Modern ReefKeeping

Lets all face it, in today’s age of inexpensive point and shoot digital camera the average person can just lay down $150, take dozens of tank shots and end up with a few real gems. The question is, what makes a photo great and why did some of them come out so great while the rest end up in the recycle bin on our computer? I do hope this article will help some of you shed some light on why!

Equipment

As stated above, a great pic can be taken with today’s cheapest point and shoots. The same shot can also be taken with a $10000 Nikon D3 setup (I have been fortunate enough to shoot one of these, more later). The bottom line is as it is in most, if not all hobbies, equipment can help, but it does not make you a great photographer. Most have what is considered “point and shoot”. The typical auto setting is where most shots are taken, with some delving into the tulip, mountain, night or other settings. DSLRs are more expensive, as much as your heart wishes to spend almost. Are they worth it? Yes if all you care about is getting amazing pics. But bang for the buck, the point and shoots can get most if not every shot the DSLRs can, it just may take a bit more effort in some circumstances.

Megapixels

This is where many get caught up in the equipment argument. I personally have an Apple 24” computer monitor set at its highest resolution. That makes this huge monitor 1920X1200 pixels, 2280000 pixels, or a 2.28 megapixel resolution. This is really where the issue comes in. What are you doing with these pictures? If you are just viewing on your computer, TV or printing 4X6/8X10’s then 4-6 MP is plenty. Even 20X30 inch posters will look fine at 6 MP. I personally shoot a Nikon D80 at 10.5 MP. Not that I ever use that kind of resolution. The reason, a little secret. I can crop out the subject in the pic if need be and still have the resolution needed to do any of the above. Megapixels have there place and advantages, but it is not the end all be all. See this link here for a great argument against megapixels. One of the greatest arguments against is that the higher the resolution for a given sensor size (digital image sensors come in a few standard sizes), the more light you need to portray the subject. And you know what, in practice it is true!

What makes a great photo?

The simple answer (and best) is whatever is a good photo to you of course. Shoot what you like, how you like. If there is something you do not like about your photos then look at why, try different things. For photos that make others gasp and say it is amazing rather than just “great” (a stock, polite term) there are a few rules I like to follow:

Portray what is really there. If the photo is altered to look different people will see and notice this, not to mention it is dishonest. See rule #2.

Good subject matter. This goes hand and hand with rule #1. You cannot make good subject matter out of junk with Photoshop or similar programs. Some think they can, but it will not truly look stunning to any who know. Another aspect here is picking out what people want to see. I intend no offense here, we all have done it, but nobody really cares to much to see a pic of your clownfish or mushroom. These photos have been beaten to death!

Good lighting. This does not mean having 5000 watts of light for the photo, it means good lighting control. Photography of any sort is about lighting control, it becomes even more important and apparent in photographing our tanks. Take several sequential shots under MH lighting and you will see that they are not the same. Lighting in our tank changes. Whether it be the MH shimmer or going from a darker spot to a lighter spot. We all need to be aware of this, with any camera. Lighting control entails the camera operation and settings we will discuss below. The end game of each setting….CONTROLLING LIGHT in different ways.

Vivid colors. Again, this does not mean altering the photo. This is all about camera settings and lighting control. Remember your photo is what it is. More later.

It of course has to absolutely be in focus! For my personal taste, the whole subject. This is related to Fstop or aperture. One of the points we will review here in a bit.

For our purposes here we will dicuss three types of photos taken in our reef tanks and the camera settings and techniques that apply. The three types of photos are full tank shots, “macro” shots (close ups) and action shots (such as a pic of your favorite tang). The settings discussed will be shutter speed, Fstop or aperature, ISO, focus and flash. This of course will not tell you every little detail to taking a great shot in every situation, but hopefully will cover the basics to get all of us in the ball park.

Shutter Speed

This is simply how long the image sensor is subjected to the image we are taking. The longer it is exposed the more light that is let in and the brighter the image will be. Slower lets in more light. So, of course, the faster the shutter speed the more light you will need to produce an image.

