The Tombs

The Tombs, by Reed A. George

Nikon FM2, Nikkor AIS 35mm f1.4 Lens

Agfa APX400 Film

 

Just a quick shot I made while having lunch with my friend, Charlie, at the Georgetown restaurant called "The Tombs." You can see the rowing crew motif of the restaurant by noticing the oars on the left.

 

For this shot, I set my Nikkor 35mm f1.4 manual focus lens to f1.4 and prefocused to the top of a small set of stairs. Even though I have to shoot the Agfa film at iso 200 instead of the indicated speed of 400, there was enough light in just this one spot.

 

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Inside Looking Out - Rolleiflex 2.8F

 

Inside Looking Out, by Reed A. George

Rolleiflex 2.8F Planar, Kodak Tmax 400 Film

 

I shot this on a lovely, bright, spring morning at Le Diplomate restaurant in Washington, DC. I exposed for the gentleman's face, which meant that I had to dodge the interior (dark) portion of the image to show some detail in the bottles.

 

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Invited for Dinner - Japanese Style

If you're a fish, never accept an invitation to dinner in Japan...

Where Shall I Sit?, by Reed A. George

Nikon Df, Nikkor 50mm f1.2 AIS Lens

iso 800, f2, 1/250 sec.

 

Fugu (Pufferfish), by Reed A. George

Nikon Df, Nikkor 50mm f1.2 AIS Lens

iso 800, f2, 1/500 sec.

 

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Today's Photos From Japan - Grill Master

Food is always one of the highlights of visiting Japan. We ate lunch at an amazing restaurant in Tokyo called Wakanui, which features grilled meats. Here's the grill master at work:

 

Grill Master, by Reed A. George

Nikon Df, Nikkor 50mm f1.2 AIS Lens

iso 3200, f1.4, 1/250 sec.

 

The grill master was very impressive to watch. He used a metal probe to check the internal temperature of the meats. An electronic thermometer? Certainly not. He would insert the probe deep into the meat, then press it against his lower lip to sense the temperature with his own neurons. I like that.

 

Grill Master No. 2, by Reed A. George

Nikon Df, Nikkor 50mm f1.2 AIS Lens

iso 3200, f1.4, 1/250 sec.

 

I have found myself wondering why I carry any camera other than my Lumix LX-100 when traveling. These photos are part of the answer. Shooting at f1.4 at 50mm focal length, and getting these kind of results at iso 3200 are the sole domain of the Nikon Df in my camera set. These are jpegs straight from the camera, just converted to black and white and cropped in Snapseed, on my iPad.

 

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Another One From a Year Ago

Santa Fe Diner, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX7

 

I guess I was smart enough to travel to Santa Fe last winter. I took this shot with my GX7 sitting on the restaurant table. I like that you can see each of the couple's heads three times (the heads themselves, reflections in the mirror beside them, and reflections on the table surface). Pretty cool.

 

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High Contrast, Asian Style - Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX100 Sample Image

 

Asian Restaurant, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX100

iso 400, f2.8, 1/1000 sec.

 

I'm loving my new LX100. Lots more to come.

 

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Best Little Sushi Shop in Tsukiji

Sakura Ebi Soup, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 14mm f2.5

iso400, f2.5, 1/40 sec

 

If you live in the United States, you probably know how the best of certain types of restaurants (e.g. barbecue) are usually deceiving in their appearance. Somehow, the best BBQ comes from that "hole-in-the-wall" place on the backstreet. You know, the one you're a little scared to walk into?

 

Well, it's not so different with restaurants in Japan. This little shop is literally adjacent to the Tsukiji fish market, the world's largest seafood market, located in Tokyo. Looking out the front door of this place, you can see the market stalls directly outside.

 

Tsukiji Sushi Restaurant, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 14mm f2.5

iso400, f2.5, 1/160 sec

 

Japan is full of tiny restaurants. While this isn't the smallest sushi restaurant I've ever been in (I think that one sat about four or five customers), this one's not huge, by any means. I think it seats eight diners.

 

Tsukiji Sushi Restaurant, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 14mm f2.5

iso400, f2.5, 1/50 sec

This place served up some of the best sushi I've ever eaten. Literally. I'm sure that fresh fish comes in directly from the market every day, and it shows. The selection was awesome. For example, one of the tell-tale sushi pieces is sea urchin (uni, in Japanese). If it is fresh, it is sweet and tasty. If it's even a little past its prime, it's awful. Here, it was downright transformational. Another for me is squid (ika, in Japanese). This place's squid is tender and tasty. Anyway, I digress.

And, my dining company was great as well. Here's three generations of the ladies in the family - my daughter, wife, and mother-in-law:

Three Generations, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 14mm f2.5

iso400, f2.5, 1/30 sec

The Lumix 14mm really worked well in this tight situation. It was wide enough to allow me to shoot in close quarters, and fast enough to keep the iso at 400, very safe territory for manageable noise with the DMC-G3.

 

I hope you enjoyed this little description of a memorable lunch with my family. Thanks for humoring me.

 

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