Molly Miller Portraits

So here's my Wetpixel newbie debut...

My wife and I recently got an Ikelite housing w/ DS51 strobes for our 5D mk III. The only port we have now is for the 100 mm macro lens. Last week we took the camera out fooling around in Pensacola Bay. I managed to get a couple decent pics of some blennies and molly millers.

Here's a couple pics of the Molly Millers...shot w/ ambient light, f8.0, 1/200 sec:

There's a lot talent on this website. It is awesome to see people openly share and willing to help. I look forward to participating here as we grow this hobby.

CT

The upper image is great...

... but would have been even better if the background fish hadn't been cut off!

Did you see it? We've all done this, concentrating on the foreground and missing the "negative space". Using a large viewfinder can help, but it's as much about slowing down, thinking of what angle to creep up from, and having a good look at the sea bed.

The upper image is sharper and more dramatic, probably as a direct result of being closer to the subject. This is pretty much the fundamental requirement of underwater photography: get as close as possible!

Good luck!

Welcome to Wetpixel! Ditto what Tim suggested. I also noticed the focal plane looks to be out in front of the little guy a touch just going by the foreground. You can help improve almost any fish portrait by making sure the eye is in focus and nicely exposed. I almost always do a little processing to try to improve the eye with an adjustment brush and a touch of sharpness.

Have fun!

Steve

Thanks fellas!

While I thought the top pic was a good one, I figured when I posted it that I will look back in a few years and think "geez, what the crap was I thinking!".

To answer your question, no, I didn't discover the second fish until I took a look at the pics on the computer. Actually, I didn't think I had captured any good pics when I was in the water. The current was a bit strong...still trying to get familiar with the housing. On the flip side, I had no idea that our murky bay would have such wonderful macro opportunities.

Give us some time to get used to the rig, then we will be looking for a workshop or two!

Following Steve's lead, this is contrast, sharpening and a little extra redness to number two:

... and blurring the background:

Tim - how'd you go about softening the background?