Aquarium Photography

[Honu]

I know these aren't "outdoor" shots but it seemed like the best place for them.

I learned yesterday at the Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific that aquarium photography is very difficult! All shots are w/Rebel XSI w/50mm f/1.8 lens. Even with wide aperture and high ISO I still got motion blur on most shots, not to mention glare and reflection from the glass.

Here are a few shots I was pleased with. Thanks for looking!

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[tampaphotos]

BEATIFUL photos. I can't believe that these were taken with a Rebel. Did you use a flash for these shots, you mentioned glare. It looks like you were underwater with these guys. It makes me want to visit the local Florida Aquarium and see what develops.
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[Honu]

Thank you very much! Are you underestimating the Rebel perhaps?

No flash on these shots, but I did try using flash on others with mixed results. Glare was from overhead lighting or other people's flashes.

 

[JustAnEngineer]

Your shots look pretty good to me.

I also recently had a frustrating photography experience at the aquarium with the same problems that you listed. This is one of the better captures that I got. (Click for larger image.)
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[Honu]

Your shots look pretty good to me.

I also recently had a frustrating photography experience at the aquarium with the same problems that you listed. This is one of the better captures that I got. (Click for larger image.)
1.

Thanks! I shot several hundred photos, about 5% were keepers. I couldn't get too many shots of regular fish - they swim too fast!

Nice shot - I tried for the same fish but always got blurry shots.

 

[Stock Photos]

Very sharp! Great underwater photos.

 

[icassell]

Yes, public aquarium photography can be quite challenging, but it is fun. I usually only get a couple of keepers. I would use a polarizer to help reduce the reflections, but the light is so limited already, I don't want to give up the two stops. I usually wind up mashing the front of my lens against the tank. Since I bought Noiseware, I tried cranking my ISO up a bit, but have more experimenting to do. You did a wonderful job with the ones you have posted. I love your seahorse!

 

[lvcrtrs]

Compared to my recent outing, you did great. Very sharp compared to mine.

 

[TriniPhototakeoutta]

They look realy nice. Nice job overcoming the glare.

 

[kieransimkin]

Number 4 looks a little blurred to me.. excellent images even so. I used to love my EOS 400D (that's what we brits call the Rebel) with the 50mm f/1.8 which is a brilliant lens, that lens gives such lovely images. I ran too fast to catch the sun coming up and forgot to zip up my lens bag and now it's gone, I could cry :'(