Viewpoints – A Photographic Journal of my Reef Tank

[urbaneks]

Viewpoints - The Fish of Viewpoints

Viewpoints - The Fish of Viewpoints

The Fish of Viewpoints

Up to this point, I've focused mainly on the tank build and highlighted a few of corals that are in the tank. I wanted to use some information I recently read about photographing fish to see if I could capture some decent shots.

The advice given was to have a shutter speed of at least 200 so you can stop the action of the fish. This did work out pretty well for me however, in order to shoot at the faster shutter speed, I had to set the ISO higher which caused the pictures to be grainy. The first 3 shots weren't too bad but the other ones could not support a larger format which is why the pictures are smaller. These pictures were taken with both banks of T5's on but no MH's. The next time I shoot fish pictures, I'll include the MHs to see if I can get the ISO back down to 100 or 200.

Blue Tang - Also known simply as Big Blue. This fish has to be a teenager because he sleeps in every day. All the other fish wake up long before the lights come on but not the Blue Tang. Big Blue is definitely the boss of the tank.

Melanurus Wrasse - This fish is relatively new to my tank but has grown a lot in the short time that I've had him. I initially took a liking to this species after seeing one in a large display tank at my LFS. I read a great deal about these fish and hesitated to get one based on reports of them eating hermits and snails. I have seen a few empty snail shells since he went in but have never seen him go after one. For what these add in terms of pest removal, color and action they are a great fish.

Yellow Watchman Goby - This guy is paired with a Pistol Shrimp and as I mentioned one other time in the journal, these two are a couple of my favorite inhabitants. A lot of people shy away from Pistol Shrimps because they can rearrange the tank. I've been lucky in that they setup under one rock, right in front of the tank and other than keeping their tunnels clear they don't move much gravel around. The two are always working and they provide so much entertainment. This is pretty much the standard pose for the Watchman. Always on guard.​

Bartlett's Anthias - My last fish additions were a pair of Bartlett's Anthias. Unfortunately, I lost one of them shortly after adding them to the tank. A bit of a mystery at this point as the fish seemed healthy but just disappeared. Checked the overflow box, sump and floor but no evidence of the fish. These are beautiful fish and I hope to add a couple more at some point. This one is the female of the pair that I bought.​

Red Mandarin Dragonette - My favorite! This guys has been with me for more than 3 months now. I bought him nice and fat and he is still nice and fat. With 100lbs of live rock, he seems to have more than enough food source. Any time I feed Nutramar or Oyster Eggs he comes to the front of the tank. While he does not pick food from the water column, I do believe he's eating the frozen from the rocks.​

LeMark Angels - I love Angel Fish and wish that I could fill my tank with them. I used to keep a Flameback in my Nano who was well behaved for almost a year before decided he loved to eat Acans. When I started up this tank, I did lots of research and found that these LeMark's are reef safe. While not as pretty as most angels, these guys are still great little fish. Always out swimming and picking from the rocks. I have two of these guys, both females.​

 

[iwishtofish]

Nice fish presentation; I think you made some good choices. I'm hoping to see some more (and bigger ) pictures of the LeMark Angels!

 

[urbaneks]

Viewpoints - 1/19/12 Update

Viewpoints - 1/19/12 Update

Viewpoints - 1/19/12 Update

The tank journal just rolled over to page 5 which is lacking photos. Since I had some additional pictures that I took the other day, I thought i would add them.

If you've seen one clown fish, you've seen them all. I realize that a photo of one of my clown fish is not that exciting but I do really love the way this photo came out. The clown really pops against the black background and you can see just the hint of a Monti Cap in the back. My pair of clowns were purchased for my Nano just over 3 years ago. They really like their new home!​

There seemed to be a few people interested in the LeMark Angels from my last photo posting. If anyone is looking for a great fish, consider these guys. To my knowledge they are the only true reef safe angel fish.​

I love the look of the beveled starphire glass. I was attempting to photograph the glass edges and ended up with this photo. I thought it was a neat angle of the tank and you can see the beveled glass pretty well.

Collage of the three shots​

 

[Acronic]

There are a few in the Genicanthus species that I would consider reef safe including bellus and swallow tail angels. Great photos, your tank is very nice and the presentation is top notch.

 

[urbaneks]

Viewpoints - 1/20/12 Response to Feedback

Viewpoints - 1/20/12 Response to Feedback

Viewpoints - 1/20/12 Response to Feedback

Nice fish presentation; I think you made some good choices. I'm hoping to see some more (and bigger ) pictures of the LeMark Angels!

iwishtofish - Thanks for the compliment on the fish photos. I will definitely get some more photos soon and include the LeMarks. For now, here is one I got tonight of my Yellow Watchman, probably, the best fish photo I've ever taken. Of course it helps when they sit still, something the LeMarks don't do. Thanks again for the view and comment.