Fstop or Aperature

This is how much light the lens lets in. A high Fstop lets in less light, while a big aperature lets in more, they are inverse. The lens will actually let less light in as the Fstop increases by choking down the diameter inside the lens. Fstops are based on a diameter of 50mm. So at 50mm it is F1. At 25mm it is 50/25 or F2. At 12.5mm it is 50/12.5 or F4. What does this all mean? With a low Fstop such as F4 you will get quite a bit of light through the lens allowing you to get pics in darker situations or faster shutter speeds. You sacrifice depth of field, that is how much of the image is in focus. We will discuss this very in depth in the macro section.

ISO

This is traditionally the light sensitivity of the film to light. In digital cameras nowadays there is an adjustment on many for this same feature. The higher the ISO the more sensitive to light it is. This means you need less light for the same shot. But the trade off: higher ISOs tend to be grainy. I personally try not to shoot higher than ISO 400, 800 on very rare occasions.

At ISO 200

At ISO 1200

Focus

Well, the image of course has to be in focus. For some that means being patient for the camera to focus on the subject. Others have the option of switching to manual focus where you can focus on what you want should the need arise (and it does at times).

Flash

This can be a great tool and a huge boondoggle in aquarium photography. If your subject is in low light, such as under an overhang in the live rock, you may have to use the flash to get a good pic. Other times, such as when a fish is out in the open swimming under MH lighting, the flash may not be needed at all. It is one of those things you learn as you shoot. If you are going to use the flash you will need to shoot at an angle to the glass to keep the reflection of the flash from coming right back to the lens. This is one of those techniques that takes a bit of practice. Some will actually put the lens to the glass and use polarizing filters to avoid the glare.

Da glare, da glare

Full Tank Shots

The settings for this will vary quite a bit depending on the tank and its lighting. Eliminating as much other light in the room will help keep reflections on the glass to a minimum. This is another instance where a polarized filter can help out with the glare if you have that option. The Fstop and shutter speed will be somewhere between the extreme settings we will use for the macro and fish photography. It is difficult to use the flash in a full tank shot without getting some sort of reflection. All of this being said, 90% of us can get nice shots 90% of the time here by just simply using the camera’s “Auto” setting.

Macro Shots

This type of shooting can benefit quite a bit by shooting in aperature priority (A on SLRs and the little tulip setting on point and shoots). What this does is set the Fstop as high as possible for the lighting (or you are setting it in the SLR case). What this does is give you greater depth of field, keeps as much of your subject in focus. Do you ever wonder why it is so common to see pics of the tip of an acro with a group of polyps in focus while the ones right next to them are so blurry? A low Fstop! A few caveats to mention here though. Remember, the higher the Fstop the less light that the lens allows in. So this is going to mean one of two things. Either your subject needs to be lit brighter (use the flash if you need to) or the shutter speed is going to need to be slower. The later can cause blurring in something that is moving if the shutter speeds gets too slow.

A high Fstop and good light (F32)

High Fstop with low light (F28)

Good light with Low Fstop (F10)

Fish Shots
When shooting fish you need a fast shutter speed to “catch the action”. This means shooting in a shutter priority mode, the little running man on point and shoots and the S setting on DSLRs. The shutter speed (your camera will set it on the point and shoots) should ideally be at 1/125 or so if your lighting allows. Your camera will adjust the aperature accordingly. One of the misconceptions on the differences between point and shoot cameras and SLR cameras is that the SLR focuses faster. This is likely true in many cases, but it does not mean good action shots cannot be taken with a point and shoot. The following technique works well with both types of cameras: Notice that your shutter button you press to take a pic goes down in two stages. The first stage sets the focus and metering, it focuses the image and sets all the settings for correct exposure. By pressing the button half way and holding it there most cameras constantly focus and meter. That way when you are ready to take your shot you just press the button the rest of the way and the shot will be taken much faster.

The shutter was too slow here 1/60 of a second, leading to blurred edges on this fish.

This was shot at 1/125 a sec.  It is hard to distingush at this resolution, but it is a much more crisp image.

One last word of note on equipment.  The photo on the left was taken with a $150 point and shoot, while the one on the right was taken with that $10000 setup I mentioned at the start (these actually are separate pics taken with two different cameras).  So tell me, is it worth it?

This is the very surface of it all, the bare bones basics. I do hope this helps those of you interested in or starting out taking your pics of your tank(s)! For more do see Ken Rockwell’s site.  It is the most helpful single photography resource I have ever come across.