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beefytang

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    238
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  • Location
    Far West
  • Tank Size
    20g 2.5g
  • Interests
    Nano-pico tanks, crabs, ricordia, gobys, zoos, fragging.

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  • AIM
    beefytang
  • Website URL
    http://www.flatfields.com
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  1. Nice. A few of questions...what are the tanks for? Backup air supply for divers or just abandoned? And the plankton blooms...is that a seasonal occurrence in the area or was Al Gore in town? And of course, what kind of camera/gear did you use to take these? Do you have to use auto focus? I'm guessing it's pretty tough to try and use manual focus with plankton everywhere and extra glass in between your eyes and the viewer. TIA
  2. Yes, it is really tricky shooting through glass. I too have noticed distortion if I deviate at an angle. Often, I think aquarium photography is a game of chance. By that I mean having your subject matter come into a desirable view, then having your light and aperture/fstop just right at that exact moment, and finally, having it all in focus. All these things and more come together in a photo that is above average. Often, I'll bracket my shots so I can increase my chances of having a decent exposure. And of course, keeping the camera steady on a tripod, sometimes using an infrared remote control. I'm finding most of my pictures are bad because my camera is old, the lens is weak, and I'm usually unable to tell if I really have things in sharp focus. So I'll lean on photoshop to get things looking more how I see the subject matter with my eyes. My camera and I don't always agree. I'll use these PS filters & routines often: Unsharp mask (when scaling down an image), Reduce noise (if my ISO speed is too high) and Shadows/Highlights (if my shot is under exposed). Sometimes I will jack up the saturation just a tad because I notice the "Save for web" jpeg compressor will desaturate my photos for some reason. Personally, I have no aversion to post-production touch ups with photos. I did all kinds of experiments in real dark rooms in the past so it's quite natural for me to carry on with digital tricks. Healing brushes, etc. The ring light idea in the article is kind of interesting. Might be really useful for macro shots. Anyway, looking forward to more shots from you. I'm off to the Gallery to see your new stuff. Good luck capturing that perfect harlequin shot!
  3. I found this great link that describes some inexpensive tricks you can use to enhance your photos. Relative to aquarium photography, I like the flash diffuser idea. Visit Gizmodo's camera tricks on the cheap
  4. I have one. It started out as a lime green/yellow version. Very brilliant but later dulled to a tan color. I'm not particularly attached to it if you're interested in it. Under better lighting it might color back up.
  5. Yes, I must admit I feel like a kid getting away with something mischievous! There was one nudibranch I saw on Flickr that was really nice. I put it into a Flash kaleidoscope if anyone is interested in playing with it. Nudibranch Kaleidoscope
  6. A nice set of nudibranch photos.... Nudibranch Photos
  7. I thought it was real at first...=)
  8. The fish are 3d models. I think it's a commercial for vitamins.
  9. I shudder to think what would happen in my tank if all those eggs hatched. Probably best not to let it happen. They get really big. Interesting to watch, though. They can smell a tiny crumb of food hitting the water even when buried.
  10. jsr was onto something. Try a virtual machine and load XP onto it. You can get a copy here: Microsoft Virtual PC
  11. The blip is pretty serious stuff. Usually when that occurs, you must do the double clicky thingie on the picture doohickey til somethin happens. Then it should work.
  12. Yes, my glass is very dirty on both sides this week. Tomorrow and sunday are bad for me...are you busy on monday? Def would love to get out and shoot some pics somewhere.
  13. +1 Cool contest BTW. You always have something interesting going on.
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