[bettasusa]

Hi Everyone,

So I'm ok with the camera I have but have seen some pheonominal photos on here and I know these aren't with just any ordinary digi cam like I have. I purchased my camera some time ago, a GE X500 15X optical soon etc. However taking photos of the fish, (which move pretty darn fast), seem to take a lot more time than I'd like to take, meaning the pose I really want is never the one I'm getting because its too late! lol

Would like to know what some of you are using and how much you may have invested in your camera and equipment if any, like zoom lens etc. As mentioned earlier, I have a lower end, 150.00 GE. Never intended to take much photos of the fish but I'm really starting to enjoy it.

Thanks! Lui

 

[JKfish]

I don't have a fancy camera, so I can't help you too much, but I do have a few tricks that really help when taking photos of your fish.

Make sure your camera is on macro (with the flash forced off), and have the camera lense as close to the glass as possible, if not touching it. This'll reduce glare and the chances that the camera will focus on the glass rather than your fish. Have a bright light turned on over the tank for better illumination. As for getting your subject to stay still, I typically open up the tank top, and they automatically swim closer to the front of the tank and stay very still in hopes of getting food. XD

 

[styggian]

JKfish, is that a dragon in your avatar? He(?) has a really pretty color.

 

[chrissylee13]

I don't have a fancy camera, so I can't help you too much, but I do have a few tricks that really help when taking photos of your fish.

Make sure your camera is on macro (with the flash forced off), and have the camera lense as close to the glass as possible, if not touching it. This'll reduce glare and the chances that the camera will focus on the glass rather than your fish. Have a bright light turned on over the tank for better illumination. As for getting your subject to stay still, I typically open up the tank top, and they automatically swim closer to the front of the tank and stay very still in hopes of getting food. XD

OMGOSH! that's exactly what i do. haha. but i still can't get my female to stay still..:roll:

 

[JKfish]

styggian, actually, no. While he looked it, he was actually a masked melano (blue with black fins) with a bit of copper coloration in his body.

 

[kfish]

I use a Sony Cyber-Shot DSC, which is an older model now (this one: http://www.amazon.com/Sony-Cyber-Shot-DSC-W530-Vario-Tessar-Wide-Angle/dp/B004H8FNNA) and it's amazing. I checked it out in the store and tried taking super up close pictures with no flash just for betta fish picture testing purposes, haha.

Any Sony DSC will take great up close pictures for you. I know 3 people with Sony DSC cameras, and two use them professionally (granted, they have more expensive models that are compatible with attachable lenses and such).

But yeah, check out reviews for them. I paid $150 for mine when I got it, now it's around $100. Probably can't go wrong with the current DSC model that's $150.

(the first twelve pictures in my album were taken with it, the others were taken with my old (really bad) camera)

 

[kfish]

Oh! Also want to add that my Sony DSC has an aquarium mode for photo taking. And a pets mode... and all kinds of modes. I haven't had too much luck with the aquarium mode, but maybe it's improved in later versions (I use ISO mode for taking pictures of fish ... and pretty much everything else - you adjust the light sensitivity and can take fantastic pictures with no flash that way).

 

[LittleBettaFish]

I use my mum's Canon Eos. Really nice camera for an amateur like me who has no concept of lighting or timing.

Even with my unfavourable conditions, it still manages to take a more than decent shot.

She has a couple of special lenses for it (macro and something else), but I have no idea how to attach them, and considering its cost, don't intend on finding out on my own.

I used to have a point-and-shoot and it just didn't have the capacity to take nice crisp photos in anything but natural light. The flash was forever obscuring half the photo and most of the time, it would refuse to focus on my fish and instead take a really nice photo of whatever was behind the tank.

It is so frustrating to line up the perfect shot, only to have it ruined by a crappy camera.

 

[Tappy4me]

I have a Canon PowerShot SX150 IS. It does a pretty decent job, when the fish hold still! hehe.

 

[bettasusa]

Wow! awesome replies! Thanks everyone.

Oh! Also want to add that my Sony DSC has an aquarium mode for photo taking. And a pets mode... and all kinds of modes

That is really cool! The one I have has a lot of modes too but go figure I have no idea how to use any of them and I'm still trying to figure out the shutter speed! lol. But so far pictures are coming out ok. Check out the album in my profile if you'd like to see some photos I've taken. I honestly can't complain although I'd love an SLR where its just point and shoot. lol Lui

 

[mathkid]

I have a Canon Powershot 780IS. Mine has a Kids&Pets mode, but it isn't fast enough for my fish =) The auto mode honestly works pretty well, EXCEPT when my fish won't stop moving >_> However! There are a few tricks you can do to get better pics.

* Set the mode to Macro (close-up) - this is the left-side button on mine
* If your pics are dark, turn up the exposure - this is the down button on mine
* I turned off the autofocus servo, because it kept wiggling the focus.
* If you hold down the take-picture button half-way, your camera will try to autofocus and figure out exposure/shutter speed. If you point your camera at a light (or something bright) and start the auto-focus, it will typically come up with a fast shutter speed (1/100 plus) instead of the usual slow one (1/8, 1/25). Then you can swing around to your fish and normal lighting and take a fast picture. You can also try autofocusing on a white piece of paper or the wall, etc.
* Play around with the auto-focus computation algorithms. If you use the point-computation instead of evaluative, I've managed to get it up to 1/800. The faster shutter speed will let you take crisper pictures when your fish is moving, though you will need better lighting. (You might also want to turn up ISO since you are getting less light.)

Here are a couple of guides that have helped me figure out some of my camera settings!
* http://photo.tutsplus.com/tutorials/photography-fundamentals/the-ultimate-beginners-introduction-to-exposure/
* http://graphics.stanford.edu/courses/cs178-11/lectures/image-formation-29mar11.pdf