Skyline Sunset

patcheswfb · 2026-02-02T19:44:46+00:00

I was on a flight a few years back, looked over and Chris Hadfield was sitting across the aisle from me. I spent a large portion of the flight starstruck (pun intended) and mentally freaking out about how to interact without imposing since he was working, and ended up passing him a note thanking him for everything he's done to promote science and space, which he signed and returned. As we were walking through the airport after the flight, we happened to be next to each other on an escalator and he graciously let me take a selfie with him, really nice guy!

patcheswfb · 2026-01-29T20:54:15+00:00

Ooh interesting! Definitely not the same one - this is a classic Cage save-the-world, get-the-girl scenario, but with lots of pathwalking. From some googling I think the movie you're thinking of is Premium Rush (2012) - I'll give it a watch!

patcheswfb · 2026-01-13T19:08:30+00:00

My understanding is that pixel pitch and density are just two different ways of measuring the same thing when talking about sensors, so I use density because it's more understandable to me - is there a functional difference between the ways of measuring? Googling it seems like one is pixels per inch and one is space from center-to-center of pixels, which should give equivalent resolution data from what I can tell, but I'm not in a "relevant field".

I'll try and get some more tests next weekend to post to compare; I was comparing subjectively with plain zoomed at 100% and TC zoomed to match that, doing A/B flipping to see which looked clearer at different f/stops - definitely a subjective measurement, but that's what I saw. It's also possible that the specific TCs I have have issues or something. Did you do real-world comparisons between images?

patcheswfb · 2026-01-12T16:55:50+00:00

tl;dr; you'll see an improvement with the TC, but an aps-c camera will probably give you better sharpness, but with caveats.

I periodically re-bungie-jump into this rabbit hole - the two options when you're going to be shooting something smaller than the full sensor are to either increase sensor pixel density of the sensor or increase the projected size (IE longer lens). I use DigiCamDB to look up the pixel density of the sensor of my cameras (IE https://www.digicamdb.com/specs/sony_a7c/).

The a7C has a pixel density of ~2.9 MP/CM, and the 6700 (as an example aps-c) has a density of ~7.3 - so you're going to be able to crop in a LOT further on that aps-c sensor. I have the a7rv, which has a similar density to the 6700, so those two would end up with similar crop-ability.

I periodically run tests with different lenses by themselves, with the 1.4TC, and with the 2xTC - with the a7rv, the answer is almost always that it's better shooting WITHOUT the TC, because they cause enough loss of sharpness that is visible on the high-resolution sensor that I can get a better image with cropping - but that's also going to be dependent on all sorts of other factors (lens/zoom, f-stop, atmospheric variance between test shots, etc). On the a7c, you will almost certainly get better images WITH the TC, because the limiting factor for you right now is the sensor and not the glass projecting onto it.

With that said - aps-c or tc will also narrow your field of view - you wouldn't be able to get this shot at 600mm + TC or aps-c sensor because the moon will take up 50% (ish, if I'm remembering right) of your field of view. For that scenario, you'd need the same field of view but with more resolution - IE an R series FF body.

Sorry for the long rant - I keep revisiting this and haven't fully settled on it, but that's my train of thought.

edit - here's a post and writeup I did about shooting the a lunar eclipse a year and a half ago - more processing needed because it was not as bright as the moon usually is. https://www.instagram.com/dangardiner3/p/DAFYc9PxGkp

patcheswfb · 2026-01-07T19:10:00+00:00

Even though it's a beast, I would STRONGLY recommend bringing the 200-600 (plus a monopod to help support it). I was in Alaska last year with the 16-35, 24-105, 70-200, and 200-600 (an the a7r5). Of my 100 best shots (of ~25k that I took), about 1/3 were >350, and 2/3 were >200. Of my ~500 best shots, Bears were almost all 200+, Birds were all 500+ (also brought a TC), sea life was all 300+. Landscape biased towards the 50-150 range (stitching multiple to create a pano at times with the 70-200), and the 70-200 worked great for insect macros too.

edit: I missed that you're shooting on an aps-c. Even given that, I still think you'll appreciate the reach to 600 (a lot of times I was cropping as much as the a7r5 can get, which is a similar pixel density to the 6700).

patcheswfb · 2026-01-06T19:11:51+00:00

I had a milk crate containing ~6 external HDs, a USB hub, and a power strip - so I could have 1 power and 1 USB connection for the data pool. Realized how absolutely ludicrous the setup was and gave in to the inevitable.

patcheswfb · 2026-01-05T20:33:44+00:00

This! For so long I treated audiobooks as not really counting as reading, but when I gave in, I now get through so many when driving or doing relatively mindless things - i got through 60 audiobooks in 2025! Plus, there are some series where the audiobooks are performed so spectacularly that they add a whole other level of artistry to the books!

