mandarin fish tough to shoot.

[anenomefishman]

my luck shooting mandarin fish is very bad.. this one from Bujol Bay, northwest Bali. they were mating for awhile and my pics did not come out. night dive pic.

nothing like hanging out for 40 minutes or so in the dark at 25 ft waiting for the mandarin fish to mate.

 

[tajkd]

I had the same bad luck in Komodo. Lots of poor photos in the rocks.

 

[drbill]

Likewise in Anilao (PI), but I was shooting video. Although I didn't catch them mating, I did catch individuals swim up out of the staghorn coral a few times

 

[BoltSnap]

They are shy and modest and want privacy during their moments of passion.

 

[vladimir]

I took these in Dumaguete. They are a challenge because they are shy and you're shooting in low light.

 

[brorsan65]

The best moment to take a picture IS when they are mating. The esiest way is to be 2, (guide/diver). Tell the guide to point the focuslight at the mandarins when they start do ascend, focus and take the picture, or use redlight....... but i kind of like the 2 divers teknik. You can do this by your self, one hand on the focuslight and one hand on the trigger. But you have to be fast.

Martin

---------- Post added August 5th, 2013 at 04:34 PM ----------

The best moment to take a picture IS when they are mating. The esiest way is to be 2, (guide/diver). Tell the guide to point the focuslight at the mandarins when they start do ascend, focus and take the picture, or use redlight....... but i kind of like the 2 divers teknik. You can do this by your self, one hand on the focuslight and one hand on the trigger. But you have to be fast.

Martin

 

[jlyle]

The biggest problem is getting the camera to lock AF in low light. Using a focus light deters the little buggers from mating.

 

[dhaas]

Not a problem with any type of focus light (I used a red piece of cellophane over a regular dive light) for these taken in May while hosting my group at Dumaguete's Atlantis resort.

Yes you will get plenty of misses, near misses, etc. trying to capture the little buggers!

Canon Rebel T4i, Canon 60mm Macro lens in Ikelite housing with DUAL Ikelite DS51 strobes on TTL of course

Heading back in 2014

David Haas
www.haasimages.com

 

[BlueDevil]

I liken photographing mandarin fish to playing that 'whack a mole' game. They pop up wherever you were least expecting them and then disppear before you can get the camera on target.

Tapatalk 2

 

[BluewaterPhoto]

I find that using the Sola red light on a Sola 800 or Sola 1200 helps alot. As does using a long lens like the Nikon 105mm in AF-C mode. But no matter what, they are hard to shoot! Here is an article on shooting behavior.