Yellow Watchman Goby​

There are a few in the Genicanthus species that I would consider reef safe including bellus and swallow tail angels. Great photos, your tank is very nice and the presentation is top notch.

Acronic - Thank you very much for the compliment. I've eyed your tank many of times. Very, very nice. Thanks for the additional information on the other reef safe angels.

 

[9thwonder]

I love your tank. Great attention to detail. How do you like your Sicce return pump?

 

[aqua80]

great tank and pics !
Sorry If I missed it and you know about it already, but did you know your pearlberry (nice coral BTW) has red bugs on it ? (see pic in post #177)

 

[Der ABT]

hate to say it but good eye aqua80....looking closer the purple acro below also does (though i only see one)

break out the interceptor...worked great on my last tank....dont forget you can use stuff thats out of date if you have any friends with dogs.

 

[urbaneks]

Viewpoints - 1/24/12 Responses to Feedback

Viewpoints - 1/24/12 Responses to Feedback

I love your tank. Great attention to detail. How do you like your Sicce return pump?

9thwonder - Thanks so much for the kind words. I like the Sicce pump, very quiet, does not heat up and easy to clean. I do however wish I would of went with the next size up.

great tank and pics !
Sorry If I missed it and you know about it already, but did you know your pearlberry (nice coral BTW) has red bugs on it ? (see pic in post #177)

aqua80 - Thanks for taking the time to let me know what you saw in the picture. Lots of people would not take the time. I had noticed this same thing on a different picture of the same coral just a few days earlier. I have not done anything about it other than begin the research on my best plan of attack.

hate to say it but good eye aqua80....looking closer the purple acro below also does (though i only see one)

break out the interceptor...worked great on my last tank....dont forget you can use stuff thats out of date if you have any friends with dogs.

Der ABT - Thanks for you input here.

 

[jbanks]

urbaneks,

I'm late on this one, but thrilled I found it.. WoWW!! is all I have to say to your attention to detail... Eddie should pay you to use your tank as part of Cadlights advertising! Very well thoought out and implmented and the tank seems to be maturing nicely. In May of 2009 I ordered my 48 X 36 X 24 from Thousand Island Araquariums in Brooklyn, NY. This store is owned by Eddie's Parents and the original base of Cadlights.. So, looking at your tank (And I mean the Tank only due to my lack of detailed planning and craftsmanship) reminds me of my own! Eddie and his Dad built my tank.. They are very nice people, but a small company, which is why cusotmer service can become such an issue; which is inexcusable. I'm really sorry to hear about your issues and the issues others may have had.. For me, it was a great experience and if I had and problems, all I had to do was ride over to Brooklyn and talk to his Mom (Carol) or Eddie at the time and any issue I had was taken care of immediately! Once again.... very inspiring work and I welcome you to my homepage to see how my tank has turned out.. SUBSCRIBED!!!

 

[aqua80]

aqua80 - Thanks for taking the time to let me know what you saw in the picture. Lots of people would not take the time. I had noticed this same thing on a different picture of the same coral just a few days earlier. I have not done anything about it other than begin the research on my best plan of attack.

you're welcome ! got theses bugs 2 times and both times found them while looking at pictures, not the tank !
easily solved with interceptor (even if out of date for 2 years !)...
good luck and keep us updated !

 

[HHIreefer843]

Such an amazing system, I am very jealous. Everything is so nice and clean and organized..perfect! Great photography skills as well

 

[urbaneks]

Viewpoints - 1/24/12 Responses to Feedback

Viewpoints - 1/24/12 Responses to Feedback

Viewpoints - 1/24/12 Responses to Feedback

urbaneks,

I'm late on this one, but thrilled I found it.. WoWW!! is all I have to say to your attention to detail... Eddie should pay you to use your tank as part of Cadlights advertising! Very well thoought out and implmented and the tank seems to be maturing nicely. In May of 2009 I ordered my 48 X 36 X 24 from Thousand Island Araquariums in Brooklyn, NY. This store is owned by Eddie's Parents and the original base of Cadlights.. So, looking at your tank (And I mean the Tank only due to my lack of detailed planning and craftsmanship) reminds me of my own! Eddie and his Dad built my tank.. They are very nice people, but a small company, which is why cusotmer service can become such an issue; which is inexcusable. I'm really sorry to hear about your issues and the issues others may have had.. For me, it was a great experience and if I had and problems, all I had to do was ride over to Brooklyn and talk to his Mom (Carol) or Eddie at the time and any issue I had was taken care of immediately! Once again.... very inspiring work and I welcome you to my homepage to see how my tank has turned out.. SUBSCRIBED!!!

