Photography tips and tricks

Here are just a few little tips for taking pictures.

1- Take the pictures as straight through the glass as you can. This will eliminate any distortion from the glass.
2- Turn off all pumps. This allows you to shoot with a slower shutter speed without getting movement. Movement=unfocused
    2a. Use a Tripod if you can
3- Turn off or eliminate any light other than the tank. Best to take pictures at night. I have seen someone put a dark blanket over the tank (with the camera under it) to take pictures.
4- Set the white balance if your camera has one. This is vital for getting sharp and correct colors. (this can also be done in the editing process)
5- Get a good poto editing software. (there are many free, and expensive programs out there) I prefer picasa by google
   5a. We all know what color coraline algae is, so over editing to make the colors look brighter is a bad idea, people feel like you are trying to lie.
6- If you can, buy an nice camera. This is the most important part to taking pictures. I have shot with a point and shoot, and out of the 5,000 or so pictures I have taken with that, I have had maybe 10 I would consider great. I am a nikon man, and prefer a camera with as many personal and customizable settings as possible. Getting the settings right before you take the picture always helps you get better pictures.
7- Don't use a flash, it will wash out the colors of the lights you have over the tank, thus eliminating the vibrant color you seen when you look at the coral in your tank.


With a point and shoot, try to shoot in the night time setting, or in the close up setting when possible.

My reasoning behind not using a flash is because I have never seen a flash with the color spectrum between 14000-17000. I prefer to see pictures of my corals as I see them in my tank. To me, that is the real color, since that is the color I see every day. Too often though, the camera will wash out the shot with too much blue (if the white balance is not set) or too much white (when using the flash).


These are the tips I use for taking coral pictures. Slowing down the shutter speed, however, will not work when taking pictures of fish (since they don't stop moving).

Just to add to the list use a tripod while slowing your shutter speed.  You can get some awesome coral shots when you slow the shutter speed and using a tripod for stability so you dont get that blurring.  Does not work as well for fish but awesome on corals.  If you have a SLR mess with your aperature and white balance to really bring out the colors.  Tripods or even monopods can make for some awesome shots