40 Gallon Breeder reef tank build...

[Swope2bc]

Looking good!!!

 

[mmittlesteadt]

Thought I'd add a couple of group shots...here's a couple of my Lawnmower Blenny, Cleaner Shrimp and my Banghai Cardinal...

 

[Bcrowe2012]

Nice looking tank. Is that a lawn mower blenny in that first pic? I love their personalities.

 

[Swope2bc]

Sweet pics too!! How do you make the pics turn out so nice!!??

 

[stingeragent]

Are you using a dslr? If so, get an external light source to go over the tank, then up your shutter speed and switch to manual focus. Then focus on a spot the cb goes frequently, and just wait for it to swim by and start snapping. Helps if you have a tripod. I've had a 6 line wrasse for a while now, and could never get a good pic of it until I did that.

 

[Swope2bc]

Are you using a dslr? If so, get an external light source to go over the tank, then up your shutter speed and switch to manual focus. Then focus on a spot the cb goes frequently, and just wait for it to swim by and start snapping. Helps if you have a tripod. I've had a 6 line wrasse for a while now, and could never get a good pic of it until I did that.

Not sure who you were asking, but sadly I'm just using my cell phone...

 

[mmittlesteadt]

Nice looking tank. Is that a lawn mower blenny in that first pic? I love their personalities.

I use an old piece of crap point and shoot digital camera. I adjust my Kessil to the right spectrum and intensity for photo shoots. Then adjust it back. Then I open my photos in Photoshop and adjust them to match what my eyes see in person.

 

[Swope2bc]

I use an old piece of crap point and shoot digital camera. I adjust my Kessil to the right spectrum and intensity for photo shoots. Then adjust it back. Then I open my photos in Photoshop and adjust them to match what my eyes see in person.

Do you lose any of the color in your corals when you do that?

 

[mmittlesteadt]

Oh, sorry, I replied to the wrong message. Yes it is a Lawnmower Blenny.

 

[mmittlesteadt]

Do you lose any of the color in your corals when you do that?

By losing color in them, do you mean their appearance in the photos? Yes, it has to be adjusted in Photoshop a bit so you can see what I do. It has no effect on the corals themselves as the light is adjusted only for a few minutes while I take the pics and then it's adjusted back.

Not really any different than cloudy days or storms, etc. Light is never really a constant on a real reef.

 

[Swope2bc]

By losing color in them, do you mean their appearance in the photos? Yes, it has to be adjusted in Photoshop a bit so you can see what I do. It has no effect on the corals themselves as the light is adjusted only for a few minutes while I take the pics and then it's adjusted back.



Not really any different than cloudy days or storms, etc. Light is never really a constant on a real reef.

Yes, I was only referring to the photos

 

[mmittlesteadt]

Yes, I was only referring to the photos

You know its interesting that though I do lose some color in my corals when I adjust for shooting pics, I gain in other colors. Really, the only color I lose is that intensely insane "glow" of the greens under actinic lighting. But under that lighting I lost so much of the natural color of everything else that I prefer the more daylight spectrum for photos.

 

[Swope2bc]

You know its interesting that though I do lose some color in my corals when I adjust for shooting pics, I gain in other colors. Really, the only color I lose is that intensely insane "glow" of the greens under actinic lighting. But under that lighting I lost so much of the natural color of everything else that I prefer the more daylight spectrum for photos.

Cool, thanks! I'll try a couple things

 

[mmittlesteadt]

Since my Clownfish insisted on making my Mag-Float their permanent residence in my reef tank, I decided to buy them a new home. No, it's not a real anemone but it is close enough for them to have something to call home. They seem to like it.

I drilled a hole in the base of it and pushed it onto one of my pump suction cups.

 

[mmittlesteadt]

Since my Clownfish insisted on making my Mag-Float their permanent residence in my reef tank, I decided to buy them a new home. No, it's not a real anemone but it is close enough for them to have something to call home. They seem to like it.

I drilled a hole in the base of it and pushed it onto the stem of one of my pump suction cups.

And a FTS (which shows the more natural color of the tank in person...better than the video below)...

And a little video, which was done with my cheap point and shoot camera...

40 Gallon Coral Reef

 

[Swope2bc]

Awesome!!

 

[mmittlesteadt]

Thanks. It hasn't changed a whole lot because 1. I'm working AND going to school full time and 2. Money is tight, so no new additions, although I have my eye on quite a few corals.

 

[Swope2bc]

Yes, but your torch is filling out, your GSP is spreading and everything else. The video was fun too.

 

[mmittlesteadt]

The video quality sucks, but it's the only way I can get anywhere close to a decent pic of my Coral Beauty. He never, ever sits still unless he's hiding under a cave, which lasts all of 2 seconds. He's always on the move. I have tons of blurry still pics of him. LOL.

 

[mmittlesteadt]

Long time, no posting...

Just been a long time with the first semester of school done and getting through the holidays. I also set up my new home recording studio and have been busy writing and recording music. Tank is doing great, all inhabitants are doing very well. Here's some updated pics...

Overall tank (poor quality pic)...

My Kenya trees and mushrooms are doing spectacular (mushrooms have split off and starting new colonies around the tank)...

Clownfish are enjoying their (fake) anemone home...

And I just got a great fungius short tentacle plate coral (which is funner than hell to feed and watch it eat!). It's about 5 inched in diameter. You can see it getting more of the sinking pellets near it's mouth. I just put it in today. Blenny and Twin Spot photo bombed this one...

Fish...
Coral Beauty
Twin Spot Goby
Lawnmower Blenny
2 Ocellaris Clownfish
Firefish
Banghai Cardinal
Royal Gramma

Corals...
GSP
Kenya Tree
Zoanthids
Torch Coral
Mushrooms
Short Tentacle Plate Coral

Inverts...
Hermit Crabs
Snails
Feather Duster
Cleaner Shrimp (has gotten enormous)

All are doing great, growing, eating, swimming about and very healthy. Not much maintenance on my end. Probably due for a water change (I've only done one so far! All levels are good).