Taking pictures in a fish bowl
- Thread starter pure_ego
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Yeah, I was going to say dont use a flash. If it were a 35mm I would recommend using a high speed film such as 400 speed, and no flash.
With a digi cam, you might want to see if you can increase the exposure time alittle to compensate for not having a flash.
If you user a flash, two things might and probably will happen, first, it will reflect badn enough off the glass to ruin the shot.
Second, might freak out the fish. depending on how big the fish are, that might not be a good idea.
Best thing to do is be a here to your 11mo, put the camera in a zip lock bag, jump in the tank and start shooting, you should get some kick arse shots before you are either eatin or thrown out of the park
With a digi cam, you might want to see if you can increase the exposure time alittle to compensate for not having a flash.
If you user a flash, two things might and probably will happen, first, it will reflect badn enough off the glass to ruin the shot.
Second, might freak out the fish. depending on how big the fish are, that might not be a good idea.
Best thing to do is be a here to your 11mo, put the camera in a zip lock bag, jump in the tank and start shooting, you should get some kick arse shots before you are either eatin or thrown out of the park
Mikey D
Registered
If you have a detachable flash you can hold it against the glass and that'll eliminate the reflection. Also if you take the picture at a angle (Other than 90 degrees) to the glass, you'll reduce reflection from the flash.Yeah, I was going to say dont use a flash. If it were a 35mm I would recommend using a high speed film such as 400 speed, and no flash.
With a digi cam, you might want to see if you can increase the exposure time alittle to compensate for not having a flash.
If you user a flash, two things might and probably will happen, first, it will reflect badn enough off the glass to ruin the shot.
Second, might freak out the fish. depending on how big the fish are, that might not be a good idea.
Best thing to do is be a here to your 11mo, put the camera in a zip lock bag, jump in the tank and start shooting, you should get some kick arse shots before you are either eatin or thrown out of the park
We have gotten som OK (Not great) picts at the <s>fish market</s>, uhhh, aquariam.
I kinda like Thrashers idea tho.
I thought I replied to this?
Must not have gone through due to my browser problems lately...
Anyway, I shot in an aquarium once. Learned a few things I can pass on...
I shot film when I went because I hadn't gone digital yet. I learned that 100 speed film is all but useless in most displays of the Tennessee aquarium in Chattanooga. Others may have better lighting. I got some decent shots on 400 ISO and 800 ISO film though.
There's a trick to using flash through aquarium glass. First, you need an accessory flash that mounts to the hot shoe. The in camera flash prolly isn't strong enough, and it will be partially blocked using this trick. A hot shoe mounted flash will be more powerful and will not be blocked. The trick is to get a collapseable/extendable rubber lens hood. Most camera shops have them to fit most popular filter sizes. The trick is to extend the rubber hood all the way out and put the front of it flat against the glass. The rubber hood keeps light from the flash from hittin' where the lens "sees". The flexibility of the rubber hood allows you some freedom to move the camera around and get different angles, you just have to be careful and make sure the lens hood isn't visible in the frame. I should note that the glass in some of the displays are not exactly clear and can diffuse and diffract some of the flash through the glass in front of the lens. This reduces contrast in the shot but it's still better than gettin' direct flash bounce back. I have also shot through glass with flash using my hand just like I would the rubber hood and got good results.
Call ahead and find out if tripods are allowed. There are some shots at an aquarium that you simply can't use flash for. Either you can't get close enough to the glass to use the above trick, or you need to shoot at an angle that the hood trick won't work for. In those cases the best thing you can do is use a faster film and maybe a tripod and hope for the best.
Don't use Program or Auto mode if your camera has an Aperture Priority (usually labeled as "Av") mode, especially when shooting the lesser lit displays. In the Program and Auto modes the camera will probably choose a shutter speed too slow and cause you to get camera shake blur, or blurry subjects if they are moving. By using aperture priority mode you can set the aperture wide open, or close to it, so that the camera automatically sets the fastest shutter speed possible for the lighting conditions. This gives you the best chance of freezing the action and getting blur free pics.
Take lots of shots. In less than ideal shooting situations I always stack the odds in my favor as much as possible and shoot as many frames as I can. In bad conditions I may shoot 100 frames or more, end up with 10 really good ones, and maybe 20 that are ok. The rest go to the recycle bin to be cast out into oblivion.
If you're shootin' digital it's a bit tougher unless you have one of the nice digital SLR cameras. The consumer and prosumer digicams have a LOT of noise (digital equivilent to film grain) in the 200-400 ISO range where you'd need to do most of your shooting (again based on the Tenn Aquarium). This is not as big of a problem if you only plan on printing small (no larger than 4 X 6) or sharing via web/email. Downsizing digital files for small prints or web use tends to average out a lot of the noise through the resampling process. There are also programs like Neat Image that can clean up noise very well without obliteratin' detail if you learn how to use 'em properly.
If you have a digital SLR, particularly a Canon Digital Rebel (300D), EOS 10D or EOS 1D (BIG $$$), you can use much higher ISO settings without too much noise. I have owned a 1D and a 10D and both would shoot as high as 1600 ISO with very manageable noise levels. I wish I had gone back and shot the aquarium again while I had those cameras. With the 10D I am confident that I could shoot any shot I wanted at the aquarium without flash.
Most of all, HAVE FUN! I loved the aquarium!
I need to go back one day. Rumor has it that Atlanta is building one soon that is supposed to be incredible. I can't wait to see it if they do. There's just somethin' about water and watchin' the fishies that relaxes me.
I know this is a little late to be of any help to you for this past weekend, but maybe it'll help next time you go.
Anyway, I shot in an aquarium once. Learned a few things I can pass on...
