This manual is not a complete photography course, but a guide that can help you to make better aquarium photo’s. Of course the choice of your hardware is determinative to the possibilities you have.
Each camera has its specific features and operating capabilities which you can find in your operating manual. In auto mode, most camera’s are able to create pretty good photos in normal conditions. Unfortunately, aquarium conditions are usually not optimal to create photos in auto mode. We must not forget that even the best camera’s have limitations. There is a clear difference between what we want and what is technically possible!
This guide contains many sample photo’s of discus fish as breeding discus is my hobby.
Choosing a Camera
In the last few years the world of photography has changed dramatically. The rolls of film has not been seen for years and taking pictures with a compact camera has been replaced by snapshots with a smartphone. If we look at the current smartphones the best ones can be compared to the level of high-end compact-cameras five years ago. They still cant compete with the current new compact cameras and are no match for the current mirror reflex cameras.
As development and innovations are moving on at light speed, the camera you bought is outdated the moment you have read the manual. In particular, the communication with the outside world via the Internet and Touch Screen belong to the new capabilities. Even editing the pictures on the smartphone or camera are options now.
The latest cameras are equipped with special film functions that facilitate filming. Where once was a hard dividing line between the different types of cameras, these differences are now mainly determined by the settings and quality of the hardware.
Making a beautiful picture is only partly determined by the hardware choice, because the knowledge and skills of the photographer are much more important and that is what manufacturers are using now. This is also the reason that modern cameras are divided into the following four categories:
Compact Camera
This is one of the most widely used type of camera for the hobbyist photographer. It is capable of making reasonable pictures under less than perfect (light) conditions. Prices are more than reasonable and operating them is kept simple. Without any knowledge of photography you can take beautiful pictures.
In general, the photographic setting possibilities in compact cameras are limited, external flash units, interchangeable lenses etc are not possible.
System Camera
The digital system camera offers a number of features also been found in the DSLR but is more compact. Some models are barely larger than a compact camera. However the quality of the images of the system camera is on par with the images of an SLR.
By leaving out the reflex mechanism and reflex viewfinder the camera can be much smaller. You shoot using the LCD viewfinder which also shows the main camera settings.
Some models don’t even have an electronic viewfinder, on these models you use the LCD screen on the rear of the camera. In itself this works fine, but may have some limitations on a sunny day as the LCD screen is hard to see in full sunlight.
DSLR – Digital Single Lens Reflex
DSLR’s are the top of the line in photography. The average consumer prices range between 350 and 2.000 euros. The professional photographer will opt for a robust professional version that has a high quality and cost, whereas the hobbyist will usually choose a lower end version at a lower price.
The power of the DSLR lies in its flexibility. The expansion options make these cameras popular. The starting photographer is usually offered a body with a kit lens, but can also choose to just buy the body and pick another suitable lens.
For every photographic problem there is a suitable solution. Of course you should be able to justify the cost. Even the professional photographer may have to make do with what he has.
Fortunately, traditional camera manufacturers (Canan, Nikon etc.) understood that the cost of a complete system can really add up. They will always try to retain their clients. New cameras are made as compatible as possible so that the user can continue to use old hardware (lenses, flashes and accessories).
Other manufacturers understood this well and provide compatible hardware in this lucrative business. This means the consumer has more choices and affordable prices.
Smart System Camera
The latest innovation is called the Smart System Camera. The front looks like a conventional camera system, while the back houses a huge 4.8 inch screen, looking just like an Android smartphone. Some of them even have an electronic viewfinder so you can even take pictures on sunny days.
You can not call in a traditional way with these smart system cameras but you can use Skype or similar programs to call! Remember you will get some funny looks when you are talking into your camera.
As innovation never stops there are even cameras that are waterproof so you can take underwater pictures. This looks like a nice development, but not very practical for the smaller aquariums.
Choosing a Lens
With compact cameras you don’t have to choose a lens. Manufacturers will offer the best possible zoom range they think will fit the camera and users. You will have to do with what you get. To be able to compare these zoom ranges their zoom range is compared with that of old fashioned 35 mm film cameras.
