Need Help with two pics?

[scorpiofish]

It's all about angles and light. I would have move to your left to get more a slightly more frontal view. The tail appears to be trailing toward you.

Second, you are shooting somewhat downward. Move the camera position down with a straighter view of the fish.

Strobe position. The front of lower part of the head is fairly dark on my crappy monitor at work, plus there is a harsh shadown right under the fish. If the strobe were positioned on the left, just slightly above the film plane and fairly tight to the camera, the fish itself would block most of the shadow. The viewer's eyes will immediately go to the face of the fish, or at least should. This is why it is better to have the shadow trailing to the other side.

 

[bdombrowski]

Interesting critter!

To improve the dynamics of the photo, you could improve the composition by shooting at a more upward angle instead of downward. This would give you the effect of more depth in the image. Also, you could try to put a more interesting negative space (the stuff surrounding the subject) that has more contrast to the subject. This is easier said than done obviously, because lots of critters hide where they blend in with the surroundings. You really shouldn't move (molest) it. Again, if you choose a slightly upward or level angle instead of downward one, you can put water in the negative space. The water will expose as a black background with strobe using the right shutter speed (as fast as your camera will sync.) The black background would give a better contrasting negative space than the shells on the bottom in my opinion. Another improvement requires more equipment. By adding two strobes you can avoid the harsh shadow formed at the left in front of the subject. I don't always dive with two strobes, and have sometimes regretted it when shooting macro.

Regards,

Brian