Macro Coral Photography tips

[OrlandoReefer]

Anybody got some tips on there own macro coral photography I shoot with a 40 mm macro lens from nikon and i occasionally use a yellow filter to capture the fluorescent colors but I'm having trouble getting the settings just right. Any ideas?eep:

 

[deerhunter06]

ive been learning as well, I shoot in manual its all about the aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. I have been struggling to keep the whole coral in focus though.

 

[deerhunter06]

with a 40mm lens you are going to sturggle getting close enough for real close shots.

 

[OrlandoReefer]

I wouldn't call myself an amateur but I'm just wondering what people use for aperture,iso, and shutter speedDSC_0181 by jsol_r, on Flickr

DSC_0140-Recovered by jsol_r, on Flickr

 

[deerhunter06]

with pics like that i wouldnt be asking for tips those are great.

 

[OrlandoReefer]

just trying to get a good view on what setting people are using

 

[LetItReef]

I shoot pics for years-parties/portraiture and one thing that I having trouble is the LED. I do not edit my pics just all straight from the DSLR. I tried dialing Kelvin and good but still not happy. I have Canon 5D2 with 24-70L lens. Any ideas? Thanks!

 

[BkReefBaby]

I need some tips I have a Canon T1i rebel what size lens should I go with? I've been reading a lot about macro shooting. I was thinking of getting a 100mm but then all that other stuff confuses me also these **** lenses are expensive I can buy myself a sweet tank for the price of some of the best lenses out...any recommendations on something affordable

 

[BkReefBaby]

Nice shots by the way that's why I'm asking for your help lol

 

[OrlandoReefer]

I need some tips I have a Canon T1i rebel what size lens should I go with? I've been reading a lot about macro shooting. I was thinking of getting a 100mm but then all that other stuff confuses me also these **** lenses are expensive I can buy myself a sweet tank for the price of some of the best lenses out...any recommendations on something affordable

The best macro lenses for reef shooting are definitely the 100 mm lenses because you can capture corals that aren't close to the glass but if you want go cheap i recommend nikons 40mm macro lens. The only problem is its hard to shoot corals that are far back in the tank so you have to move them up close the glass to capture all the detail. I usually shoot with a high aperture around f16 and a fairly low shutter speed around 1/100 with an ISO of 200(to capture fish or other fast moving livestock). For corals ill shoot around a really high aperture to get as much of the coral in focus as possible, shutter speed will be low enough for you to need a tripod or something to stabilize the camera, and ISO will be around 400 any higher and you start getting a lot of grain. Reef shooting isn't clear cut like other types of photography, lighting is the biggest issue and cause you to get colors in corals that just don't look right so it requires a lot of playing around with settings and a lot of patience.

 

[OrlandoReefer]

Also photoshop doesn't hurt to adjust colors and white balance.

 

[BkReefBaby]

Thanks for the tip...yeah every where I read it says you have to take a bunch of shots to figure what's right...now I have to buy a lense!

 

[LetItReef]

Thanks for the tip...yeah every where I read it says you have to take a bunch of shots to figure what's right...now I have to buy a lense!

Maybe rent it out first and try it out. Calumet $25.00/day- if there is store near you or solely a camera shop.

 

[zeeGGee]

A dedicated lens is worth buying. I'm a newbie, still trying to learn to take photo.Here are some of my shots using Tokina 100ATXPro.Manual Mode; ISO 600; 1/125; 4.2; 90% white and 20%blue DT light.

 

[sawdonkey]

There are also some ways to take macro shots without spending a bunch of money on a dedicated macro lens. The quality will suffer a little but you can surely get some great shots without spending $500 on a macro lens.

You need a camera with a zoom lens and one of the following:

Extension Tubes. These will keep things in focus at all distances in your tank. Then you zoom until things are in focus. The zoom won’t be as close up as the other option I mention below. I use these when I’m feeling lazy and want to be able to focus on every object in my tank, regardless of distance from camera.

Macro Filters: These will only allow your camera to focus on objects at a certain distance. I use the “1” lens for things in the back of my tank and the “10” lens for things right by the front glass. All things at a certain distance from your camera are in focus and you can use your zoom to get incredibly close shots. I think these take better photos than the tubes, but they are a pain to swap out over and over as you shoot different objects at different distances from your camera.

Here are a few I took with the two things above (and my LUMIX GX85). Definitely not as good as some of the pros on here, but decent for using very inexpensive equipment and just learning by trial an error.

 

[Thecaptains_steaz]

I wouldn't call myself an amateur but I'm just wondering what people use for aperture,iso, and shutter speedDSC_0181 by jsol_r, on Flickr

DSC_0140-Recovered by jsol_r, on Flickr

Can I ask you what your settings are and what mm lens you use ?

 

[maroun.c]

The best macro lenses for reef shooting are definitely the 100 mm lenses because you can capture corals that aren't close to the glass but if you want go cheap i recommend nikons 40mm macro lens. The only problem is its hard to shoot corals that are far back in the tank so you have to move them up close the glass to capture all the detail. I usually shoot with a high aperture around f16 and a fairly low shutter speed around 1/100 with an ISO of 200(to capture fish or other fast moving livestock). For corals ill shoot around a really high aperture to get as much of the coral in focus as possible, shutter speed will be low enough for you to need a tripod or something to stabilize the camera, and ISO will be around 400 any higher and you start getting a lot of grain. Reef shooting isn't clear cut like other types of photography, lighting is the biggest issue and cause you to get colors in corals that just don't look right so it requires a lot of playing around with settings and a lot of patience.

Agree on the 100mm range being best for tank macros.especially for wide tanks. The quality on those is amazing and can also work for.nature macros as well as for portraits on full frame bodies. 200 ISO I'm.agaraid is a bit low and hardly achievable with most tank lights. Understand the added noise at higher ISO but newer bodies should handle the noise level at higher ISO. I'd definitly prefer to shoot at ISO 100 but find myself having to bump ISO to 400-1600 typically.
For fish shots I use flash (reduced output) which allows me to freeze motion at slower shutter speed. Typically I shoot fish with aperture of 2.8 -8 wide open aperture is mostly used when I want to blur background but then nailing focus is a bit tricky. Shutter speed I try to shoot at faster than 1/100 unless using flash (flash is on camera with a diffuser and not built in flash to avoid washing out colors.
- corals I shoot at slower shutter speed unless if corals are soft and away around. I reduce flow but typically dont stop it completely as some soft and lps corals look ugly without flo. Typically ISO 400-800 aperture around 8 or narrower if lighting allows shutter speed depends on coral shot, if I'm using a tripod or not and if flow is off or not.
I find that macro lenses magnify the effect of handshake.or motion blurred so faster shutter speed is more important than aperture unfortunately.
Tempted to experiment stacking shots for more DOF but haven't had the time to try it.

 

[ReefBum]

I agree that a 100mm lens is great for macros. I also use extension tubes to get even tighter.

 

[AZMSGT]

Can I ask you what your settings are and what mm lens you use ?

Just an FYI, This is a VERY old thread, they posted that in 2015 and that user hasn't been on R2R since 2018. My guess is they might not be able to answer your specific question.

There are lots of other threads that discuss settings and lenses to use. I would suggest you start with the Sticky threads at the beginning of this section. GL