jbanks - Thanks for the view and compliment on the tank. It's funny that you say I should have Eddie pay me for advertising, because when I first bought the tank, I told Eddie that in a year from now you will want to use my tank for advertising. I wish that when the first tank was delivered smashed that Eddie and Cadlights was just down the street. I did actually consider driving the 5.5 hours one way to pick up the 2nd tank. In the end Eddie took care of me which is all one could ask for in that situation. I will check out your build thread now.

you're welcome ! got theses bugs 2 times and both times found them while looking at pictures, not the tank !
easily solved with interceptor (even if out of date for 2 years !)...
good luck and keep us updated !

aqua80 - Glad to hear that you were able to get rid of them. I hope to have the same success.

Such an amazing system, I am very jealous. Everything is so nice and clean and organized..perfect! Great photography skills as well

HHIreefer843 - Thank You! It means a lot to get this compliment as I put a lot into the organization of the tank. I have some training in LEAN Manufacturing which is what inspired me to take the tank this way.

 

[Mike de Leon]

Love your tank! The look reminds me of my tank. Not so much the way you did the build though. Yours is absolutely top notch!
Can you please let me know what camera and lens you used and the settings?

 

[urbaneks]

Viewpoints - Water Change Routine and New Journal Images

Viewpoints - Water Change Routine and New Journal Images

Viewpoints - Water Change Routine and New Journal Images

Water Changes
Nothing makes the tank look better and nothing cures tank burnout better than a water change. A water change just really makes you appreciate what you have. Up until 6 weeks ago, I was doing weekly water changes but have since went to every two weeks. The jury is still out on which method works better for me. It's really a give and take as I feel like my corals hit some of their best color as I get close to the two week mark. The take away is I start to get brown diatoms on the sand bed and the water does not have that crystal clear appearance in the last week. I attribute the better color to the water building up the supplements that I dose thus being more available for the corals.

Friday's are water change day thus today was the day. My typical water change is 12g which accounts for just over 10% of the water volume. I like to alternate where I pull the water/detritus from. For example, water change one will start in the overflow box, after cutting the return pump and shutting an isolation valve, I vacuum the water from the overflow box while pulling all the waste from the bottom of it. This is a common place for waste to collect. Once the overflow box is empty, I complete the rest of the water change from the tank as I vacuum about 1/3 of the sand bed. 2 weeks later I will start by pulling water from the sump and vacuum all the waste from the sump, once the waste is gone, I move to the tank and vacuum the middle 1/3 of the sand bed. Two weeks after than I will pull water from just the tank and vacuum the remainder of the gravel. When I had my nano, I went about a year without vacuuming the sand bed, I will not do that anymore. Even with as much as I vacuum, it is down right amazing how much waste I pull out of the sand bed.

My tank has 100lbs of live rock which is right at 1lb per gallon of water. My sand bed is primarily for aesthetics, I don't rely on it for filtration but count strictly on the live rock as my biological filtration. I do add MB7 after my water changes to help boost my filtration.



Duncan Coral
The photograph below is one I took today of my Duncan Coral which is just one of the 3 LPS corals that I have in the tank. I originally bought this Duncan for the Nano Cube more than 2 years ago. When I bought the Duncan it had just 4 heads on it. I tried to count tonight and stopped at 40. For reference I've included a second photo of the same Duncan when it was in my Nano Cube. Looking back at the old photo, makes me realize home much more color it has now which can be seen in the third photo. While the Duncan is not a favorite, I do love the movement it adds to right side of my tank and I thought the first picture was especially interesting.

Photograph taken today 1-20-12

Photograph taken more than 2 years ago of the same coral

Photograph taken today 1-20-12 which shows the color change​

Coral Additions
While I would love to go on a major shopping spree, I have to limit the coral purchases. I try to only go to the LFS once every two weeks. When I go, I have the intention of buying just one piece and it has to be something I absolutely love. If I can't find something that I love, I will leave empty handed. I do feel fortunate to have two stores in the Phoenix area that I consider great stores. The first one that I frequent is Reef Culture. This one is the closest to my house so it's typically where I go. The guys there know me by name which is appreciated. The second store that I go to is Aqua Touch. This is another great store but unfortunately it's 45 miles from my house. Before Reef Culture opened, I use to make this drive once a month for salt water and of course, coral. Again, Joe at Aqua Touch knows me my name and is one of the nicest guys you will ever meet. The one thing I would add is that I drive by 2 other stores to get to Reef Culture and 5 stores to get Aqua Touch. If any of you visit the Phoenix area, skip the other stores just as I do. These are the two must see shops.

