Went to Horse Quarters with friends today. Took quite a few photos of horseback riding. Also got a little marksmanship instructing done.
SU22 with PA micro dot (very useful as two of three shooters today were cross-eye dominant) and AAC Prodigy suppressor. 32-round BDM magazine inserted.
AAC Cloak 10-22 integrally suppressed barrel, stock 10-round mag, Timney trigger (thank you, Marshall!) and 4x Leupold scope.
Finally realized that Panasonic G3 is a step down from G2 for my needs: fewer physical controls, smaller battery. The smaller “depth” turned out to be purely from the shorter handgrip, which won’t matter given the lens length. GH2 is out of the running because it is too much for a backup camera — I think I’d be just as happy with a smaller, cheaper and simpler G2, especially since video is less of a consideration for me than stills. The question how is whether I should just get the Olympus 45/1.8 or also a Panasonic 20/1.7 for wider shots. I take almost all of my 5D2 photos with 85-100mm range lenses, but wider views do come into play from time to time.
G2 with either lens won’t be purely pocketable, but then neither is my LX3. Truly pocket-sized camera were not useful for the poor image quality and the lack of usable controls. LX3 has the controls but they are too menu-driven for my taste.
I suppose I could just use the backup 5D (without the battery grip) with a 35/2 but somehow that doesn’t seem compact enough. Canon’s lower end bodies, though compatible with my existing lenses, just don’t inspire me much — and I have too much experience with lackluster 5D2 live view performance to want a repeat.
He’s an architect working in Las Vegas. He’s also involved with the awesome Kaizen Asian fusion restaurant (auto-played music at the link).
Both photos taken with LX3. Looks like the upgrade to GH2 with 20/1.7 and 45/1.8 will have to happen. The images are just too noisy and the LCD was so hard to see in daylight. Plus the 60mm equivalent lens is sub-optimal for portraits. Justifying the cost will be a bit harder.
A hungry friend stopped by today, so I put this dish together. It was delicious. Prep and cooking were under 15 minutes total, less than driving to the nearest fast food place would have taken.
Russian riverboat girls are tough 
This one cleans up pretty well.
Browning M1919 on an MG42 tripod: 250 rounds of 30-06 or .308 before a reload…I think this will end the AR15 vs. AK47 debate.
Shot it with regular ammo and SBR tracers yesterday. Watching people getting hits on a 50 yard target with a pocket pistol was pretty cool.
This rig is an excellent illustration of how guns can make up for lack of number or physical strength. A hundred-pound girl can hold off a mob of hundreds if properly armed, while even a dozen of unarmed strong men would get trampled by the same. Ideally, a machine gunner would be supported by an assistant and a squad of riflemen, but with good placement and the ability to fire one gun while the other cools down or gets fresh ammo, even a single defender can have a strong effect.
Taken with ATN PVS14 and a Panasonic LX3. The camera was used at ISO200, so it added a bit of noise to the image.At base ISO, the exposure would have been 1/6s, going up to 200 allowed 1/15s at f2.5.
Highway lights in the background. Main exposure by moonlight from 7% waxing crescent. Rifle is MSAR STG556 with YNH suppressor, EOTech in front of PVS14 and light/laser.
As you can see, the DOF on the monocular itself is fairly limited up close. Sharpness is quite good, enough to read the ammo box lettering.
JRC was ostensibly designed as a traines for AR15 users. The manual of arms is much too different for that, but it seems quite useable as low-recoil home defense guns and for those who like “cowboy logistics”, the commonality of ammunition between carbine and sidearm. Both ejection and charging handle can be independently switched from right to left. Unfenced magazine release stays on the left. Stock and fire control are pure AR15, so’s the forend.
Top photo shows it in “muddy girl” pattern with YHM folding sights and Viridian X5L light/laser. Center and bottom photos in desert digital camo, with Midwest Industries folding sights and Primary Arms micro red dot on an American Defense QD mount. Insight M3 light completes the set-up. Both shown with 33rd Glock magazines because only the first outfit has room for spares and, in any case, longer magazines aren’t such a handicap for carbines as they are for pistols. And, yes, these are available in plain black.
Model Red McCord
Building on to the glories of Birdman Homie Night sights: now for rifles.
Picture taken with Panasonic LX3 through ATN PVS14 (3rd gen NVG).
I am considering getting a “vest pocket” camera. I like my Panasonic LX3 for what it is, but it’s not a viable low-light camera. The one feature I lack now that I want in a travel camera is a variable angle LCD. I am considering either getting a Canon (which adds a second battery type and a second memory type to 5D2 but keeps the same lenses) OR getting a Panasonic GH2 and 20/1.7 and 45/1.8 lens pair. The advantage of the Canon is in the slightly better image quality and the ability to use the same lenses (35/2 and 85/1.8). The down side to the same lenses is the size — Canon doesn’t seem to make fast APS-C primes. GH2 with a 20mm or a 45mm will be close to half the weight of the T3i and 35mm or 85mm lenses. Other than the formidable cost of getting a body AND two lenses for it, is there any reason to prefer the Canon over the Panasonic?
I have not seriously used a camera with an electronic viewfinder or a variable angle — am I going to hate it in low light or when following action? The comparison would be to a porro-prism finder of the T3i, not to the glass prism of the 5D2. Live View on 5D2 is painfully slow. Is it any better on GH2?
Zett with Mauser C96 from Chris Range’s upcoming comic book.
Airship engineer character for the upcoming dieselpunk comic book “Zett & Lux” by Chris Range. Auto Ordnance 1927 Thompson with 100rd drum and 20rd stick magazines.
Scorpion vz61 machine pistol with an AAC Evolution-9 suppressor
With its rate reducer removed, vz61 can fire the entire 20-round magazine in one second with excellent control over the burst placement. With a sound suppressor, muzzle climb becomes negligible. The 75m and 150m sight markings are wildly optimistic even in semi-auto mode, but 25 is very easy and 50 is still reasonable. 32ACP suppressed extremely well as it is subsonic and has mild muzzle blast anyway.
RFB .308 with YHM suppressor
KSG 12ga
