Photography

[kiwiraka]

I'm looking at getting a camera to take better photos of my fish.

I don't want to spend too much, but I want to be able to take at least half decent pictures.

It's a dark tank and I'll probably be using the camera at night to reduce glare.

So what camera do you use and/or recommend?

[Fishluva]

cameras have come a long way.

just about all brand name cameras are capable of decent results these days.

eliminating relections and holding the camera still are vital to good results. search you tube. lots of serious set ups there.

my tip would be, tripod and good old ten/two second timer shutter release.

watch out for over exposed, burnt out highlights. if this happens, dial in underexposure until they disappear.

if some parts of your image go black, from under exposure, so be it....

 

 

 

[kiwiraka]

Thanks

[gligor]

I'd go for any Sony camera, to me their point and shoot cameras are the best of any you'd find out there. They incorporate a lot of the parts from their mirror less range into the point and shoot range so you get a more than decent camera and lens at a lower price point. 

Good luck shopping for cameras, and share some photos once you've got the camera. 

[Fishluva]

Good pics are surprisingly hard to get...

last time i tried, results were disappointing.

reflections on the glass drove me nuts!!! 

trademe is a great place to pic up a bargain camera...

once i bought  a camera there that the seller had described as in good condition..

a few days later, a completely thrashed dented and banged up piece o crap turned up.

what a let down that was...  :-(

 

[alexyay]

In all honesty, lighting really is key when it comes to getting photos of fish. If you can't provide the adequate lighting, a compact may be a better option than a DSLR as they're good at handling dark situations + high shutter speeds. Admittedly I know next to nothing about compacts so can't really provide much help in what camera to buy, sorry!

[Colour_genes]

Your best bet would be to visit a specialised camera shop (not Noel Leeming or Harvey Norman etc but a proper, dedicated photographic shop where the staff are photographers and actually know what they are talking about!) next time you are in Auckland or other bigger city, and talk to someone with specialist knowledge

Because tanks are darkish, and fish move fast, and are often fairly small (depending on what you keep of course) the two things you really need in a camera for good quality images are -  top performance at high ISO settings (this is what enables you to get a fast shutter speed so your fast moving fish doesn't come out all blurry in the photo), and, if your fish are smallish, either - a very good macro setting or better still a DSLR with a macro lens.

If it was me, (and this is just my personal preference you understand, but I do have a serious interest in photography) I would buy a Nikon mid-range DSLR, and a tamron 60 or 90mm macro lens. Judicious buying, if you don't mind second hand, could give you this combination for $1000 or just under. A 50mm lens and converter/macro adapter rings would be cheaper than a macro lens but slightly lower quality and slightly more difficult to use. I find Nikon cameras have settings / menus/controls that are easier to understand than some other brands.

If you need something a bit cheaper you need to either really research which cameras have both good macro settings and the ability to focus at very short camera to subject distances, or - ask a pro. I know it's a bit of a 'techy' answer but hope it helps a bit.

Alexay is totally right about getting really good bright lighting inside the tank when taking photos, it will make things way easier for you

[gligor]

In regards to the light, you could look at shooting in RAW format and then play around with lighting up the dark image in Lightroom or something similar like that.

[boban_nz]

So you are looking to get some decent pictures   I can tell you that the bar is set very high and you need to go a long way to accomplish that but if you are interested in just pictures to display on the screen it is a bit different. Decent pictures are high resolution sharp photos(300 dpi) and there can be no compromise on image quality for high quality publications.

A DSLR camera and macro lense are the best choice for fish photography.  In the past I used point and shoot and a compact digital camera and the results were very frustrating.  I bought my first DSLR and the result is just what I wanted for a long time. It did cost me a bit but now I am selling my photos and getting some money back.

There is a huge learning curve, image processing, Photoshop skills etc so you have to learn how everything works. Once you know how and what you have to do, no doubt you will be getting decent pictures.

This is just my personal opinion based on my long time fish photography.

 

[kiwiraka]

Thanks for all the replies! Very much appreciated!

I'll definitely go for a DSLR with a macro lense! (And setup some better lighting )

I definitely won't be buying new, so I'll start looking on trademe! 

Thanks for all the advice