Taking macro pictures of coral in fish tank

[butterfly34]

Hi, My husband has a fish tank and we are trying to take pictures of the coral so he can sell some of it. I do not have a dslr, I have a Sony digital camera. I've tried turning the flash off and tried the macro setting, but still the pictures are getting glare?

Does anyone have any recommendations? Thanks

 

[Big Mike]

Get the camera right up against the glass and try that.

 

[photofox]

It can be quite difficult. Like Big Mike said get as close to the glass as you can and if you have one, use a tripod (make sure the glass is as clean as possible). I usually turn off the powerheads in my tank so the coral is not moving too much, which can be helpful if you cannot get a fast enough shutter speed to freeze any motion. Also make sure you are shooting straight through the tank glass, not at an angle, which I find makes it difficult to get a good focus lock.

Here is a shot from my tank using the technique above:

If you post one of your sample shots, maybe we can figure out what is causing the problem. Since reef tanks use really bright lighting, that could be what's causing the glare in your images.

 

[butterfly34]

Thanks for the tips...I'll try it and let you know if it works.

 

[Sandspur]

Good info so far.

One other thing: Turn out all the room lights and block any sunlight too.

 

[Rob1n]

Rolled up black card, in a small cone taped to the fish tank. will prevent any reflection from your flash bouncing back into the lens. dont use to wide angle which will help hide imperfections in glass. Lastly put a bit of white card above camera the flash will bounce off it filling in alot of the shadows. good luck.