Top Golf, Top Camera

We are officially on Christmas break at the Wadsworth house so it was time for some well deserved R&R. Yesterday we grabbed grandpa and headed out to Top Golf for some fun at this very cool driving range. Lately I've been using the new Sony A7 almost exclusively with a manual focus m-rokkor lens, but this time I wanted some speedy autofocus. Lucky, the A7 can be mated with the Sony LAEA-4 adapter featuring translucent mirror technology, otherwise known as SLT. The translucent mirror allows for fast phase detection autofocus with Sony and Minolta A-mount lenses, effectively turning the A7 into a mini A99. For the handful of us that shoot professionally with A-mount lenses, this opens up some really great lens options in addition to the new FE lenses made specifically for the camera. No other platform can boast autofocus Zeiss lenses such as the 85/1.4 or 135/1.8 and the Minolta lenses from the 80s and 90s are just as good if not better than their Canikon equivalents, at a fraction of the cost.

Mated with a Minolta AF 50/1.4, the combo I used at Top Golf was plenty fast, deadly accurate and handled both the motion and hard shadows really well. The little Minolta was tack sharp at f/2 and dreamy wide open. Comparatively, I took the RX1 to Top Golf earlier in the year and other than winter vs. late summer light, and the difference in FOV, I would be hard pressed to tell between the cameras. That's high praise for the A7/Minolta, given how well regarded the 35mm Zeiss on the RX1 is. 

Grandpa put the high score up on the board but the jrs. made an impressive run. The A7 continued to impress as well, earning it my top camera award of 2013 (watch out DPReview). From my seat, no other camera offers what the A7(r) can - top of the class full frame sensors, compact form, great build quality and the flexibility to shoot almost every lens made, combine to obliterate our expectation of what a small camera can do in 2013.

Happy holidays to all and happy shooting. Hope to see you back here in 2014. 

In Brett We Trust

Last night I went to church to hear the preaching of northern California singer songwriter Brett Dennen. Hushed and reverent, Brett's fans lined the pews and filled the balcony to hear his sweet brand of pop folk. Launching his tour in support of the new album, "Smoke and Mirrors", the lanky red head had his fans enraptured throughout the set.

Being There

Last night was special. One of the great American bands, Wilco, played a sold out show at Stubbs BBQ. The band was in town to play to the festival crowds but last night we got to see an almost three hour set played for a much smaller audience.

The wife and I started out the evening with a tasty dinner and cocktails at Justine's Brasserie. Always recommended, Justine's does french cuisine in typical Austin cool with vinyl records spinning in the bar and a tintype photo booth in the side yard. They also consistently serve their meals at the hottest temperature you can imagine. The escargot was actually simmering in the dish.

After our excellent meal, we headed down to Stubbs where the box office sign read "We are seriously 100% SOLD OUT!" Over the years I've had the pleasure of photographing Jeff Tweedy and company on several occasions and even had some work up on their website, so I rolled in feeling excited but relaxed. This was going to be fun.

Early in the set the band pleased the diehards by dusting off the Uncle Tupelo classic "Give Back The Keys To My Heart".

Every album in the catalog was touched but the band really shined and the fans roared when reworking old tunes like "Via Chicago" and "Shot in the Arm".

Guitar hero Nels Cline was as always, a joy to watch and hear. I'm not a jam band guy but watching Nels riff is something special. Even better when Jeff was shredding side-by-side. He doesn't flaunt it, but the man can play with the best of them.