B
billb
Guest
Any place to go to learn about the best way(s) to shoot aquarium photography..Iv'e seen some pretty good shots in these threads..so somebody has to know something...clues?
thanks
Billb
thanks
Billb
razoreqx
Active Member
Aquarium Photography
Many hobbyists would like to have nice photos of their aquariums — if they only knew how to do it.
[hr]
Problems and Solutions Testing For Exposure Factor With Extension Tubes Or Bellows
When shooting with extension tubes or bellows, you must adjust for the additional light needed. If you don't have a light meter and don't feel confident about figuring out the extension factor mathematically, you can easily test for the exposure factor.
Shine an incandescent light on a piece of grey cardboard (or any flat, one-color surface). Be sure the surface is evenly lighted. With your camera on a tripod facing this surface, look through the viewfinder and see what the internal meter says is the "correct" exposure. Write that information down.
Without moving the camera, card or light, add the extension tube or bellows. Look through the camera again and check the meter. Adjust the f-stop on the lens until the camera's meter again indicates the correct exposure.
The difference between the two readings is the exposure factor for that lens with that amount of extension. It might be different for other lenses, so do additional tests. This entire procedure will take five minutes or less and can save you lots of money in film and processing.
Before starting any project, it's best to have an idea of the specific difficulties ahead. Once identified, the problems can usually be solved fairly easily. Let's look at what you're up against.
The first thing we need to consider is how to get close enough to our subjects. If you have a 35mm single lens reflex (SLR) camera, things will be simpler because you can see exactly what the camera sees. Look through your camera and see just how close you can focus and still have a sharp image. How big is the "field," the area that the lens sees? My "normal" 50mm (focal length) lens will focus down to a distance of about 19½ inches from the front of the lens, covering an area of 8 inches x 12 inches. That's fine for an overall shot of the tank as it sits in your living room, but it's not quite close enough to shoot portraits of individual fish. For that we'll have to get in a little bit closer.
If you have a "macro" lens, that's great — the problem is solved. (A macro lens is designed to focus closer on smaller objects than a normal lens.) If you don't have a macro lens, a simple and relatively inexpensive solution is to purchase a set of supplementary close-up lenses that screw into the front of your normal lens. These lenses are usually sold in sets of three, with each lens being of a different diopter or magnifying power: +1, +2 and +3.
Close-up lenses can be used individually or in combination with one another, thus providing a nice selection of magnifying powers to choose from. If used in combination, put the higher diopter (greater magnification) lens on the camera lens first and then stack a second lens of lesser power on that. Just remember that every time you put another piece of glass in the optical path between your subject and the film, you are increasingly degrading the quality of the final film image. For most people, this is not likely to be a problem. If you plan to sell your slides to magazines, however, close-up lenses will not provide acceptable images.
Another way to increase magnification is by using extension tubes or bellows. These are placed between the camera lens and the camera body. Optically, these accessories give you a better image than supplementary lenses because you are not adding more glass to the optical path. On the other hand, they are more difficult to work with because they reduce the amount of light reaching the film. A lens plus extension requires more light than the lens used by itself. This is because light decreases by a factor of four when the distance from the lens to the film is doubled. With through-the-lens (TTL) automatic flash, this is not a problem, but if you are shooting with non-TTL flash units, you must adjust for the additional light needed (see sidebar to the right).
At this point, we need to examine depth-of-field. Depth-of-field refers to how much of the image is in focus from the foreground to the background. In other words, how far in front of and behind the subject is the picture sharp. Although not a problem when photographing a landscape, depth-of-field becomes a major difficulty when photographing small subjects at very short distances.
It is a rule of optical physics that as you get closer to your subject at a given f-stop, the depth of field decreases. In practical terms, this means that it is difficult to get the front of a fish (such as the eyes), all of the body and the tail in focus at the same time.
General Photographic Considerations
A photograph includes a background as well as the main subject. Watch backgrounds carefully and compose pictures for the entire frame.
Use depth-of-field preview button if the camera or lens has one.
Shoot vertical compositions as well as horizontal. Some species are better suited to vertical proportions.
Leave some blank space around subject to allow for cropping the photo to dimensions for prints or so that titles can be added later when putting together a slide show of your work.
How can we overcome this limited depth of field? Stopping down the lens aperture (by going to a larger f-number — i.e., f/5.6 to f/11) increases depth-of-field, but in order to use smaller lens apertures, you must either use a higher speed (faster) film or put more light on the subject.
Films with higher ISO (or ASA) speeds are more sensitive to light than those with lower numbers, enabling you to shoot at smaller apertures. For example, an ISO 200 film is four times as sensitive as film of ISO 50, requiring only one-fourth the light to make the same image. However, because everything in photography is a trade-off, faster films will show the grains in the emulsion more than slower films. That is, image sharpness and contrast are better in slower films.
