Tigers & Sharks . . . My other hobby!

SarahLee

SarahLee

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Sarah
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:thinking: There's something a bit fishy about that title ;)

Had a clean out of the big fish tank this weekend, so while the glass was lovely and sparkly clean I took the opportunity to get a few shots.
These are the little critters that sparked my interest in photography. I've been trying for a while (ever since I got my SLR actually) to get some decent shots of them . . . fast moving, shiny things underwater and behind glass are not easy :LOL:

So, here we have a Red Tailed Black Shark and some Tiger Barbs amongst others.
(Not sure if this should go in macro or pets or where ???? So I thought I'd stick it here for now)

C&C welcome from all as always.
This is an area of photography that I'd really like to perfect, so any feedback would be gratefully received.


















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I'm sure someone with more experience will be able to offer better critique but they look lovely clear images and the fish are set off very nice against the respective backgrounds.

I do like 1,2 & 4 with the splashes of green and red against the greys and neutrals.
 
wow theses are great Sarah, really clear and no signs of reflection off the glasss (did you have to polish it for hours:LOL:) I kept fish a long time ago and had barbs and a silver tail shark amongst others. This was well before i had a camera so i never got chance to snap them.

You have created some great contrast with the backdrop which sets the fish off well. Not sure which is my favourite out of a good set but i am drawn to the Ancistrus.
 
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Loopy said:
I'm sure someone with more experience will be able to offer better critique but they look lovely clear images and the fish are set off very nice against the respective backgrounds.

I do like 1,2 & 4 with the splashes of green and red against the greys and neutrals.
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Thanks Loopy - and don't sound so apologetic about giving critique :). You don't need to be an expert to say what you like or don't like, and it really is much appreciated.

clud17 said:
wow theses are great Sarah, really clear and no signs of reflection off the glasss (did you have to polish it for hours:LOL:) I kept fish a long time ago and had barbs and a silver tail shark amongst others. This was well before i had a camera so i never got chance to snap them.

You have created some great contrast with the backdrop which sets the fish off well. Not sure which is my favourite out of a good set but i am drawn to the Ancistrus.
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Thanks Chris.
Spent most of yesterday cleaning out the tank, taking out the gravel (and the fish while it was being cleaned) and replacing it with sand. Pruning some of the plants back and scrubbing the glass!
It's been running for about 4 years and was long due a complete overhaul.

:puke: My back is killing me today, but I just had to get the camera out while it was so clean. It's a 6 foot tank, so it'll be a while before I completely strip it down again to get to all the awkward to reach places.

You know that I love black backgrounds - and that extends to my fish tanks too. They've all got black backing on them :LOL:
 
I generally find aqua tank photos boring, but these are top notch. (y)

The fact that the tanks is soo clean makes these pics awesome as well.
 
Now thats something you don't see often on here :)

and a lovely set too!

Particularly like #1 and #4 for their compositions, #1 has a nice balance between fish and greenery at the bottom and #4 has a bit more going on fish wise :)

Although a fifth fish on the right hand side would've been perfect :)

Nicely done Sarah :)
 
Having attempted lots of photos in our tank I really do appreciate just how good these shots are. I have tried many times to get some good ones of ours but nearly all of them are faliures, although I do have a few of the missus's fish giving birth. I can dig a couple out if you like (y).
 
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onikami said:
I generally find aqua tank photos boring, but these are top notch. (y)

The fact that the tanks is soo clean makes these pics awesome as well.
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Why thank you Sir Oni ;)
And if I can convert an aqua photo hater, they must be OK :D

Dark Star said:
Now thats something you don't see often on here :)

and a lovely set too!

Particularly like #1 and #4 for their compositions, #1 has a nice balance between fish and greenery at the bottom and #4 has a bit more going on fish wise :)

Although a fifth fish on the right hand side would've been perfect :)

Nicely done Sarah :)
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Thanks John.
Haven't seen much of you on the forums lately, but your comments are hugely appreciated as always.

