# Columbian Tetras



## Steven_Chong (Mar 17, 2005)

I am still getting the hang of this camera stuff . . . still kinda playing around and depending on post-processing, but I think I'm getting the hang of it.

The columbians were being pretty good for me, staying in one place so I was able to get some nice shots at a pretty low shutter speed-- using 5.6 aperature.





































And one of a little oto. 

I'd appreciate all feedback, especially critical feedback that could help me improve! Thanks!


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## turbomkt (Mar 31, 2004)

Steven,
Looks like a good start. What kind of camera are you using? The Exif info was stripped from the pictures


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## Steven_Chong (Mar 17, 2005)

^^; I don't even know what that means . . . :wacko: :dunce:

It's a Canon EOS 10D. My Uncle is really into photography, and so when I came home from school last year, I told him about my aquascaping and that I wanted a crash course in photography-- as much as I could learn in a month before I did study abroad in Japan. He helped me a lot to understand (since I was totally clueless before) and also gave me this camera, a tripod, and an 18-200mm lens. It's only now that I'm starting to realize exactly how much of a help he was to me . . . >.<


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## turbomkt (Mar 31, 2004)

I think the first thing you're going to have to figure out is how to focus.

You should also be looking at Aquatic-Photography.com

There's a ton of help over there. Incredible skills!


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## paradise (Jan 13, 2006)

Stevern, those are nice for beginning, but definitely can use some improvement. Some goals to achieve like said above, focus, and composition. Subjects facing toward you, placed in frame, not out of edge, with good surroundings.


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## Steven_Chong (Mar 17, 2005)

Ah thanks for the tips paradise. I'll try to be more patient. 

As to the cropping though, I don't have so much interest in taking "Fish Photos" as much as "Art Photos" and in that context, I don't believe the best composition is to put the fish smack dab in the center-- also I believe it's basic knowledge that letting something go off the edge of a picture (whether it be painting or photo) makes it look bigger.


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## turbomkt (Mar 31, 2004)

These are my observations and musings as to the why of things:

Actually, cutting off the edge of something isn't helpful to overall composition. There are tricks to it. For example, if you need to "cut off" someone's limb with framing, it's best to do it at a joint (knee, etc).

For the fish, the recommendation isn't to put it in the middle. The rule of thirds applies here. One thing to try is taking a wider shot that you can play with cropping. In fact, I'd say to take a wider shot and choose a particular size crop, then crop the photo several different ways with the fish eye as the focal point of the fish (This is the point of the fish that you want to try at different points in the crop).

By having the fish facing you and focusing on the face/eyes, there's more life coming _at_ the viewer. Plus, the face/eyes are the part of the fish we generally focus on with our minds unless it's a complete broadside shot.


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## Steven_Chong (Mar 17, 2005)

Ah so basically, it's not fins or body you're worried about lining with the "thirds" rule, but rather you're trying to line the eye/face with it?

All of these shots are cropped versions of wider shots BTW-- I just didn't get any clear ones with the fish facing me to be honest. 

Well, another day, keep trying :-k


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## paradise (Jan 13, 2006)

Well cropping is ART  There is a lot to it that is personal, but there are a few absolutes. LIKE, look at your photo #2, I think most would say that was badly cropped because you cut off a bit of the tail, it's not cut off on purpose that way, it's just mis-framed.

Rule of thirds is great, but it's a guideline. You CAN have a subject centered with the eyes being DEAD center of the photo and still have a strong and impactfull presentation. Example? Here you go:










Now here is a typical "fish portrait" crop of a very familiar fish:










And here is a much smaller subject with more of an environment shot:










And another "environment" shot:










What I am trying to say is that there is a way to present it artfully and there is a way to just throw it out there. Everyone is going to have opinions on what is a proper composition but the main goal is to make it JUMP OUT at you. Hope this helps.
Ed


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## bigstick120 (Mar 8, 2005)

Looks like some decent photos, thanks for sharing


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## Steven_Chong (Mar 17, 2005)

The quality of the photos is great paradise, but I still feel like they'd belong more in a fish magazine than a photo gallery. With the exception of the clownfish, the others don't really give me any feeling beyond the fish. That's just my opinion. Then again, the feeling could just be a result of the type of tank the fish is in.

I really am very inexperienced with photography, but I don't think you can simply call something like photo 2 "mis-framed." Not if I wanted to orient the photo around the details that are included, and have his nose in the specific spot in the composition that I put it in. Basically I'm saying that I'd be willing to do a painting of a fish in a similar position on canvas. It's better to have the tail going off the edge than to have the tail too close to the edge. For me and my taste, I just don't want the subject smack in the center, so if the nose has got to be there the tail has got to get cropped there.

I don't think you're going to convince me that your sense of cropping is just better than mine. If cropping is an art, than I just got to believe in my own instincts whether they're good or not-- they'll improve as I grow.


Thanks bigstick!


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## turbomkt (Mar 31, 2004)

Steven,
Would you be willing to post the uncropped original and allow people to try their hand at it?


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## Steven_Chong (Mar 17, 2005)

Ah Mike-- this is going to sound silly, but I looked through the original photos for the one image 2 was taken from, and it's actually not cropped at all length-wise. >.<


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