The other way to squeeze more depth-of-field out of a situation is to add more light. This is done by using studio photography techniques. Flash units can be used that will allow you to shoot at f/11 to f/22, apertures that will provide better depth-of-field for small subjects. While there has to be enough light to make an image on the film, it must be controlled as to direction and the amount of reflection it makes on the aquarium glass. I will deal with this later in the article. There is, in fact, a third way to get more light to the film. You could use a slower shutter speed. But this is of limited value when it comes to photographing fish, which brings us to the topic of subject movement. How do you get these healthy, active fish of yours to stand still for their portrait?
Most fish are active and seldom stop moving, although this varies depending on the species. A plecostomus is no problem at all and angelfish are fairly easy as well, but what about a kuhli loach? The trick here is to move the fish to a smaller aquarium where there is less room for movement. The problem with this solution is that the fish is no longer in the display tank that you so masterfully aquascaped.
This can be solved by using a small tank (a "photo" tank) to hold the fish, which is then placed in front of the display tank. A photo tank is quite narrow from front to back, reducing the amount of space that needs to be within the depth-of-field. To make things even easier, a separate piece of glass as large as the front glass, but small enough to fit in the tank, is used to create a narrow space between it and the front of the tank. As the piece of glass is moved toward the front glass, the movement of the fish is increasingly limited, making it much easier to keep the entire length of the fish in focus. Equipment — The Bare Minimum
35mm single lens reflex camera body.
A lens that will focus close enough to do the job — a macro lens made for your camera or supplementary close-up lenses.
Tripod that is sturdy and adjustable.
A sheet of glass almost as wide as the front glass of the tank (to limit movement of the fish). This can be the front or backpane salvaged from a broken aquarium.
Flash unit that can be used away from the camera, either a through-the-lens unit on a long cord or manual flash with a sync cord. Use a light stand or a second tripod to hold the flash in position.
Reflection blocker (home-made). A 1-foot square piece of black cardboard with a hole cut in the center for the lens to see through works well and can be attached to the lens hood with tape or cut to fit a filter holder.
This same technique can, in theory, be used in the display tank, but the sheet of glass may be somewhat unwieldy if the tank is large. Also, the aquascaping may cause problems with this approach.
Supplementary Lighting
The aquarium light may be the wrong color temperature for the film you are using. Photographic lighting is matched to color films. You will get better results by using a finer grain film. These films are termed as "slower" because they require more light to make an image. This additional light must come from somewhere, which is where your lighting setup (usually flash units) comes in.
I highly recommend that you get the flash unit off of and away from the camera for this type of photography. Because of the reflection problems created when shooting through glass, the light needs to enter the tank from the side, from above or at an angle to the camera's lens. The photographer's technical rule here is "the angle of incidence equals the angle of reflectance." In other words, light will reflect off the glass at the same angle that it hits the glass.
Many hobbyists would like to have nice photos of their aquariums — if they only knew how to do it.
[hr]
Problems and Solutions Testing For Exposure Factor With Extension Tubes Or Bellows
When shooting with extension tubes or bellows, you must adjust for the additional light needed. If you don't have a light meter and don't feel confident about figuring out the extension factor mathematically, you can easily test for the exposure factor.
Shine an incandescent light on a piece of grey cardboard (or any flat, one-color surface). Be sure the surface is evenly lighted. With your camera on a tripod facing this surface, look through the viewfinder and see what the internal meter says is the "correct" exposure. Write that information down.
Without moving the camera, card or light, add the extension tube or bellows. Look through the camera again and check the meter. Adjust the f-stop on the lens until the camera's meter again indicates the correct exposure.
The difference between the two readings is the exposure factor for that lens with that amount of extension. It might be different for other lenses, so do additional tests. This entire procedure will take five minutes or less and can save you lots of money in film and processing.
Before starting any project, it's best to have an idea of the specific difficulties ahead. Once identified, the problems can usually be solved fairly easily. Let's look at what you're up against.
The first thing we need to consider is how to get close enough to our subjects. If you have a 35mm single lens reflex (SLR) camera, things will be simpler because you can see exactly what the camera sees. Look through your camera and see just how close you can focus and still have a sharp image. How big is the "field," the area that the lens sees? My "normal" 50mm (focal length) lens will focus down to a distance of about 19½ inches from the front of the lens, covering an area of 8 inches x 12 inches. That's fine for an overall shot of the tank as it sits in your living room, but it's not quite close enough to shoot portraits of individual fish. For that we'll have to get in a little bit closer.
If you have a "macro" lens, that's great — the problem is solved. (A macro lens is designed to focus closer on smaller objects than a normal lens.) If you don't have a macro lens, a simple and relatively inexpensive solution is to purchase a set of supplementary close-up lenses that screw into the front of your normal lens. These lenses are usually sold in sets of three, with each lens being of a different diopter or magnifying power: +1, +2 and +3.
Close-up lenses can be used individually or in combination with one another, thus providing a nice selection of magnifying powers to choose from. If used in combination, put the higher diopter (greater magnification) lens on the camera lens first and then stack a second lens of lesser power on that. Just remember that every time you put another piece of glass in the optical path between your subject and the film, you are increasingly degrading the quality of the final film image. For most people, this is not likely to be a problem. If you plan to sell your slides to magazines, however, close-up lenses will not provide acceptable images.
