Scarlet hermit and gorgonian

[c est ma]

I thought this sequence was sort of cute:

 

Hermit approaches gorg:

 

 

 

Gorgs are tough...and supple:

 

 

 

After "dismount:"

 

 

All clean:

 

 

Open (and enjoying some cyclopeeze):

 

 

--Diane

[c est ma]

Meanwhile, my diminutive little Mexican red-leg hc not only doesn't bow down the gorg, he doesn't even cause its polyps to close:

 

 

 

 

--Diane

[HeyLookItsCaps]

lol, olympic hermit!

[skh]

You really take wonderful pictures. Will any standard magnifying glass work for taking macro shots? How close do you need to be to the subject? I'm not really satisfied with the digital macro on my Canon SD1000 (which allows the camera to focus when zooming or with the subject at a slightly longer distance, unlike the regular macro mode).

[surftaco]

where can I get cyclopeze?

[c est ma]

You really take wonderful pictures. Will any standard magnifying glass work for taking macro shots? How close do you need to be to the subject? I'm not really satisfied with the digital macro on my Canon SD1000 (which allows the camera to focus when zooming or with the subject at a slightly longer distance, unlike the regular macro mode).

 

I can't give scientific answers, as it's all been trial and error so far for me. As mentioned, the two higher quality lenses I use (the binoc eyepiece and the loupe) give better results than the cheaper magnifier I got at a discount store. The difference, though is not in clarity but in color saturation, for some reason!

 

(And BTW, loupes only work for tiny items on the glass or just a few mm from it...and you will usually have to set your exposure to the lowest possible setting to avoid overexposure...I got great shots of my green banded goby larvae this way!)

 

With the standard magnifying lenses, I also use my camera's macro setting and often the telephoto (zoom) function. At some distances, I don't even notice much difference in magnification with or without the extra lens, but what it really does is improve focus substantially. I don't know why this is, but the difference is quite consistent. Perhaps the curvature of the external lens encourages one's camera to focus on what's in the center of the field, rather than on some rock in the uppermost righthand corner, or wherever...

 

With the extra lenses I find I can get better focus throughout the tank, but I only have a 5.5g, so the distances are never great, and I usually forego the extra lens for anything more than, say, 3 or 4" from the side I'm shooting through. As I said, it also pays to experiment with various exposures and to use the zoom & macro functions in conjunction with the external lens. And I don't know how easy it would be to try any of this with a good-sized SLR! (But if I had one of them, I guess I wouldn't need all these tricks...?)

 

I do think I'm probably getting the most out of my 3.1meg point-and-shoot, though. (Finally! There was a learning curve... )

 

 

where can I get cyclopeze?

 

I can get the frozen bars at most lfs...

[c est ma]

Better pics of my dear Mexican red-legged hc. (Note to those looking for picture tips--if you have a light fixture you can move back and forth, position it so it sheds the best light on the subject you're trying to capture. That was the difference between the first pics of this guy and the following. My Satellite fixture rests on a PVC stand that I normally position so that the light is +/- in the center of the tank. For taking pics of things near the front, however, it helps enormously to move the light forward.)

 

 

 

 

Lo and behold, he found a branch even he could bend down:

 

 

--Diane

[phil_ip]

This is a cute thread. Really nice pics. The mexi red legged needs a back scrubber.

[Withers]

No effing way, my hermits do the same thing! The only difference is that my gorgonian can support their weight and they stay up in it for up to a week at a time.

 

Its amazing to see how different invertebrates interact with gorgonians, my arrow crab used to climb up in it at night and sway with the current. You'd never see him unless you were specifically looking for him.

[c est ma]

Oh, I'd love to see something like that!

 

And don't some gorgs have commensal micro stars? That would be sweet as well.

 

Then there are the cryptic, "gorg-ivore" cowries that are so pretty you almost want to sacrifice your gorg--not that I've ever had one, but Icy had a great story and pics about these once.

 

This whole idea of being able to observe these evolved interactions amongst communities of greatly different types of organisms is one of the ongoing fascinations of reefing, IMO. Ideally one would have a whole series of biotope tanks...mine, of course, is a mish mash, but it does show how well, say, the cleaning behavior can translate from an animal of one locality to an animal of a completely different one...

 

Hope that made sense...you got me thinking, which is sometimes dangerous.

 

--Diane