Points to bear in mind when taking photos of your Koi

1. One of the biggest problems when taking photo's of Koi is the glare created by the water. The best way to solve the problem is to invest in a polarizing filter. They are fairly cheap at approximately R 350.00 and is a good investment and it is very effective.

2. If you do not have a polarizing filter or your camera do not accommodate one, all is not lost, but lighting and angle at which you take the photo are much more important;

3. Create shade when you take a photo, take the photo indoors or at night, forcing your flash to go off. Controlled flash photography provides the best results when taking photos of Koi. If the weather is overcast, it will be the best time to take photos, as it creates even light.

4. Focus: If you use auto focus, the water surface will play tricks on the camera and will focus on the surface or floating leaves, bubbles or debris. Rather use manual focus and focus on the head and eyes of the Koi.

5. A slow speed film is recommended. The ideal speed is 100 ASA.

6. Keep the camera at a 60 degree angle and take the photo from the front of the fish, head on.

7. If you have a red eye setting on your camera, use it to avoid red eyes.

8. Use your zoom if you have one, because it allows you to take photo's without coming too close. You might spook them if you come too close.

9. For obvious reasons, the water quality should be as good as possible.

10. Take a lot of shots from different angles.

11. Make sure that the Koi fits into the picture from nose to tail.

12. The pectoral fins are quite important and should not be clamped to it's sides or reversed.

13. If your camera have a sport setting, use it, because the fish might move around.

14. If the koi moves around too much, a technique called spinning can be used. Spin the Koi gently around a few times. After the spinning, it takes a while for the Koi to find it's bearings and will lie still for a while.

15. Rectangular bowls create the best results because you restrict their swimming space. If you use a round bowl, the Koi will swim around and around.

16. The water level should be 2-3 inches above the Koi.

17. Switch off any airpump or other form of circulation.

18. When not using a bowl, throw food to encourage them to come to the surface. It is a good idea to throw a bit of food after each photo. The Koi will soon associate the flash going off with food, and will come towards you as soon as they see the first flash going off.

19. Use a tripod if available. Any slight shake will show up when you enlarge the photo.

20. Get away from anything that might spook the Koi. No children or dogs around.

21. Be patient.

My experience with taking pics:
1. A polarising filter will make a lot simpler, but without one you can also take really brilliant photos when taking the angle of the sun etc into consideration.
2. I use a Canon EOS 400D's built-in flash and it is slow to recharge for the next shot. Sometimes while waiting for the flash, some really great shots have swam past the lense.
3. Auto focus has its ups and downs, but so does manual. I have shot stunning pics on the sports setting and the night portrait. As for manual - I still need to find a way to get the fish to stay put for long enough to set the F-stop and the shutter speed and focus...
4. I prefer 200 ASA.
5. Your fish WILL ALWAYS SWIM AWAY FROM YOU.

A lot of P&S digitals aren't suited to the task of constantly moving objects.
I do it this way:

1. Set up tripod
2. Add polarizing filter and flash to the camera and mount it on tripod
3. Select a good area to use as a background
4. Pre-focus on the area and test it by floating something to it or use your hand right at the waterline to confirm (obviously a timer is required here).
5. Meter using the same technique
6a. Wait
or
6b. Toss some food in to get the fish to your focused area.

I find that the pics I shoot with a 5MB Kodak aim and frame (mik en druk) are not too shabby. I suppose the purpose of these pics differ than e.g. the ones you use to market the fish. But that's my bit on taking pics.