This week I made a trip the Reef Culture and found what just might be my new favorite coral. The picture below is the new addition which is a Strawberry Shortcake. It's funny because, this same frag was in the store 2 weeks before and it did not stand out to me even with one of the guys telling me to get it. After a second trip 2 weeks later and the guys again telling me that was the one, I decided to pull the trigger. Since getting it home, it has really opened up nicely and the color is amazing.

Strawberry Shortcake - Added 1/18/12​

The coral shown below, is a stag of some kind. I can't remember the name but will be sure to ask the next time I'm in Reef Culture. This particular frag is one that they cut from their main display tank. What I love about this coral is how the blue and gray alternates down the stalk of the coral. Absolutely beautiful. While this coral is just 1.5 inches long now, I look forward to this stag growing the height of the tank.

Stag Coral - Note the alternating blue and gray colors throughout the coral​

I might as well end this journal entry with another picture of the Chili Pepper Monti. Just like the Strawberry Shortcake and the Stag, this frag came out of the main display tank at Reef Culture. The mother colony of this coral must be one foot wide and 10 inches tall. The growth pattern on the mother is beautiful. What I like most about it is that unlike most encrusting monti's, this one starts to add height as well. While this one is just getting going, it does have a couple spots on it where it's starting to grow upward.

Chili Pepper Monti​

 

[iwishtofish]

Very nice photos, as always. I'll be keeping my eye out for a strawberry shortcake (although it might look completely different by the time I'm through with it).

Have you ever researched the Watanabei Angelfish? There's a beauty online at Diver's Den, and I'd pick it up if it weren't three hundred bucks.

 

[urbaneks]

Viewpoints - 1/25/12 Responses to Feedback

Viewpoints - 1/25/12 Responses to Feedback

Love your tank! The look reminds me of my tank. Not so much the way you did the build though. Yours is absolutely top notch!
Can you please let me know what camera and lens you used and the settings?

Mike de Leon - Thanks for the compliment on the build of my tank. It's much appreciated. As for the camera and lens, I have an older Canon Rebel for my camera body and the lens that I take most of my pictures with is the Canon 28-135mm. I would love to have a true macro lens but have not put the money out. What I use are Kenko extension tubes that will make your existing lens a macro lens. Not as good of quality but for less than $100 you can get 3 extension tubes vs. $500+ for a new lens. For settings, I have found that an ISO setting of 200 works if I have the MHs running. If I only have the T5s I need ISO400. From there I set the aperture between 8-11 then chose a shutter speed that gives me a good exposure.

Very nice photos, as always. I'll be keeping my eye out for a strawberry shortcake (although it might look completely different by the time I'm through with it).

Have you ever researched the Watanabei Angelfish? There's a beauty online at Diver's Den, and I'd pick it up if it weren't three hundred bucks.

Thanks for the kind words. As for the Watanabei Angel, I did the same research as you. Once I got to the price, my research stopped.

 

[urbaneks]

Viewpoints - Bubble King Skimmer has Arrived

Viewpoints - Bubble King Skimmer has Arrived

Viewpoints - Bubble King Skimmer has Arrived


They say you get what you pay for. Well I hope that is the case with the new skimmer. Up until this point I've been running a Reef Octopus NWB-150 on the tank. While the skimmer was producing decent skimmate, I always felt like it was on the small side for the tank. Much like all of the equipment decisions that I've made a ton of reading and research went into the decision. My searches kept taking me to the Bubble King Skimmers made by Royal Exclusiv. I would quickly move away to something else since these skimmers are priced 2x of most other high end skimmers. In the end, I could not find a single Bubble King owner that was dissatisfied and all said they would never buy anything but Bubble Kings. Armed with all of the information, I started a 6 week long search for a used Bubble King Mini-180. No matter how hard I tried, I always seemed to be late in responding to adds and the skimmers were already sold. Finally, got a hit on a WTB add on one of the reef forums. The skimmer arrived today and has been installed.

A view of the Bubble King Mini-180's Collection Cup Lid - The craftsmanship on these skimmers is awesome

There really is nothing mini about the Bubble King Mini-180, here is sits in front of my tank. You can see that it's huge. At 22" tall it's 4" taller than the tank.​

 

[synrg]

That thing is SWEET!

 

[jbanks]

Nice additions! I walked about 8 NYC blocks in the aftermath of a snow snorm to get my Strawberry Shortcake and it is by far one of my favorites today. lol. What I did to aid with maintenance of my sump was a suggestions taken from a past RC member SunnyX.. I use one of my old Tunze's that's placed in the center chamber of my sump. This pump is progrmed to turn on at full blast every day around 1:00AM... It has helped to keep my sump free of detritus, help feed corals and get whatever that does not get eaten or recirculated captured by the skimmer and removed... just a thought.