Another way to increase magnification is by using extension tubes or bellows. These are placed between the camera lens and the camera body. Optically, these accessories give you a better image than supplementary lenses because you are not adding more glass to the optical path. On the other hand, they are more difficult to work with because they reduce the amount of light reaching the film. A lens plus extension requires more light than the lens used by itself. This is because light decreases by a factor of four when the distance from the lens to the film is doubled. With through-the-lens (TTL) automatic flash, this is not a problem, but if you are shooting with non-TTL flash units, you must adjust for the additional light needed (see sidebar to the right).
At this point, we need to examine depth-of-field. Depth-of-field refers to how much of the image is in focus from the foreground to the background. In other words, how far in front of and behind the subject is the picture sharp. Although not a problem when photographing a landscape, depth-of-field becomes a major difficulty when photographing small subjects at very short distances.
It is a rule of optical physics that as you get closer to your subject at a given f-stop, the depth of field decreases. In practical terms, this means that it is difficult to get the front of a fish (such as the eyes), all of the body and the tail in focus at the same time.
General Photographic Considerations
A photograph includes a background as well as the main subject. Watch backgrounds carefully and compose pictures for the entire frame.
Use depth-of-field preview button if the camera or lens has one.
Shoot vertical compositions as well as horizontal. Some species are better suited to vertical proportions.
Leave some blank space around subject to allow for cropping the photo to dimensions for prints or so that titles can be added later when putting together a slide show of your work.
How can we overcome this limited depth of field? Stopping down the lens aperture (by going to a larger f-number — i.e., f/5.6 to f/11) increases depth-of-field, but in order to use smaller lens apertures, you must either use a higher speed (faster) film or put more light on the subject.
Films with higher ISO (or ASA) speeds are more sensitive to light than those with lower numbers, enabling you to shoot at smaller apertures. For example, an ISO 200 film is four times as sensitive as film of ISO 50, requiring only one-fourth the light to make the same image. However, because everything in photography is a trade-off, faster films will show the grains in the emulsion more than slower films. That is, image sharpness and contrast are better in slower films.
The other way to squeeze more depth-of-field out of a situation is to add more light. This is done by using studio photography techniques. Flash units can be used that will allow you to shoot at f/11 to f/22, apertures that will provide better depth-of-field for small subjects. While there has to be enough light to make an image on the film, it must be controlled as to direction and the amount of reflection it makes on the aquarium glass. I will deal with this later in the article. There is, in fact, a third way to get more light to the film. You could use a slower shutter speed. But this is of limited value when it comes to photographing fish, which brings us to the topic of subject movement. How do you get these healthy, active fish of yours to stand still for their portrait?
Most fish are active and seldom stop moving, although this varies depending on the species. A plecostomus is no problem at all and angelfish are fairly easy as well, but what about a kuhli loach? The trick here is to move the fish to a smaller aquarium where there is less room for movement. The problem with this solution is that the fish is no longer in the display tank that you so masterfully aquascaped.
This can be solved by using a small tank (a "photo" tank) to hold the fish, which is then placed in front of the display tank. A photo tank is quite narrow from front to back, reducing the amount of space that needs to be within the depth-of-field. To make things even easier, a separate piece of glass as large as the front glass, but small enough to fit in the tank, is used to create a narrow space between it and the front of the tank. As the piece of glass is moved toward the front glass, the movement of the fish is increasingly limited, making it much easier to keep the entire length of the fish in focus. Equipment — The Bare Minimum
35mm single lens reflex camera body.
A lens that will focus close enough to do the job — a macro lens made for your camera or supplementary close-up lenses.
Tripod that is sturdy and adjustable.
A sheet of glass almost as wide as the front glass of the tank (to limit movement of the fish). This can be the front or backpane salvaged from a broken aquarium.
Flash unit that can be used away from the camera, either a through-the-lens unit on a long cord or manual flash with a sync cord. Use a light stand or a second tripod to hold the flash in position.
Reflection blocker (home-made). A 1-foot square piece of black cardboard with a hole cut in the center for the lens to see through works well and can be attached to the lens hood with tape or cut to fit a filter holder.
This same technique can, in theory, be used in the display tank, but the sheet of glass may be somewhat unwieldy if the tank is large. Also, the aquascaping may cause problems with this approach.
Supplementary Lighting
The aquarium light may be the wrong color temperature for the film you are using. Photographic lighting is matched to color films. You will get better results by using a finer grain film. These films are termed as "slower" because they require more light to make an image. This additional light must come from somewhere, which is where your lighting setup (usually flash units) comes in.
I highly recommend that you get the flash unit off of and away from the camera for this type of photography. Because of the reflection problems created when shooting through glass, the light needs to enter the tank from the side, from above or at an angle to the camera's lens. The photographer's technical rule here is "the angle of incidence equals the angle of reflectance." In other words, light will reflect off the glass at the same angle that it hits the glass.
B
billb
Guest
Thank you very much...food for thought so to speak..I guess I'm going to be looking at the higher end SLR style digital cameras when it comes the time and the wallet will allow. I do have a film 35mm SLR, but I hate waiting to process it...
Thanks again..
Billb
Thanks again..
Billb