Help me take decent shots with Nikon D40

[powder_blue]

First of all I know I don't much about photography in general. I tend to use the auto setting but I have been wanting to play around with settings to start learning to take better photos. I have the Nikon D40 DSLR w/stock 18-55mm and the 55-200mm lenses and a tripod. I really don't want to spend any money on a lens bc I could use that in other places for the tank. I just want to do the best with what I've got. Any suggestions on settings or methods would be greatly appreciated!

[BrianN]

First, using tripod when taking your pictures. Second, turn off all the pumps and power heads. Set your camera to Av mode, adjust ISO around 100-200, and depend on how do you like Depth of field (normally, I like to adjust my f-stop to lowest 2.8). Try to take some pictures and adjust your camera accordingly. If you want to take a perfectly nice pictures of your corals, you need Macro lens;)

[mwladdicted]

I agree with using a tripod, pumps off, but, also make sure you are shooting straight into the tank, not at an angle. I shoot with a much higher ISO than brian, usually 800 or higher. Also, try shooting in raw mode. Your biggest thing would probably just try to understand the basics. Aperture, Shutter speed and ISO sensitivity. Once you figure those out just mess around with it, try shooting with all different levels until you find your sweet spot. Unfortunately if your not fluent in photography already, shooting aquarium inhabitants is probably the hardest place to start. I know people that are real pros with a camera but when they take pictures of my tank even they have a little trouble(its the blue light that makes it difficult). The stickies at the top of this forum helped me a lot when I first started. It's lots of reading but it will help.
-Tom

[Robb in Austin]

What they said. You need to understand the basics before you can take good photos regardless of the subject.

I think there are some stickies that will help.

And, a good quality lens will really help. I have the same camera/lens setup, and while the stock lenses are decent, they are in no way in the same league as a dedicated fixed focal length lens.

[powder_blue]

Thanks for all of the info. I went out and got a manfrotto tripod for around $60 so it seems decent. Time for some reading and maybe a macro lens from Santa

[IslandCrow]

What they said. You need to understand the basics before you can take good photos regardless of the subject.

I think there are some stickies that will help.

And, a good quality lens will really help. I have the same camera/lens setup, and while the stock lenses are decent, they are in no way in the same league as a dedicated fixed focal length lens.

Stickies are great for some entry level basics and refining certain techniques, but just like reefing, if you're serious about wanting to become better, you really need to spend some significant time learning from the experts. This can either come in the form of classes or seminars (the latter is best if you already have the basics down) or picking up some books on the subject. Understanding Photography by Bryan Peterson, or pretty much any of the Scott Kelby books (he also has online training videos) are great places to start. Once you've got that down, definitely spend some time in this forum, because finding a book specifically on aquarium photography is a challenge to say the least (as in I don't think such a book even exists). So, when it comes to that specific area of photography, I'd say most of the experts are right here. That said, I actually have taken an online seminar on aquarium photography, so such things do exist.