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how to get clear picture of swimming gold fishes?

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peter chiu

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i can't seem to get a clear picture of my swimming gold fishes. i've tried auto, Av, sports, etc but no luck... any idea?

 
From the pictures, it is obvious that you need to use flash. Most likely than not, you will have to put the lens hood against the glass to prevent reflection from the flash. Then the flash can be placed anywhere it is convenient to illuminate the fish.

Chunin
peter chiu said:
i can't seem to get a clear picture of my swimming gold fishes.
i've tried auto, Av, sports, etc but no luck... any idea?

Click to expand...
 
The first step would be to use a lot of light! That would allow higher shutter speed, more DOF, easier focusing, lower ISO etc. Try shutter priority and set fast shutter speed (125, 250 etc.). Adjust ISO to up to 400 if needed to get descent DOF (lens stopped down a little). Switch to manual focus and focus on fish and then just move camera back and forth as fish moves. Don't use flash on camera. It will only add reflections. Adjust exposure as necessary. Take lots of pics and delete the bad ones! Keep the few good ones and let everyone admire what a terrific photographer you are....

Rich
peter chiu said:
i can't seem to get a clear picture of my swimming gold fishes.
i've tried auto, Av, sports, etc but no luck... any idea?

Click to expand...
 
You don't want to use the lens full open (widest aperture) if at all possible. The shallow Depth of Field (DOF or area that's in focus) in that case would make focusing even more difficult. Also the lens quality is best when stopped down somewhat. Try f5.6 of f8 and adjust ISO and lighting for proper exposure. Position lights around and above the fish. The more light the easier it will be.

Rich
peter chiu said:
hi rich, thanks for the professional advice. what do you mean by
DOF and lens stopped down a little?

thanks,
peter
Click to expand...
 
hi rich,

here's how it looks like at iso800. my house is not well lit. i can't use flash as you mentioned it creates lotsa reflection as well as making the fish look flashy. as you can see the picture isn't very sharp and has lotsa noise... it's night time here... does that mean i'm outta luck? i guess it's quite a challenge to take a good photo of the fishy tonite, right? thanks much!

Tv 1/45, Av 4.5, AEB +1.5, ISO 800


RichW said:
Rich
peter chiu said:
i can't seem to get a clear picture of my swimming gold fishes.
i've tried auto, Av, sports, etc but no luck... any idea?

Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
Yes, with more light it would be much better.

Rich
peter chiu said:
hi rich,

here's how it looks like at iso800. my house is not well lit. i
can't use flash as you mentioned it creates lotsa reflection as
well as making the fish look flashy. as you can see the picture
isn't very sharp and has lotsa noise... it's night time here...
does that mean i'm outta luck? i guess it's quite a challenge to
take a good photo of the fishy tonite, right? thanks much!

Tv 1/45, Av 4.5, AEB +1.5, ISO 800

Click to expand...
 
Peter, forget those built in camera commands and go to MANUAL mode "M" button.

Also get MORE LIGHT!!! and faster shutter speed.
peter chiu said:
i can't seem to get a clear picture of my swimming gold fishes.
i've tried auto, Av, sports, etc but no luck... any idea?

Click to expand...
 
Take the fish out of the fish tank and put them on the carpet. Then use the cameras own flash. hey presto!
 
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