Ming Thein is a renowned Malaysian photographer known for his distinct approach to photography. He has worked in various types of photography, including corporate, commercial, and personal projects. Ming Thein has written extensively about photography on his personal blog, where he shares his insights, expertise, and thoughts on various aspects of photography. He has gained a reputation for his deep understanding of the technical, artistic, and philosophical aspects of photography. Ming Thein also served as the Chief of Strategy for Hasselblad, a prominent camera manufacturer, up until 2019. In this role, he was responsible for providing input on the direction of the company’s products and services based on his professional experience and knowledge of the photography market. If you’re asking yourself why are we writing about a world renowned photographer here over Micro Brand Watch World, well, that’s because Ming Thein is also one of the six founding members of the watch brand that shares his name. This brand emerged in 2017 with its inaugural timepiece, the 17.0. Today we’re introducing to you the latest edition to Ming collection – Ming 37.05 Series 2, An exquisitely crafted timepiece featuring a Moon phase display.
Ming 37.05 Series 2 comes in a 316L stainless steel case, that has a diameter of 38mm and a thickness of 11.9mm. The case offers alternating brushed and polished finishes, with a domed sapphire crystal covering the front and the back of the watch.
The watch case is adorned with the iconic Pagoda-Style lugs, which have become a distinctive design element closely associated with Ming and its timepieces. The watch’s dial is composed of two layers: the lower dial plate is made of metal, while the upper part is crafted from sapphire and intricately laser-etched. The lower dial, in a sunray-rushed anthracite shade, showcases a captivating series of star-shaped holes.
These holes serve as home to luminous stars that come into view and disappear as the moon phases change. To create this captivating on/off effect, a large rotating moon disc is employed to alter the starry scenery. Apart from the stars within the holes, the dial is further adorned with around twelve luminous yellow HyCeram stars. These stars are applied to the upper sapphire dial, seemingly suspended above the dark grey lower dial. Adding to the enchantment, the upper dial features blue luminous HyCeram hour indices, marked by laser-etched segments, and accompanied by luminous hour and minute hands.
With its minimalist design and intuitive layout, the watch elegantly showcases the phases of the moon through a circular aperture on the lower dial. When the luminous yellow moon is in its full phase, it forms a complete ring, while the partial phases are depicted as a proportion of the ring. The date aperture is thoughtfully positioned at 6 o’clock, designed as a cut-out rectangle that blends seamlessly with the dial’s color, aiming to be as inconspicuous as possible. The true magic of this timepiece comes to life in low-light conditions, where the luminous blue elements indicate the time, while the yellow elements are exclusively dedicated to showcasing the moon phases and stars.
Inside the watch we find Sellita SW288-1 movement. SW288-1 is a manual winding movement, which has been extensively modified by Ming. The calibre comes with a matte anthracite coated skeleton bridges, with circular brushing finishes. SW288-1 is beating at 28,800 vibrations per hour and provides a power reserve of 40 hours. Ming has equipped the movement with a quick-set feature for the moon phase display and for the date.
The Ming 37.05 Series 2 will be available in a limited edition of 500 watches, with a price tag of CHF 4,950. If you wish to purchase the watch, it is available exclusively at ming.watch. Ming will open the website for orders at 13:00 GMT on the 11th of July, 2023, shipping is expected by Q4 2023.