2.5 US gal. Iwagumi

[George Farmer]

This is my little nano.

Olympus D-435 5MP compact. Aquarium lighting and cold cathode back light.

I'm getting some Riccia sp. "Dwarf" soon direct from Tropica, Denmark for the foreground. Eventually I will stock some Microrasbora sp. (probably Galaxy)

My main issue is with the white "burnout" in the background.

No post-processing. I only have MS Paint!

Comments welcome, cheers.

http://img64.imageshack.us/img64/4443/dec4006xn2.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[alanhill]

A very creditable result. If you had been able to do a little post-processing I would have been convinced it was good DSLR work (but I'm afraid Paint is not up to this sort of job). You can probably even out the background by using sheets of white paper to reflect more light downwards - or do you want to make the top darker with some sort of shading? Nice work with the tank and the lighting of the plants etc.

Alan

[paradise]

Agree, nice tank and a good photo. HC or Glosso will really finish it well. I actually love the old amano look where glosso and the hairgrass get mixed a bit, makes it look wild and natural.

As far as fish, those galaxies are great choice, they are very interesting fish to observe in a small setting. I have a couple of males that are constantly doing the dance in my 1.5g tank.

[George Farmer]

Thank you guys, your feedback is appreciated and very useful for me.

[George Farmer]

Here's an ok shot of my nerite snail "on the rocks".

http://img72.imageshack.us/img72/5650/snailbz3.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

My Olympus D-435 has a poor macro that won't get much closer. Still no post-processing but I now have Photoshop CS2, is this any good? I will hopefully install it on my desktop PC this weekend, as my laptop isn't very powerful.

The dwarf riccia is spreading nicely and I hope to have a full carpet before Christmas.

This week I will be buying some fish. I am very tempted to go for four or five white cloud mountain minnows (WCMM) instead of Microrasbora sp. "Galaxy". My tank is cooler now, 20-23C and I don't have a heater. I read the galaxies prefer around 26C, but am unsure as the fish is so new to the hobby. Any feedback on this would be most welcome.

[alanhill]

Photoshop CS2 will do nicely George!
But don't expect to master it overnight - it is amazingly versatile and sophisticated software. You have hours of puzzlement and frustration in store :'( - but many delights as well :-D

Alan

[George Farmer]

Thanks Alan.

Here's a full tank shot. Still not used PS though.

http://img168.imageshack.us/img168/3609/dec19yk4.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[paradise]

nice george, though I was never a fan of riccia on stones, where you see the individual "packs" of riccia.

[CDM]

The tank looks really great.

[benny]

Nice tank and good looking aquascape. But the lighting for the last picture seems to be too much to the rear.

Cheers,

[fish fodder]

hi george, excellent tank mate, as far as the galaxies are concerned i would love to be able to help you but i cant, i have 7 in total and all are kept in water with a temp of around 26-27c so i cant say whether they will be tolerant of cooler waters.

[George Farmer]

nice george, though I was never a fan of riccia on stones, where you see the individual "packs" of riccia.
Thanks Edward. The stones are "blending into one" as we speak. After a few more days it will be one solid carpet. I will then prune appropriately, the hairgrass and riccia (if required), to create a better sense of depth.

Thanks for all the other comments and feedback, it is much appreciated.

I added my first fish today. After come careful thought I went for five Microrasbora nana. They stay very small and do well in cooler temps. The shop had galaxies too but I didn't want to risk, I also prefer the nana's colour and tighter shoaling.

It's hard to get a sense of scale from this photo so I'll try get a full-tank shot tomorrow. Believe me they are small. Please excuse the white blurs, they are pearling. I've still not got around to installing CS2 so still no post-processing.

I really like their relatively plain look. For me this compliments the simplicity of my aquascape, rather than contrasts perhaps excessively like say a cardinal tetra would in this instance. I've always considered fish selection very important for the more "serious" aquascaper, and I think leaving the decision to near the end of the aquascape's maturity is a worthwhile experience.

http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/640/nanashoalda5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[Simonauv]

I love the tank and personally can't wait to see an updated pic. I hope to have a nano setup after I move (in 2 weeks time so I'm madly packing and trying to organise international freight - I'm about to move from Norfolk Island back to Australia to Tasmania - about 2000km all up) and put tiny sparkling gourami (Trichopsis pumilus) in it and sub. the riccia with java moss on a small piece of wood and a miniature water lily with floating leaves. I like these M. nana for how they seem to shoal just above the tops of the hairgrass, like they will dive straight down into it at the first sign of danger.

Is this a filterless planted tank?

As far as the burnout goes, have you tried firing the flash up and reflecting it down using some kind of reflector (foil, white paper, etc) or some kind of DIY softbox etc?

[George Farmer]

Thanks.

The M nana are quite skittish but stay out of the hairgrass.

I use a 160lph HOB filter, pressurized CO2 mist, trace and macro ferts with 3x weekly 50% water change. It's as high-tech as you can go in this size really.

I don't use a flash, just the aquarium lighting and white card.

http://img185.imageshack.us/img185/9604/finaltiffyh9.png (http://imageshack.us)

[Simonauv]

The tank is looking beautiful George :)

If you are not using a flash, what is the bright white blowout in the background? Is it a reflection from the tank lights or is the white background a bit translucent with a light source behind the tank? Can you bring the tank lighting a bit further forward like Benny suggested?

[Willy wombat]

Great thread George - your aquascaping skills are excellent and nice photos too!

[George Farmer]

Thanks guys. I've moved the tank forward, as suggested. I used "beach and snow" preset white balance, as there is no manual setting. I quite like the blue, even though it is supposed to be white.

http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/4816/6jantiffcg6.png (http://imageshack.us)

[paradise]

Now that is very good. The mat in the front is looking thicker too, not so "unnatural" . You can change the blue to white using color replacement.

[Loulou]

Beautiful tank... very peaceful :-)

Great pictures. ;)