Aquarium Photography - DPChallenge Forums

Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 EX Aspherical DF for Canon

05/03/2002 12:08:46 PM · #1

Has anyone ever done any photography in an aquarium? Any hints and tips on how to get good photos even though there's usually low light and the water may be cloudy?

Thanks!

magnetic9999

Canon EOS-20D

05/03/2002 01:04:53 PM · #2

er ..

well the week after i got my camera (in feb), i went to san diego. one of the first places we went was the birch aquarium at la jolla. at first i was stymied - it was dark, the flash was obtrusive and reflected off the glass, and i wasnt getting so much camera shake it was just not worth it. BUT THEN, i raised up to the highest ISO< which on e10 is only 320, and that helped a LOT. i sitll had to brace myself but it wasnt sooo bad. also tried to get the camera pointing perpendicular to the glass and minimize reflections.

here are a coupple of the better pics. i didnt get as good results with the muddy water aquaria. and that's just a fact of life. as a scuba diver, the problem is that a) the particles scatter light from the flash, and b) weird color shifts, and c) no visibility.

moon jelliest
lion fish
3 moray eels

g'luck!

Originally posted by gr8photos:
Has anyone ever done any photography in an aquarium? Any hints and tips on how to get good photos even though there's usually low light and the water may be cloudy?

Thanks!

Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 EX Aspherical DF for Canon

05/03/2002 01:19:35 PM · #3

Thanks, I'll try that. So did you use the flash in addition to the highest ISO? Or did you no longer need the flash then? I like your pictures by the way, turned out much better than some that I took over the last weekend (none of them are even fit to be shown to anybody . . .), but I'll definitely try again as soon as I get a chance!

Patella

Canon EOS-500D Rebel T1i

05/03/2002 01:27:23 PM · #4

The other thing you can try is to leave the flash on, but get the lens right up against the glass -- the flash can light things up, but you don't then get the reflection off the glass. (I know this may or may not be possible depending on where you're shooting and your camera, but it's something to try.)

magnetic9999

Canon EOS-20D

05/03/2002 01:39:38 PM · #5

thanks, gr8 :)

nah, i pretty much can't stand the on camera flash on my camera - on any cameras really. but on mine it's just not the right color rendition - it's cold, and even white balance settings dont save it, imo. meanwhile the natural lighting of the aquarium was pretty photogenic, so that's the rendition i wanted in the pics.

what's your range of ISO settings, and what aquarium were you at?

Canon 12x IS USM (S3 IS built-in Lens) -- 36-432mm (35mm EQ)

05/03/2002 01:46:46 PM · #6

I was in New Orleans for the Jazz Festival and went to Aquarium there for a couple of hours to get out of the sun. My camera's ISO setting ranges from 50 to 400, I usually have it set to AUTO (which uses 50 and 100), and haven't yet played around with it, especially since I keep on hearing that the higher ISO settings produce grainier photos. But it's obviously worth changing in the right settings.

I took one picture with the flash (camera lens right up against the glas) but that turned out funky, too. I'll have to go to an aquarium again when I have more time to spend there and try different things.

GeneralE

Canon PowerShot S3 IS

05/03/2002 02:44:43 PM · #7

For another approach -- Canon makes a waterproof housing for some of their models...you can start checking here at Cnet:

//electronics.cnet.com/electronics/0-7618899-1304-3850979.html?tag=pdtl-list

If you shoot at a relatively severe vertical angle, you may be able to get the worst of the flash flare out of the frame. I think I'd shoot straight-on with no flash, high ISO, and accept a little more graininess (hey, just like film).

If there's a good reflection, I'd submit it to The Mirror Project at:

//www.mirrorproject.com/mirror/?id=5125

(link will take you to one of my photos).

D-Man

Canon EOS-50D

Canon EF 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 II USM

05/03/2002 03:04:47 PM · #8

A really good way to reduce/eliminate reflections off the glass and flash glare is to use a polorizing filter. I don't know if your camera accepts attachments for lenses or filters, but this works the best.

Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 EX Aspherical DF for Canon

05/03/2002 08:55:47 PM · #9

Thank you all for the advice. I started playing around with the ISO settings and was able to take pictures that would've usually been too dark w/out a flash. I was thinking of getting a polarizing filter anyway, so I'll take care of that, too (yes, my camera takes attachments). Now all I need to do is plan another trip somewhere where there's an aquarium . . . ;o)

magnetic9999

Canon EOS-20D

05/04/2002 10:53:04 AM · #10

yeah, it's weird. you hear a lot of stuff about the unuseability of the higher ISO's spouted as 'conventional wisdom'. It's such 'common knowledge' that most people just accept it, and don't even try those settings. And then they're inevitably surprised by how decent the results are when they do, or see someone else try them.

I think that stuff is spouted by purists who are more lab tech than photography buff. the same kind of people that tell you that they can hear the difference in high end clarity when connecting their speakers with gold heavy duty speaker cable.

but then again what do I know? I just believe in experimenting with the features I paid for, and if it (the result) looks ok to me, that's all that matters : )

hey i see you're in Annandale - what a coincidence, I'm in Arlington. ever been up to the baltimore aquarium? it's actually really good!