I thought exactly the same as you in number 4, but these damn fish don't take direction very well :LOL:
I did try cloning a fifth fish in, but I couldn't get it to look natural, so I decided to leave it as it was.
 
ladysue said:
A nice selection of pictures. I like the last one best- he/she looks very restful.
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Thank you Sue. I really appreciate you popping in.
BTW It's a she :)

CGeezer said:
Having attempted lots of photos in our tank I really do appreciate just how good these shots are. I have tried many times to get some good ones of ours but nearly all of them are faliures, although I do have a few of the missus's fish giving birth. I can dig a couple out if you like (y).
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Thank you John - really, really appreciate the encouragement.
If you have some shots to put up I'd love to see them - always happy to look at aquarium photos.
 
all i want to say is

bloody hell they are amazing pictures

wish i could do that well with my reptiles
 
Very good photos and they make me want to get another tank. I kept fish for years, spent fortunes on it and eventually gave up like almost all my other hobbies.

These are superb.

G.
 
daveandamy said:
all i want to say is

bloody hell they are amazing pictures

wish i could do that well with my reptiles
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Dave (or Amy :) ) Thank you so much. It really is appreciated.

EdinburghGary said:
Very good photos and they make me want to get another tank. I kept fish for years, spent fortunes on it and eventually gave up like almost all my other hobbies.

These are superb.

G.
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Thank you Gary.
Maybe this is another hobby that you should resurrect. Given how much time you spend there, I'm sure that you could fit a small tank into the studio - soothing viewing for any waiting customers too.


I'm honestly blown away by some of the comments on this thread, so thank you again to each and every one of you that have dropped in.

I didn't share this in my OP, but aquarium photography is something I'd really like to specialise in. Once I get to a point where I'm getting a consistent quality of photograph I plan on approaching some local independent fish shops to see if they'd be interested in a photo-shoot for their website / POS or in purchasing any shots to use on their sites. I think there's a niche in the market there - it's certainly not something that many people are doing.

I'm definitely not there yet, but the encouragement in this thread makes me think that after a year and a half of pretty crap aquarium photos, I'm at least starting to move in the right direction.
 
SarahLee said:
I'm definitely not there yet
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*******s :) You are clearly more than capable.

I'm wondering how much you could earn, it's VERY niche. How about negotiating someone out of a top end Marine setup in return for £1,000 of commercial photography?

G.
 
A zillion times better than any shot's I've managed of my (well my daughters) fish.

We're still in our first year of having tropical fish but we've built up to having....

Zebra Danios X6
Ghost Catfish X4
Peppered Corry X4
Dwarf Gourami X3
Albino Sharks X2
 
EdinburghGary said:
*******s :) You are clearly more than capable.

I'm wondering how much you could earn, it's VERY niche. How about negotiating someone out of a top end Marine setup in return for £1,000 of commercial photography?

G.
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Thanks Gary . . . I still get very insecure about my photography, mainly because I'm still so new to it and don't have much time to practice.

I don't suppose there's masses of earning potential there, especially once the taxman has his share, but I'm never going to be able to give up my day job for togging anyway - and if I can find a niche market that I enjoy and makes my hobbies self funding that would be good enough for me. I'd happily work for store credit!

dinners said:
A zillion times better than any shot's I've managed of my (well my daughters) fish.

We're still in our first year of having tropical fish but we've built up to having....

Zebra Danios X6
Ghost Catfish X4
Peppered Corry X4
Dwarf Gourami X3
Albino Sharks X2
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Thank you Phil. They're definitely tricky to shoot. This is the culmination of a year of trying on and off.
I love Ghost Catfish, but I reckon enticing those out in the open for long enough to shoot is nigh on impossible!
 
My favourite tropical fish is the Clown Loach. I had 8 of them in my last setup...

G.
 
EdinburghGary said:
My favourite tropical fish is the Clown Loach. I had 8 of them in my last setup...

G.
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(y) Good choice - I do like CLs. But I have a bit of a soft spot for stripey fish.

Forbiddenbiker said:
I know how difficult these are Sarah, getting a good exposure is almost impossible ... very nicely done indeed.
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Thank you Adam.
As I said, I'm really overwhelmed by the positive reaction to these.
 
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