Frustrating Fish,Noob Picture Taker--Advice needed

So she had a doctor appointment today, uploaded via their wifi
Let me know what I did wrong in these,, Just gonna post a few...
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JamesHolt said:
So she had a doctor appointment today, uploaded via their wifi
Let me know what I did wrong in these,, Just gonna post a few...
Click to expand...

Don't take the negative approach. Ask yourself, how can I improvethese shots? It is all a way of mind.

Since you posted your gear, I would say to stick with the D200 over the D70for the following reasons:

better image quality
more dynamic range
shoots faster
better resolution, 10MP vs 6MP

As far as lens goes? I'd say stick with the Sigma but none are really "aimed" towards aquarium photography. Can you get your hands on a prime lens (one that does not zoom in and out)? Possibly a 50mm or something similar? They are not that expensive and give you much better picture quality typically because they have the single focal length to worry about dialing in.

Lastly, your photos look great. However, I will say, almost all of them do not look tack sharp. I believe this to be more because of your lens however, rather than skill. The one of the purple toy I do not like however. It is way too underexposed and the flash is too direct on subject.

The only pointer I think you can work on is to try to dial in the focus manually, especially on these corals that stationary. Take a few shots of each coral and simply adjust the focus ring a little bit at a time. Sometimes these lenses are off in their auto focus and if you get a tack sharp one when shooting manually, then you know this is the case. Not sure if you have the ability to micro adjust on your body however.
 
Thanks for the pointers and critique. I will start looking for a prime lens. The next set I will use manual focus and see how it goes...
 
I think the F means it will be scratched/dented,, "pre-dropped"..
Gonna call and talk with the before I order...
I did find a 100mm Macro through them,, gonna need to work a few hours overtime to get that one though

Edit:: Nevermind I went back and looked again,, it has oil on the blades and they stick,, looks like I will keep looking..
 
JamesHolt said:
I think the F means it will be scratched/dented,, "pre-dropped"..
Gonna call and talk with the before I order...
I did find a 100mm Macro through them,, gonna need to work a few hours overtime to get that one though

Edit:: Nevermind I went back and looked again,, it has oil on the blades and they stick,, looks like I will keep looking..
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'd move on unless it was dirty cheap and you know how to take apart a lens. I've done that with 3 lenses and have only fixed it on 1 lens, so not great odds for me, lol. Luckily, they were dirt cheap and it was a learning experience.
 
I know how to take them apart, no big deal,, getting them back together and working is another story....lol
 
rickztahone,, Keeping in mind my severe colorblindness,
Which would be a better option for me to use PhotoShop on, would just be using a few basic functions (autocorrect,crop,upload to photobucket)
13" macbook pro (bought in 2013, regular screen) or Samsung tablet (bought in 2014, high def screen)..
I am kinda leaning toward the tablet due to its screen and portability
The Macbook is nice but the OS is not friendly (to me been a PC user always)..
Right now both are just toys, but the tablet OS is something I am used to..
Is there any advantage to using one over the other for what I am planning..
Planning on selling or trading off the loser, trying to get some opinions..
 
JamesHolt said:
rickztahone,, Keeping in mind my severe colorblindness,
Which would be a better option for me to use PhotoShop on, would just be using a few basic functions (autocorrect,crop,upload to photobucket)
13" macbook pro (bought in 2013, regular screen) or Samsung tablet (bought in 2014, high def screen)..
I am kinda leaning toward the tablet due to its screen and portability
The Macbook is nice but the OS is not friendly (to me been a PC user always)..
Right now both are just toys, but the tablet OS is something I am used to..
Is there any advantage to using one over the other for what I am planning..
Planning on selling or trading off the loser, trying to get some opinions..
Click to expand...
I think I would lean towards the Samsung tablet simply because of the screen resolution. However, I have personally never liked doing full on edits on tablets/laptops. Always desktops. With that being said, for your regular edits, either one of them would be great options. You don't need to run photoshop on either of them, you can get a much cheaper program like Lightroom, usually sells for around $100-$150 and it will do a huge percentage of what you would want to do to your pictures.
 
Thanks for the input..
I was planning on using the creative cloud deal they have $9.99 a month, it includes PS and Lightroom both on mobile and desktop...
Think I will go with the tablet,, now to see if someone will trade me a good skimmer for the Macbook, will try listing it tomorrow when I can get the model number off it...
Three day weekend,,, time to take some pictures :spin1:
 
JamesHolt said:
Thanks for the input..
I was planning on using the creative cloud deal they have $9.99 a month, it includes PS and Lightroom both on mobile and desktop...
Think I will go with the tablet,, now to see if someone will trade me a good skimmer for the Macbook, will try listing it tomorrow when I can get the model number off it...
Three day weekend,,, time to take some pictures :spin1:
Click to expand...

Since it is that cheap, I seriously would recommend to try one month on one machine, and one month on the other. Then decide which you like best. It is only $20 in two months which isn't bad and you know for sure that you made the right decision ;)
 
Decided to go with the tablet, gonna sell/trade the Macbook off to get a bigger skimmer or a Kessil..
I still have the big PC at home to use for serious stuff (after I get alot better with the photos)..
Didn't get to take any pics this past weekend, pullig the sandbed out of my shallow tank and doing some serious cleanup on the 40B..
I am off thurs,and fri should have time then..
Been watching some tutorials and doing lots of reading,, also got my remote trigger for the D200 so I dont shake the camera....
 
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