chimera Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 haven't posted one in a while. lights lights lights - thats what i reckon im lacking and a comparison of a milli frag, when i got it aug 05 now... and another, aug 05 now.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KP Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 Your tank is doing great even with your so-called putty lights Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wasp Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 Looking much more matured than last time I saw it, very nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted May 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 cheers guys. i finally decided i'll have a late one at get the T5's installed. scrounged around the house for enough computer power cables, screwed the "3 x T5's" to the hood then wired them up. Each T5 ballast powers 2 bulbs and it wont work at all unless both are wired up. because i have 3 x T5's made up, i could only get 2 (whites) to work (need the 4th wired in order to get the last 2 (blues) going) i must admit i have never seen a brand new T5 bulb light up (the only ones i've seen were old and probably in need of replacement) the brand new bulbs are quite amazing - way brighter than i had hoped. just having 2 (whites) going at the moment has certainly made a considerable difference. will hook up the 2 x blues tomorrow night. these will be on a separate timer to come on 1 hr before and 1 hr after the halides. heres a recap of the 3 x T5s i made up: will get a pick up to show them installed later will also take a frontal shot (same pic as above, same camera settings) with the T5's installed to show the difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slappers Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 the light in your tank dont look to bad things are growing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cracker Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 looking good chim. how do you keep the back so clean? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted May 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 how do you keep the back so clean? one of those wide aquamedic scrapers. blade is about 6 inches across? takes about 2 minutes to scrape the front and back!!! makes it look 10 times better than having coralline all over it - the corals stand out more. in saying that though the new tank will have a black, removable section (not sure of material yet, probably perspex) at the back that can be taken out and cleaned outside the tank (also allows access if anything falls down the back ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fay Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 Great Photos looking wonderful. seems a shame to break it down to upgrade Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 One thing im sure that is not lacking is photographic quality. Your photos are so clear and crisp. Actually the tank is the same clear and crisp. Like the others have said things are growing so the light must be reasonable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted May 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 thanks, it's only a sony dsc-p100 camera (5mp) took me a bit to work out the optimal camera settings. can't just use the normal point and shoot setting otherwise shots come out too blue. have to set to manual (P) i found having macro setting on, only zooming in about half way then cropping the image and sharpening it in photoshop works best no colours are enhanced (not that you would expect them to be :lol: ) also makes a big difference cleaning the glass hard core (in and out) otherwise the focus gets a bit screwed up. i'll get a photo tonight on the same angle as the full tank shot above but with the T5's on. interesting to see if it makes a difference to the clarity of the photo - should do with more lighting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wasp Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 Got any spare T5 stuff laying around? I want to set up some 4 foot actinics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted May 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 nope sorry dude. i do have 2 extra 4ft reflectors but they'll be used on the new tank. 4 x halides in the middle and 4 x 4ft T5's around the outside (making a shape square for both ) This will match the shape of the tank (or at least similar to it) See jetskisteve he's got heaps of T5 gear at a good price Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Gunner Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 Great photography, and a very nice tank. When you upgrade, are you going to make the tank slightly wider than the cutout to hide the streams? Personally I hate exposed intank equipment, although powerheads are hard to hide. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted May 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 When you upgrade, are you going to make the tank slightly wider than the cutout to hide the streams? Personally I hate exposed intank equipment, although powerheads are hard to hide thats exactly it. current tank is 5x2x2 (a little over 500 litres). new tank will be 6x3x2 (a little over 1,000 litres) will probably go to 650mm height rather than 600. the hole in wall will stay the same size to hide the streams (6" each side should be sufficient) also the closed loop pipes will be completely stealthed - all aquascaping will be designed around the location of these - or in other words the pipes will be extended to poke through the rocks but not seen, so water flow is maintained but you wont know where its coming from! the idea of the new tank is to give it a natural look and a more 3D view. aquascaping will have the current centre piece maintained but the 'valley' will go along the left side and behind it. this will mean that you will get different views depending on where you stand in front of the tank. i have the exact layout in my head and have done for the past 6 months. money and time are the only things stopping me as to when it happens - especially considering the mega rennovations we've just done! (and are still doing ) probably make a start end of this year/early next. design will adopt a similar look and feel to steve weasts tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Gunner Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 From what you've just described, I think you'll have a winning tank. Especially with the black background and hidden plumbing. Please do a stage by stage diary posting when you start. btw - Are you running halides on your tank at the moment or just T5's? