70-300VR

Scarlet ibis. D3, 70-300VR

Joy. D3, 24-70

Detective in the city. D3, 24-70

Stamens. D3, 105VR

Imperial Palace moat, Tokyo. D3, 24-70.

Shadows, Tokyo. D3, 24-70

Omega Dynamic. D3, 105VR

Daibutsu, Nara. D3, 24-70

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Filed Under: On Photography Tagged With: d3, inspirations from an older camera, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, nikon, photoessay, photography, thein

Inspirations from older cameras: The Ricoh GR Digital III

July 30, 2012 by Ming Thein

The original Ricoh GR-Digital was a cult camera that was known for two things: its ability to produce interest B&W JPEGs directly out of camera that heavily resembled Tri-X, and it’s incredibly configurable user interface. A fixed 28/2.5 equivalent was just part of the package. To be honest, I never really got along with this camera; I bought it solely because I loved the way it felt, and hardly used it.

Somehow, I found myself finding the 28mm focal length more and more intuitive as I matured as a photographer, to the point where I would see 28mm frame lines around every scene suspended in midair. The ideal compact was therefore an easy choice – I acquired a Ricoh GR-Digital III in early 2010, and used it heavily – occasionally as a primary camera, too. Although it still produces excellent out of camera B&W JPEGs, its sensor has fantastic tonality in both color and monochrome, and conversions are best done in ACR to make the most of the files.

Suffice to say it’s given me a surprisingly large number of keeper and portfolio-grade images over the years. MT

Self portrait

Construction break

The Number 15 to Trafalgar Square

Inside your watch

After the rain

Untitled

There is a divergence in the force

Untitled

Chinese New Year

Bulbs

Stubbornness

Reflections on people

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Filed Under: On Photography Tagged With: gr digital iii, grdiii, inspirations from an older camera, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, photoessay, photography, ricoh, thein

Inspirations from older cameras: The Canon SD780IS/ IXUS 100 IS

July 28, 2012 by Ming Thein

Early 2009. I’d never really thought of the importance of the camera you have with you up til this point – I’d always gotten around that by always carrying the best camera I had. There were, however, situations where that wasn’t really suitable, so I went in search of a compact camera. I was taken by the overall stealthiness of the Canon IXUS SD780IS; it was matte black, rounded, and had a load of flush buttons. 33-100 wasn’t an ideal focal length range, but it did start somewhere reasonably acceptable for street photography and covert documentary work. It also produced a reasonably nice file that was easy to work with in photoshop. My mum inherited this camera and refuses any attempts on my part to give her an upgrade. MT

Steampunk