# Help me improve



## mids1999 (Feb 22, 2007)

Ok I am getting started in taking some photos of my aquarium and would like some c&c on my photos.
Here are two I took tonight.

Equiptment used:
Canon Rebel XTI
Canon 50mm f/1.4
Tank lighting only 96x2 (power compact)


----------



## felixm (Jan 20, 2007)

They look good to me. The best tip I can offer is to have a lot of light.


----------



## Bert H (Mar 2, 2004)

Are you shooting RAW or JPEG? If you shoot RAW, you can process it and open up the shadows to better see the fish's markings while maintaining the background in better exposure, ie, the fish would look more like it does in the bottom pic, while the background would look more like it does in the first pic.


----------



## BryceM (Nov 6, 2005)

I'm no expert, but I'll hazard a few comments. You are getting some light diffusion from hardwater deposits on the glass. You'll get much nicer photos if you give it a good cleaning first.

More light will allow you to bring out better detail in the subject while also increasing the depth of field. Using a larger f-stop corresponds to a smaller apeture (opening) in the lens. A smaller opening requires more light, but the benefit is that both the subject and background can be in focus.

The fish in the second photo is out of focus and the one in the first could be sharper (always focus on the eyes). With an f-stop of 1.4 you'll need to be very precise with focusing. For most cameras an f-stop between 5-8 will give you the sharpest images. 

Most of the nicer shots are obtained using a remote flash. Once you start playing with stuff like that the $$ goes up pretty quick.


----------

