Urbanek's 250

MrRBW said:
txs for the detailed reply. Would you pick up just the skimmer from lifereef now or go with another skimmer. I think I read in the matrix that you were looking at changing skimmers
Click to expand...


MrRBW - I just ordered a Bubble King so I guess that answers your question. I could have just as easily ordered another life reef. For the cost, the life reef skimmers are nice and most importantly work. I would not hesitate to order one if that's the skimmer you like.
 
Settings said:
Answer in the post above.
Click to expand...


Settings - thanks for the initial question, looks like based on your edit you got your answer. I'd like to expand a bit. Of the 2 skimmers I've had in this tank, I like the RLSS more than the life reef. I had a BK on my last tank and once you've had one, it's hard to settle for anything less. In the end, it comes down to budget and what you are willing to spend.
 
February 21st, 2016 - Photo Update

February 21st, 2016 - Photo Update

February 21st, 2016 - Photo Update


Time for another quick photo update. The first photo is of one of my chromis that recently started shifting colors. According to an article in Reef Builders, this is not uncommon of males trying to attract a female.


Male Chromis - Shifting Colors


This cyphastrea came in on a frag plug. The coral I originally purchased has long been cut and mounted in the display and this has been growing out on the sandbed. I love the detail you can see on the 3-4 polyps that are in focus.


Hitchhiking Cyphastrea - Came in on a frag plug


Here is a shot of my lepto. Amazing pattern on this coral.


Jack-o-lantern Lepto
 
February 22nd, 2016 - Response to Feedback

February 22nd, 2016 - Response to Feedback

February 22nd, 2016 - Response to Feedback

reefmutt said:
Oh baby!! That lepto is amazing.. Is it a jack o lantern lepto?
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reefmutt - Thanks for the view and comment. That is a jack-o-lantern lepto.

superdragon said:
+2 on Lepto!
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superdragon - Thanks!

Tradewinds said:
I love the Jack-o-lantern Lepto. How big is it?
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Tradewinds - Thanks for checking in on the journal. The lepto is about 5" across now days.
 
February 23, 2016 - Photo Update

February 23, 2016 - Photo Update

February 23, 2016 - Photo Update

Here are a couple new photos. Thanks for looking.



Tazardi Acropora - This is a relatively new coral for me which is one that I traded a reefing neighbor for. It was awesome to find out I had a neighbor that reefed. :) I have this mounted high in the tank and it gets lots of flow. Seems to like the conditions.




Red Millipora - I like the way this photo turned out. The light blue background is from an ORA Blue Chalice. It makes a better background than any thing else.





Full Room Shot - This shot was posted one other time but I wanted to display it once more for on this new journal page.
 
I love this shot, beautiful!

FTS%202_zpsgcjaw3cw.jpg
 
urbaneks said:
February 23, 2016 - Photo Update

Here are a couple new photos. Thanks for looking.



Tazardi Acropora - This is a relatively new coral for me which is one that I traded a reefing neighbor for. It was awesome to find out I had a neighbor that reefed. :) I have this mounted high in the tank and it gets lots of flow. Seems to like the conditions.




Red Millipora - I like the way this photo turned out. The light blue background is from an ORA Blue Chalice. It makes a better background than any thing else.





Full Room Shot - This shot was posted one other time but I wanted to display it once more for on this new journal page.
Click to expand...

I love the first shot.. Nice field of focus and gorgeous bokeh. Beautiful composition.
 
Your system and corals are stunning!

What is even more amazing to me is the photos you are getting. Can you share what camera and lens you are using? Also any additional info on the camera settings you used and advice on the process you use to take these photos would be great!

I recently got a Nikon D5500, a $500 50mm Nikkor f/1.4 prime lens, and a $900 Nikkor 105mm Macro lens. I have experimented with lots of different settings, but cannot get shots that look nearly as good yours. The clarity that you have achieved is great. Are you taking the photos at night with most of the lights out? Any info you can share would be awesome.
 
February 24th, 2016 - Response to Feedback

February 24th, 2016 - Response to Feedback

February 24th, 2016 - Response to Feedback

reefmutt said:
I love the first shot.. Nice field of focus and gorgeous bokeh. Beautiful composition.
Click to expand...

reefmutt - Many thanks!

lpsouth1978 said:
Your system and corals are stunning!

What is even more amazing to me is the photos you are getting. Can you share what camera and lens you are using? Also any additional info on the camera settings you used and advice on the process you use to take these photos would be great!

I recently got a Nikon D5500, a $500 50mm Nikkor f/1.4 prime lens, and a $900 Nikkor 105mm Macro lens. I have experimented with lots of different settings, but cannot get shots that look nearly as good yours. The clarity that you have achieved is great. Are you taking the photos at night with most of the lights out? Any info you can share would be awesome.
Click to expand...

lpsouth - see below for responses to your questions

Can you share what camera and lens you are using?
Camera body is a Canon 70d
Most of the photos were shot with my 100mm f2.8 L Series Macro Lens. Some of the FTS and FRS were taken with the standard lens that came with the camera.

Any additional info on the camera settings you used and advice on the process you use to take these photos would be great!
I shoot all of my photos in RAW and post process in Photoshop. When shooting coral, I start with the aperture value that I want and then adjust the shutter speed to get me the exposure I'm after. If I'm hand holding the camera, I ensure my shutter speed is 1/30th or faster. If it's slower than this I use a tripod or set a higher iso. I typically, set my exposure to be 1/3 to 2/3 under exposed. Once I get my RAW file in photo shop, I set the White Balance between 17K and 20K depending on which lights were on in the aquarium when I shot the photo. Once WB is set, I adjust the exposure and contrast to give me the best possible result. That's it.

Are you taking the photos at night with most of the lights out?
Not typically, but I've shot with very little light. In these cases you almost always need a tripod. My preferred shooting is with all my t5's and LEDs on. This gives me the most light possible, I can always adjust the exposure down but you can't ever add more light after the shot.

Hope this is helpful for you, feel free to PM me if you have specific questions.
 
February 27th, 2016 - Photo Update

February 27th, 2016 - Photo Update

February 27th, 2016 - Photo Update


Here are few new photos of the reef. Thanks for looking.


One of the hardest things for me is getting a good FTS that shows the tank as well as the cabinetry. In order to expose for the tank, you can almost never see the cabinet. For this photo, I attempted to expose for both so you can get a sense for how the counter looks around the aquarium.



FTS with barnwood counter top



Here is a shot of my ORA Stuber Stag. I've been working on my backgrounds as much as my coral shots lately. I liked the way the bands of color show behind this coral.



ORA Stuber Stag


Here is a tight macro shot of a portion of a lobo coral. I liked the artistic quality of this photo.




Lobo Macro
 
FTS6_zpsjovuvi49.jpg


I just noticed you used a port to run the cables from the lights through the drywall without causing a tangled mess, (even though it's clearly shown on page one of this thread). Not surprising really, since you spent so much attention to detail with the stand construction.

This really is a beautifully set up system.
 
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