How do I take good fish photos?

......like the ones in the guide books, e.g. Etnier and Starnes' Fishes of Tennessee. I assume there's some kind of pad being used to press the fish against glass; can anyone give me more specifics? Can you do this with live fish, or is it too stressful?

I appreciate any pointers you can give me.

Only one guy here can answer this. In fact, he should do an in depth write up on his techniques. Uland?

He will not leave the stream until the photos are done. I usually have to kick him, and throw things at him.

......like the ones in the guide books, e.g. Etnier and Starnes' Fishes of Tennessee. I assume there's some kind of pad being used to press the fish against glass; can anyone give me more specifics? Can you do this with live fish, or is it too stressful?

I appreciate any pointers you can give me.

go to Collecting and Sampling Discussion, then scroll down to Photographing on Location. Pretty good discussion there.

Thanks a lot- that thread had lots of great info!

I built a small glass aquarium years ago to use for photographing aquatics, but I became frustrated because the animals would always swim to the corner where I couldn't get a clear shot, or else would never settle down long enough to be photographed. I finally quit attempting to use that method altogether.

Those plates look like they could make my life much simpler! And the formalin on the fins trick is ingenious- I have ready access to the stuff at work; I'd never thought about using it in this application, though. Now, if I can just work out my lighting issues (I only have one flash, and no diffusers, reflectors, or a real good grasp on optics ) I'll be on a roll!

Thanks a lot- that thread had lots of great info!

I built a small glass aquarium years ago to use for photographing aquatics, but I became frustrated because the animals would always swim to the corner where I couldn't get a clear shot, or else would never settle down long enough to be photographed. I finally quit attempting to use that method altogether.

Those plates look like they could make my life much simpler! And the formalin on the fins trick is ingenious- I have ready access to the stuff at work; I'd never thought about using it in this application, though. Now, if I can just work out my lighting issues (I only have one flash, and no diffusers, reflectors, or a real good grasp on optics ) I'll be on a roll!

I've found that I can get very good photos with my digital (thank goodness it is smarter than I am) when I shoot outdoors. If you look at that photo of me on the banks of the Edisto, I have one stationary strobe on the right and then a hand held one in my left that I vary until I get the photo I like. Usually when I hold it directly overhead or slightly to the left is when it comes out best. I set the timer on my camera and hold the strobe in my left and the background in my right hand. I'm sure there is an easier way but I'm old and stubborn to change.

one piece of quick advice that i can offer is that you will do well to turn off most of your camera's automatic functions, that is, select the "Manual" shooting mode. digital SLR's and higher-end point-and-shoots will give you this option.

also, do your best to familiarize yourself with your camera's aperture, shutter speed, focus and whitebalance settings.

Fish swimming free in a tank are brutal hard to shoot with auto focus. Best is to disable auto focus, manually preset a fixed distance then try and move the camera closer/farther until the image in the viewing screen is clear, then shoot. It's like wing shooting, you have to get a knack for it.
It's way easier with a film camera on a high shutter speed because when you see that image looking sharp, you want that shutter to fire instantly. The damn shutter delay in digital has brought me close to smashing the camera on more than one occasion.
Other tips;
Keep the camera very close to the glass to avoid seeing the camera reflection in the shot. If you must be back from the glass, make a flat black cardboard "blind" with a hole for the lens and shoot through that. If your camera lens has shiney light colored markings you may have to mask them as well.
If you only have one fixed flash, hold the camera at an angle to glass to avoid reflection. Seperate flash held at an angle gives more versitility. Remove plastic comercial aquarium backs as they reflect flash as well. Replace with flat black or other nonreflective dark color.
Try to avoid using flash if at all possible with bright shiney reflecty shiners etc. Try to use overhead lighting or light coming over your shoulder. Use manual settings to adjust aperature so as to allow max shutter speed in the reduced light. Increasing ISO setting gaines you more leeway in reduced light but takes away some res.
If all that seems like a pain, it is. That is why an immobile fish in the photo tank with paddle makes it a little less frustrating. If you like the clinical "field guide" type shots that's the way to go. If you want "action shots", learn your camera's manual settings and be prepared to spend ALOT of time shooting and editing be prepared to go through LOTS of batteries.

one piece of quick advice that i can offer is (...)

Thanks, everyone!

I am shooting with a digital SLR, and that shutter delay is a big old pain. The pictures I want to be able to take are the clinical ones- I want them for reference moreso than aesthetics; I'll wait until I can afford a decent underwater rig to start trying for good action shots.

I must say, I sure am glad I found this site. You guys have answered all my questions quickly and thoroughly!

Check out this link: http://home.comcast....s/aquaphoto.htm

"Finz" is a professional photographer and part time fish geek, he has helped me a lot with my photography.

Thanks, Seedy; looks like some good tips!

Zoom. if you have even a 100mm lens in placed it gets you far enough so that reflections are not a problem. But the angle thing mentioned can be employed even when not using a flash. If you are at an angle great enough you will see no reflections from you camera or your self. But about that zoom, if not a high quality zoom you will loose light when zoomed in. When I really get serious about wanting to catch a good, asthetic, natural shot I use tungsten umbrella lights. But not all have that. Simply put as much (white) light over the tank as possible. And as one other person said try to aviod flash on shiney fish. For that matter any fish. Some color correction may have to take place after you take many many shots but that is the price of satisfaction. If you have a good light source try not to push the depth of field to much then you end up with a shutter speed problem. As far as shutter lag mine has zero. I do think you said you were taking these with a Digital SLR right. The only lag you will have is the autofocus wandering and seeking. So what the guy said about using manual focus is very good advice. Try a mid range aperature that gives enough depth that even though the fish may not be at the exact focal point it will still be sharp because it is falling in the one third in front and two thirds in back of that focal point range.

It is all in finding the balance between the stop of the lens and the shutter. Most digital SLR's now have under or over exposure settings. They can be employed with out effecting speed or aperature stops. And about batteries forget about that problem. Most digital SLR's these days will take hundreds of shots per battery charge before being depleted.

And a photo slightly under exposed is much better than one reaching the point of being blown out. Assuming you have edditing software. If not try and try till you get tired then try more. You will eventually get the shot you want from you tank. It used to be said that the only difference between an amature and a proffesional photographer is the size of the proffesional's trash can was much larger. Now you have the inexpensive delete button at hand. So no problem.

Hope you are successful.
Daniel

......like the ones in the guide books, e.g. Etnier and Starnes' Fishes of Tennessee. I assume there's some kind of pad being used to press the fish against glass; can anyone give me more specifics? Can you do this with live fish, or is it too stressful?

I appreciate any pointers you can give me.

With digital technology we have, fish photos can be taken against a solid matte black background. Then the background is easily knocked out and replaced with white or any other color you desire. It is all in the sofware. If you have it your job is easier, if not--- more time shooting is requried. I have seen photos in books with the fish only on the page with a white background. I am sure the technique I speak of here is what is being used.