New 125 On The Block - Watch The Process! *Pictures Inside*

[TJcop]

New Camera - Pictures!!!

New Camera - Pictures!!!

I finally got around to making up my mind in regards to a new digital camera. I purchased the Canon S2 IS, and so far it's great. Haven't had a chance to thumb through the manual yet, so the following pics are probably just the beginning. So, here's a sample of some macro shots!

An acro frag, just starting to color up with green/blue.

A plate coral, pink/green/white.

Galaxy coral.

Some type of Montiporia (?) frag.

 

[TJcop]

More Pics!

More Pics!

Green star polyps.

Favites.

Brain.

A sea of Torch coral.

Unknown Acro frag.

Slipper coral that my Clown thinks is an anemone.

Pocilipora (?).

 

[JustFin]

terrific shots!

is that central mound of rock going to be your final aquascape?

I would think aquascaping a BB would be difficult for me because I think the BB is so unattractive I would have to cover/hide most of the bottom with LR But, after reading through this thread I am glad it is working out for you after all of your difficulties w/ coral losses

Also, can you give an update on the amount and type of fish you have in your tank? I know of the clown, small school of chromis, citron goby, mower blenny, and that you lost your 6-line wrasse ... is that it?

 

[TJcop]

JustFin: Thanks for the comments!!! Yeah, this is looking to be my final aquascape. The white starboard bottom really isn't too bad, and once the coralline takes over, it won't even stand out.
As far as current fish, here's the list:
Clown
2 Blue/Green Chromis
Lawnmower Blenny
Carpenters Wrasse
2 Cleaner shrimp
1 Peppermint Shrimp
Blue legged hermits
Astrea/Cerith Snails
2 Brittlestars
2 Conchs
I think that's it.

 

[Morgandy]

WOW! The new camera does great work (yes, you do too!)..I'm dying to get a new one. The pics look great, so do the corals. We have that pink foam board under our tank, but I swear I want to get rid of the dsb...and not have to pull everything out while we do it. How long until a good coralline coverage would happen do you think?

 

[tsquad]

Wow, TJ looking great! It's funny, your aquascape is exactly what mine is going to be after I scrub my rocks down (valonia). Looks awesome man, keep it up!

 

[ssbreef]

keep up the good work!!! VERY VERY NICE!!!

 

[TJcop]

Thanks everyone for the great comments...that's very encouraging! Especially if you read the entire thread, documenting all the crap I've gone through the last year.

I did notice that it appears that I'm getting what I believe is Diatoms. I haven't had this since the first cycle. This brown algae is showing up in the high flow areas: on the ends of my Tunze's and on the eggcrate in my prop area where I have a powerhead. Anyone know why this is happening?

 

[NexDog]

Re: New 125 On The Block - Watch The Process! *Pictures Inside*

[/B]

Do tyou think this design would hold a a glass 250 gallon tank. I need to copy someone's tank design and your pics make it easy.

 

[TJcop]

I'm not an engineer, but if I were going to do it for a 250, I'd use thicker wood and a couple of extra center braces. As far as the design, I think it would work...again, I'm not an engineer, so I'm not speaking as an expert, merely a hobbyist.

 

[NexDog]

Those corner braces are 4x4 so maybe 6x6 for a 250?

 

[TJcop]

That's what I would do, plus I'd probably double up the 2x4's. I'm one that likes to be over cautious.

BTW, can anyone answer my brown algae/diatom question from above?
EDIT: Here's a picture of the brown algae. You can see how it's shaped to the flow of the powerhead. What is this telling me???

 

[TJcop]

I made a webpage featuring photos of growth sequences. DIALUP BEWARE!!!!! (does anyone use dialup anymore???)

Here's The Link

You may notice some color difference in the pictures. I recently bought a new camera, and I'm still figuring it out...but the coloring in the corals is still awesome in real life! Also, don't freak because you see the word "Zeo" on the pics.

 

[thrlride]

T.J.

I have a similar camera.

I take my shots on the P setting and right after shooting I hit the flash button. This will save the image as a raw file. That way you can open the canon software and edit all the parameters of your shot, even your white balance on the computer. My quality of images went up after I did that.

 

[TJcop]

New Frags

New Frags

Got some new frags over at frags.org I got them from Boker420, who's a member here at RC. Everything arrived just fine. Here's pics during acclimation. I got 12 frags, and hoping for more!

 

[TJcop]

 

[thrlride]

Wow, that's a lot of frags!

 

[TJcop]

Thrlride: Yup, it is...and I've added even more since then! And I've got more coming!

Yes, all of the recent additions are due to my system actually growing corals...that's right...they're growing!
Now, I did switch to Zeovit about 3 weeks ago, and since then, strange things have been happening. Brown outs have since turned into beautiful blues, stuff that hasn't shown much growth seem to be picking up, colors getting vibrant. Let's hope this continues!
One question I have: Do frags tend to encrust their mounts first before growing upwards? It seems that they don't do much upward growth until they've got a nice encrusted base...anyone else notice this?

 

[TJcop]

For anyone who's still watching this thread....

I made a video of my tank and the sump/prop system.

Check it out HERE .

Comments are always welcome!

 

[thrlride]

Sorry I didn't reply to your question! Yes, all of my SPS encrust before they really grow anywhere. I've got a little green slimer in my tank that has been in there for months that is just now starting to grow. It encrusted about 1.5" of the rock.

Video looks great too!