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The Hospitable Moray
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The Hospitable Moray



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Isn't she nice?

Isn't she nice?
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cameraCanon EOS 100D

settings Aperture f/2.8 ISO 800 Shutter 1/40 

upload_dateDec, 2014

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338

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Awards

People's Choice in Underwater Photo Challenge
Top Choice
DanMac snowdon
Superb Composition
picturesque p_eileenbaltz
Outstanding Creativity
Rustybucket8472
Absolute Masterpiece
sarahschupp
Superior Skill
JCOOK3

Top Ranks

Marine Wildlife Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1

Submitted to Photo Contests

Tags

#moray #eel #fish #water #ocean #animals #ocean
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Behind The Lens

Location

I took this photograph in Lisbon's Oceanarium, a very large aquarium with ocean life. I had never photographed aquaria before and it proven to be a very challenging shoot.

Time

It was around four in the afternoon and I shot for about three hours. There was no natural light at all, so the time of day didn't influence the shoot.

Lighting

There was very little of it, I didn't have a tripod and I wasn't allowed to use flash. It was hard. In this particular case, I was forced to push the ISO to 800 and still had to bring the shutter speed down to 1/40.

Equipment

A cropped-sensor Canon, the 100D, equipped with a 100mm 2.8L Macro lens. No tripod, no flash, no mercy.

Inspiration

Look at those colours! It's a very beautiful and exquisite animal contrasting with a very pleasant environment. The way I see it, it's a photograph begging to be taken.

Editing

Yes, but it didn't need much. Just some Lightroom adjustments and a final touch of NIK Color Efex Pro to push those colours to their full potential.

In my camera bag

I have two distinct kits for different purposes. A Lowepro Flipside 200 backpack with a Canon 100D, a Canon 50mm 1.8, a Canon 100mm 2.8L and a kit lens for the rare occasions I wish to go wider. That's the bag I took on this shoot and that I usually take to shoot animal life and do macro work. I do wish to replace that 100D for something more interesting, but it hasn't happened yet. I also have a small nondescript bag with a Sony A6000, two Sigma lenses, 30mm and 60mm and a Manfrotto table tripod. That's the kit that I always carry around with me on day-to-day life, and that I use for spontaneous shooting and street photography. For landscape work, either one works, but I usually go for the second, lighter one. Besides that I also own a Manfrotto Befree tripod and an EOS 500 film camera. I like to keep it light.

Feedback

I was ridiculously ill-prepared for this shoot. I hadn't read anything about shooting aquaria, so I wasn't expecting the challenges that I was presented with. Due to luck alone, the gear I brought with me was quite adequate for the purpose. I'd be happy to offer some advice to whoever wishes to try something similar, so that they can avoid going through the same pains that I did. Shooting aquaria is very hard. The available light is insufficient to say the least, and you'll have to shoot through thick reflective glass that will easily ruin most of your shots. In this case some windows were concave which, unless you enjoy nasty distortion, will render your efforts useless. Also, water life rarely stays still. It's quite the challenge, but there are some tricks that most definitely help. Always keep your glass parallel to the aquarium glass by keeping your camera in a perfect 90 degree angle relative to the aquarium window. That will minimize the chance of awful distortion and weird chromatic effects. Also, choose straight windows. Shooting through concave or convex glass is absolutely hopeless. Flashes, and most times tripods, will be forbidden. You must use fast glass to be able to shoot on such poor lighting conditions. I used an f2.8 lens and still had to push my ISO up to 800 and drop my shutter speed to levels below my comfort zone. To my dismay, some shots were quite simply impossible to achieve with the gear I had, namely penguins swimming underwater at high speeds. I had no choice but to push the ISO even further which on this kind of photography, in my opinion, renders the final results useless. Use a focal length of 50mm or above to minimize distortions. The aquarium glass already introduces enough distortion, you don't need a wide lens to make it even more of a challenge. Remember that water isn't the best medium for light. The best shots you'll get will be from the animals that get closer to the aquarium window. You'll have less water between you and your subject, which will dramatically improve sharpness, and minimize distortions and chromatic aberrations. You'll also need to avoid the reflections on the glass. Long story short, you'll need the ability to focus close, so I highly recommend using a lens with Macro capabilities. I brought mine by chance, but I'm very glad that I did. A technique I used a lot was to put on a lens hood and stick it straight against the window. That solves several problems as once. It's a practical way to eliminate reflections and to get as parallel to the window as possible. Finally, take your time and don't contain yourself. Take as many shots as you can. You will have to discard a high percentage of them.

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