I shot film when I went because I hadn't gone digital yet. I learned that 100 speed film is all but useless in most displays of the Tennessee aquarium in Chattanooga. Others may have better lighting. I got some decent shots on 400 ISO and 800 ISO film though.
There's a trick to using flash through aquarium glass. First, you need an accessory flash that mounts to the hot shoe. The in camera flash prolly isn't strong enough, and it will be partially blocked using this trick. A hot shoe mounted flash will be more powerful and will not be blocked. The trick is to get a collapseable/extendable rubber lens hood. Most camera shops have them to fit most popular filter sizes. The trick is to extend the rubber hood all the way out and put the front of it flat against the glass. The rubber hood keeps light from the flash from hittin' where the lens "sees". The flexibility of the rubber hood allows you some freedom to move the camera around and get different angles, you just have to be careful and make sure the lens hood isn't visible in the frame. I should note that the glass in some of the displays are not exactly clear and can diffuse and diffract some of the flash through the glass in front of the lens. This reduces contrast in the shot but it's still better than gettin' direct flash bounce back. I have also shot through glass with flash using my hand just like I would the rubber hood and got good results.
Call ahead and find out if tripods are allowed. There are some shots at an aquarium that you simply can't use flash for. Either you can't get close enough to the glass to use the above trick, or you need to shoot at an angle that the hood trick won't work for. In those cases the best thing you can do is use a faster film and maybe a tripod and hope for the best.
Don't use Program or Auto mode if your camera has an Aperture Priority (usually labeled as "Av") mode, especially when shooting the lesser lit displays. In the Program and Auto modes the camera will probably choose a shutter speed too slow and cause you to get camera shake blur, or blurry subjects if they are moving. By using aperture priority mode you can set the aperture wide open, or close to it, so that the camera automatically sets the fastest shutter speed possible for the lighting conditions. This gives you the best chance of freezing the action and getting blur free pics.
Take lots of shots. In less than ideal shooting situations I always stack the odds in my favor as much as possible and shoot as many frames as I can. In bad conditions I may shoot 100 frames or more, end up with 10 really good ones, and maybe 20 that are ok. The rest go to the recycle bin to be cast out into oblivion.
If you're shootin' digital it's a bit tougher unless you have one of the nice digital SLR cameras. The consumer and prosumer digicams have a LOT of noise (digital equivilent to film grain) in the 200-400 ISO range where you'd need to do most of your shooting (again based on the Tenn Aquarium). This is not as big of a problem if you only plan on printing small (no larger than 4 X 6) or sharing via web/email. Downsizing digital files for small prints or web use tends to average out a lot of the noise through the resampling process. There are also programs like Neat Image that can clean up noise very well without obliteratin' detail if you learn how to use 'em properly.
If you have a digital SLR, particularly a Canon Digital Rebel (300D), EOS 10D or EOS 1D (BIG $$$), you can use much higher ISO settings without too much noise. I have owned a 1D and a 10D and both would shoot as high as 1600 ISO with very manageable noise levels. I wish I had gone back and shot the aquarium again while I had those cameras. With the 10D I am confident that I could shoot any shot I wanted at the aquarium without flash.
Most of all, HAVE FUN! I loved the aquarium!
I know this is a little late to be of any help to you for this past weekend, but maybe it'll help next time you go.
The problem I see with that is that most polarizing filters block +/- one stop of light. That means if the light conditions called for 400 ISO film to get fast enough shutter speeds to hand hold the shot or freeze subject motion without the filter, 800 ISO would be required with the filter. Not a major problem in that case but let's say light conditions call for 800 ISO without the filter. I'm not even sure they make a 1600 ISO color film, but even if they do the grain would probably be terrible, making sharp, detailed prints even at 4 X 6 would be tough. Sure, you have push processing and such, but only if the 1-hour lab offers it unless you're sending the film off to a good lab.
In a case where there's plenty of light, or no subject/camera movement a polarizing filter wouldn't be a bad option. For lower light shooting and/or moving subjects where faster shutter speeds are required it's not such a good idea...
Yup, What Bullet train said, the alternative is to get the camera lense squished right up to the glass and avoid the bloom that way... You will prolly get a bunch of underexposed shots when you get home but not too bad... Besides, that is what photoshop is for.
But be really warry of adjusting your ISO on a digicam, you will get super noisy super fast at the higher settings... At least with a Minolta you get so noisy so quick I have it manually set at ISO 50...
But be really warry of adjusting your ISO on a digicam, you will get super noisy super fast at the higher settings... At least with a Minolta you get so noisy so quick I have it manually set at ISO 50...
Tripod/monopod will help with camera shake but it won't slow the fishies down.
My only two gripes with the Canon G5 and S500 as compared to the digital SLR bodies I've owned and shot with are, in order:
#1- The NOISE at any ISO except the slowest. Like Rev, I also keep mine set manually to ISO 50 and won't budge from that unless it's the only way to get a shot that I really want. Even then I only usually bump it to 100 and give it a try. The Canon Digital SLR's spoiled the hell outta me on the noise issue. ISO 800 from the 10D, 1D and supposedly the 300D are cleaner than the G5 at ISO 200. That's two stops faster with LESS noise.
#2- Depth of field control. The small sensor cameras like the G5 and other consumer grade digicams has an inherently deeper depth of field makin' it tough to isolate your subject via DOF control.
If the digicams gave the DOF control and noise performance of the digital SLR bodies I wouldn't miss the SLR's at all. That's exactly why the manufacturers don't make the digicams perform as well in those areas though. They wouldn't sell as many of the higher priced SLR bodies!
Also meant to say, BE CAREFUL when pressing a lens up against glass. Some lens faces stick out past the end of the lens barrel. If you press glass against glass you can get chips and scratches and ruin your lens. That's why I use the rubber lens hood or my hand to cover the small gap I keep between my lens and the glass.
