My cousin Angela and her family arrived in L.A. yesterday. Valerie suggested we meet at a restaurant halfway between our place and their hotel in Century City. The Kettle is our destination, a Manhattan Beach institution...but I do believe this is only Valerie or my second or third time eating here.

We've only been seated a short time when Noah asks to borrow his mom's phone. Kids these days!

Hana is all smiles

Jeff and Angela have been updating us...it has been quite some time since we last saw them. Valerie and I are surprised to learn that Singapore is even more locked down than we are.

I love narrow depth of field...except when I try to take a photo of people in depth. If I had more light, I could stop down to increase it a bit more.

This is a better pic of Jeff, Angela, Noah, and Hana...because they're all on the same focal plane, I took it from slightly further away and I reduced the shutter speed so I could stop down a bit more. Usually I have a tough time holding a shot like this steady enough to get a sharp picture...especially using a lens without optical stabilization, but the R5's sensor has its own optical stabilizer.

Valerie suggests I try taking a selfie with the R5...but I should have known better. The lens blocks my view of the LCD panel, so I have to rely upon everyone else to tell me if everyone is in the frame.

And of course I cannot be far enough away from the camera to get myself AND everyone else in focus...especially because I had to up the shutter speed to compensate for how awkward it is to hold a camera like this at arm's length and press the shutter button.

I end up taking the group selfie with my smartphone...easiest way to guarantee depth of field, but not necessarily the sharpest

Being this close with my lens and fully open, the narrow depth of field really messes up this shot of my meal. I am having their fried chicken, biscuits, and gravy...which is not exactly the most photogenic item anyway. And the chicken could have been coated in thicker and crispier batter, the biscuits could have been fluffier and served with a bit more gravy.

I get a better shot of Valerie's California Benedict simply because the plate is a bit further away. When I take food pics with the 28-70, I'm should always have the focal length closer to 70mm...especially if I'm shooting wide open.

After brunch, we walk down to the Manhattan Beach Pier. It is unusually hot and exceptionally dry this fall afternoon...weather my relatives did not pack for.

Valerie, Angela, Jeff, Noah, and Hana on the Manhattan Beach Pier

Eric, Angela, Jeff, Noah, and Hana (Photo by Valerie)

Eric, Angela, Jeff, Noah, and Hana (Photo by Valerie)

I take pictures of Jeff trying to get a selfie with the kids

I take pictures of Jeff trying to get a selfie with the kids

That's quite a rig

Santa Ana winds are responsible for both bringing today's heat and making Catalina Island a bit more visible than usual from this particular vantage point

So that's what that hill to the south is called...who knew?

It's time to head home after a visit that was just a bit too short