Jellyfish
Taken through the glass of a tank at the South Carolina Aquarium in Charleston.
Taken through the glass of a tank at the South Carolina Aquarium in Charleston.
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PENTAX *ist DL 
Aperture 35/10 ISO 400 Shutter 1/60 Focal Length 18/1 
Charleston, South Carolina, US
Aug, 2017Views
460
Likes
Awards
Winner in Jellyfish Photo Challenge
Peer Award
Magnificent Capture
Superb Composition
Top Choice
Absolute Masterpiece
Superior Skill
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Top 30 rank
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Behind The Lens
Location
The South Carolina Aquarium, in Charleston, SC.Time
Mid-afternoon, although the time of day hardly mattered, given the interior location and lack of natural light.Lighting
This tank, full of jelly fish, was in an interior space with no natural light. The room itself was very dimly lit, with most of the light coming from the illumination in the tanks themselves. The lights on the jellyfish tank were situated so that the jellyfish almost seemed to glow against a dark background.Equipment
This was one of the last trips where I was still using my trusty old Pentax *ist DL camera, with the Pentax 18-55 mm lens mounted.Inspiration
I had seen photos that others have taken of jellyfish and was curious about how they were captured. When I saw this tank, I understood how it was possible without a waterproof camera. Still, I was worried about the exposure, given the low light conditions of this exhibit. I took my time, framing the shot I wanted and trying to relax myself to reduce shaking. I took the lens to it shortest focal length to get the largest possible aperture, which allowed me to shoot at a shutter speed that helped to minimize blurring. In the end, I was quite happy with the result.Editing
Surprisingly, this photo has not been post-processed. This is how it came out of the camera.In my camera bag
When I was using my Pentax equipment, I would often carry two virtually identical cameras with different lenses mounted, allowing me to switch focal length ranges by changing cameras. No need to swap lenses. That was my approach on this trip.Feedback
Aquariums are a great place to capture underwater subjects without a waterproof camera set-up. However, the do present some challenges. They tend to be low light environment, so a tripod or monopod is useful (if permitted...be sure to check to see if they allow their use), but you can also take advantage of any image stabilization features in your camera to assist as well. The other thing to remember is that you are shooting through glass...watch for stray reflections. It is easy to focus only on your subject and overlook a reflection in the glass until you look at the shot later. Pay attention to these details (and use them to your advantage, if you can).