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazymranch Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 Hey Chim, I have the same camera and my pics are crap compared to yours. If I set it to P, how do I get to the macro setting? Also, the halides cause everything to look really washed out and any color that might have existed simply looks white. Help? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted May 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 push the little flower button, turns macro setting on. don't fully zoom into the shot otherwise it loses focus. zoom in as close as you can before it loses focus (hold finger down half way on 'take photo button' ) zoom out a little more if its not in focus, keep going til you get it right. in regards to colours, i've noticed the sony is crap for showing colour matching. even the photos i've posted here dont look as good. mates got a point and shoot canon, kicks arse over the sony for colours imo. i'll check the camera settings tonight and let you know exactly what i've got everything set too. oh, and if you want better colours, simply angle your photos down on the coral as opposed to upwards at it. if the view finder points too much at the halides, it looks washed out. have to find a happy medium. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted May 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 oh, and remember this photo i took a while ago? same coral (poc), same camera, just different camera settings. amazing how much different you can get the colours just by adjusting camera settings... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted May 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 3, 2006 All 4 x T5's are on now, what a difference. As the wife said, looked like it only had a night light on previously! Considering a 4th halide now too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted May 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 3, 2006 ok, coz this thread is starting to get image heavy, started new thread showing "with and without" T5's, photo here... http://www.fnzas.org.nz/fishroom/here-vp143004.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted May 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 3, 2006 btw - Are you running halides on your tank at the moment or just T5's both! 3 x 150w halides and now 4 x 54W T5's Hey Chim, I have the same camera and my pics are crap compared to yours. If I set it to P, how do I get to the macro setting? Also, the halides cause everything to look really washed out and any color that might have existed simply looks white. Help? Oh and my 2 cents worth for photo's (for the Sony camera specifically) Taking photo's, use 'P' setting. Press menu and set white balance to WB. Quality to fine. Metering to Multi. Always best to have camera on a tripod or at least on a table. At one stage I had a ladder in the lounge and put it on one of the steps :lol: Worked a treat. Close up shots: Turn macro setting ON (flower button) and turn flash OFF. zoom in half way press button half way to auto-focus, if it doesnt focus correctly, zoom out a bit and try again. Better to get a larger photo then use a photoediting program to crop it first, then resize it then finally apply a 'sharpen' filter to it. If you dont feel there is enough light in the shot, point at a darker area in the tank and hold the button down half way then move back to the subject should go lighter (you might lose good focus though) And visa versa, if there is too much light, point the camera up at the halides hold finger down on button half way then back on subject, should go darker. Full tank shots: Turn macro setting OFF and turn flash ON. zoom fully out. turn room lighting down but not off, good to have some light from behind though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Posted May 3, 2006 Report Share Posted May 3, 2006 Thanks for the camera tips Chimera. Will try some of those on my camera. The camera is a Panasonic Lumix DMC FX2 suppose to be a reasonable camera so expect better photo quality than i am getting. I suspect i need to take a lot more photos and experiment a bit more. Good tradesman never blames his tools :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted May 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 3, 2006 Good tradesman never blames his tools he only complains that his tools are too budget to perform a good job Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TinyWeapon Posted May 15, 2006 Report Share Posted May 15, 2006 Very neat tank! More pics please... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted May 15, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 15, 2006 thanks, see the "saltwater members tanks" for my tank and others even nicer http://www.fnzas.org.nz/fishroom/saltwater-members-tanks-vf30.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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