One thing we definitely have to keep in mind is that the quality of the photo is mainly determined by the quality of the lens At the moment the race for the most megapixel and higher sensitivity of the image sensor has stagnated. Now the manufacturers are focusing more on zoom factor of the lens. Technical specifications such as 30x optical zoom does not say much about the qualitiy of the lens. As a rule of thumb we can say that a lens with a fixed focal length offers better quality than zoom lenses.
The quality of professional lenses is much higher than consumer lenses. Consumer lenses are all-round lenses being sold at a reasonable price. The professional lenses have greater robustness and image quality Of course this comes with a hefty price tag.
Fixed Focal Length Lenses
When photography was in its infancy, fixed focal length lenses were the only option. Nowadays, fixed focal lenses or prime lenses are still being appreciated by advanced photographers. Greatest advantages of fixed focal length lenses are:
- Very sharp and clear images, even with low light you can make good images
- Firm as they contain fewer moving parts that an break
- Light in weight because they contain less glass elements and components
- Cheap as they have less components and lenses
- Focusing is fast as less lenses need to move
The only drawback on a fixed focal length lens is their fixed focal length…this means that you will have to move the camera back or forth to get the correct cut-out of the subject, the distance between the subject has to be changed to get a different cut-out. Of course, you can buy several lenses with different focal lengths, but this can be very expensive.
Sensor Comments
The simplest fixed focal length lenses are used in smartphones and tablets. The problem is that both image sensor and lenses are too small to catch enough light. For example an Apple Iphone 6 has an image sensor of 1 / 2.3″ (5,7 x 4,3 mm). As a result of these small sensors and lenses they are performing relatively poorly in low light conditions.
Fixed Focal Length Lens (50 mm)
One of the best kept secrets of digital photography is the 50 mm lens. A lens that is usually very sharp, focuses quickly and because they have a large aperture you can create a beautiful blur in the background. It can be used for portrait-, macro-, street-, product and landscape photography. Actually, every photographer should have one of these lenses.
Macro Lenses
First we will have to clear a misunderstanding. Many “normal” lenses are marked as “Macro”, often this quite wrongly. This lens should be marked: “I can focus up close”.
“True” macro lenses almost always have a fixed focal length and can focus from a real close distant to the subject, the subject can be projected in a 1:1 ratio on the sensor. This means a 1 centimetre subject is projected as 1 centimetre on the sensor.
Macro photography on land is already a challenging hobby, let alone underwater. The distance to the subject can range from a few millimetres to centimetres, in addition the limited depth of field gives the necessary challenges. With lots of light and patience you can make beautiful macro images, but it is a very specific discipline in photography.
Zoomlenses
Zoom lenses come in all shapes and sizes. From wide angle to telephoto lenses. The question is: are zoom lenses only for lazy people? On the contrary, they are very convenient for the following reasons:
- You can get closer to the subject! Of course you could take a step forward or backward to get the right composition of your subject, but this is not always possible.
- By using a zoom lens you can very easily customise the cropping of your photo.
- Instead of working with several fixed focal lenses you achieve the same with one zoom lens.
Why don’t we use only zoom lenses if they are that useful?
- Zoom lenses are virtually unavailable with a very large aperture. If they exist, they are very expensive!
- The aperture is often not the same zoomed in or out, this means that the picture gets darker as you zoom in.
- The quality of zoom lenses is often less than that of lenses with a fixed focal point. That makes sense as it is much easier to match all internal lenses on a given focal length.
Wide Angle Lenses
If you look at the aquarium photographers wish, most of them opt for fast, large aperture lenses that can zoom further and further until the subject fills the entire screen. But they should take a broader perspective….literally. The wide angle lens is one of the great secrets of aquarium photography. If you want to take your aquarium photography to the next level, a wide angle lens should not be missing in your range of lenses.
Thanks to the extremely short focussing distance and sharpness these lenses are perfect of aquarium photography. Especially when making overview photo’s in small spaces.
The only thing you have to keep in mind is the angle that you shoot, for wide angle lenses can distort the image, which can also be used creatively. In the picture below you can see that the right tank is slightly distorted. The right side is not perpendicular at all. This distortion can easily be solved with photo editing software.
Source: Discuszolder.nl