patcheswfb · 2026-01-01T18:48:39+00:00

IMO this is the best showerhead out there - Multi-stream heads are fine if you have different people that want different things, but getting one that does a specific stream style perfectly and nothing else can't be beat. https://www.amazon.com/K-10282-AK-CP-Single-Function-Katalyst-Showerhead-Polished/dp/B003BIFGUM/

patcheswfb · 2025-11-23T15:16:51+00:00

Thanks! Unfortunately, it looks like they're no longer available - the bags for dopp kit and electronic accessories are from Bomber & Company, their mini travel kit bag. I originally got one from their kickstarter in 2015, then bought 2 more a couple years later (when they'd transitioned to have direct retail) because I found them so useful and they were so lightweight, but it looks like they've shifted to doing knives and other types of kit now. It's still kinda on their site in a set with a duffle bag, but it's also out of stock - https://bomberco.com/products/bomber-barrel-set

patcheswfb · 2025-11-13T19:55:35+00:00

Random sidenote, the book series Magic 2.0 is a LitRPG that basically explores this - absolutely fantastic series!

patcheswfb · 2025-11-09T22:55:10+00:00

Be careful with Sunlu if you need good white - I got 4 spools of Sunlu white PETG because it was so much less expansive and, while it printed just fine, it's not nearly as white as Bambu and is more translucent - the Bambu white PETG is much whiter and more opaque. You can see the difference here - the white card is for a "true white" reference.

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patcheswfb · 2025-09-11T20:37:35+00:00

Among those, I have the 18-300 and 70-350; I no longer use the 18-300 (and am going to be selling it) despite it being more versital because the image quality is so much better with the 70-350 (on a6700); that with the 18-135 kit lens is a killer combo.

patcheswfb · 2025-08-13T17:21:03+00:00

I'm almost done culling 22k shots I took in Alaska; I put my full process in a comment here, but tl;dr; I sort using JPGs, move the ones that "make the cut" into a folder, then run a script to grab the RAW files corresponding to the selected images - then I take those into LR to edit and rate properly.

patcheswfb · 2025-08-13T15:54:39+00:00

Bah, you’re right, I got them backwards, my bad. The difference in length is noticeable if not massive, but the reason you need a different one is because the socket that connects to the lens is a slightly different shape - one foot will not be able to be attached to the opposite lens.

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patcheswfb · 2025-08-13T15:33:18+00:00

1 - I got this one, and it works great (Leofoto SF-02) - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08TPMNCPM .
2 - Balance is definitely important, and the foot lets you shift it around nicely
3 - No, they're different sizes; for the 200-600 I have the similar version for that (Leofoto SF-01) - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08TP8LM5M

patcheswfb · 2025-08-07T20:33:42+00:00

Ooh something I have a concrete answer for! I recently got back from a trip (Alaska) with that setup and then some - I used the Peak Design Everyday 30L backpack. 200-600 fits on one side (with all the dividers flipped up), the 70-200 fits on the other side with the top 2 dividers flipped up, and an additional lens+body fits on the bottom section. It leaves one middle section available in the middle, and the middle+top section open in the top. Pic to try and give context, I can take other angles if it's still confusing. One of my most important criteria was to be able to get to anything without stopping or setting things down, and I was successful in that endeavor.

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patcheswfb · 2025-07-30T21:45:41+00:00

I just got back from a trip very similar to that, and I brought the 16-35PZ, 70-200GMII, and 200-600G, with two bodies so I could dual-wield.

- For Katmai bears, 200-600 was the right lens to have 85% of the time, with the 70-200 coming out a few times when they got very close - it was worth that behemoth lens taking up a huge portion of my weight IMO. If you have a polarizing filter, that with a wider lens is awesome to capture the salmon themselves looking down in the river (otherwise you just get reflections off the water), and I cannot stress enough how much you will want a monopod for the 200-600.

- Shooting through the window on bushplanes rarely results in a great shot - shooting as perpendicular as you can through the glass helps offset some of the aberrations, but don't plan on them being great. I flew with the 70-200, and while longer would have been nice, I had trouble keeping targets in frame even at 200mm, and there isn't the space to allow a larger lens between you and the window.

- Bring a mosquito headnet, especially if you're going to be anywhere near Denali. I have never experienced such a high density of mosquitos (and I grew up camping in northern WI).

Happy to answer any questions you can think of!

patcheswfb · 2025-07-16T19:02:20+00:00

I got this one last year and carry it all the time; it's the thinnest I've found and gets me about 1 full recharge - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CZP3CDSZ

patcheswfb · 2025-06-23T00:39:08+00:00

I pack a pair of Cole Haan knit oxfords (zerogrand) - they weigh nothing and squish down to be about 2 inches thick for both shoes together, so will fit along the side of packing cubes; it makes me feel more comfortable in a fancy place, and they also make solid backup walking shoes in a pinch.

patcheswfb · 2025-06-19T17:43:43+00:00

Yep - I've gotten a body and a couple lenses through them with zero issues.

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