NatureScape - The End

[CooKieS]

Lovely shot and growth Tim,

Those Rosy tetra are one of my fav...cheers

 

[Matt @ ScapeEasy]

Lovely part of the world, whereabouts?

 

[cbaum86]

Great photo - everything looks so clean.
Oh and welcome to Yorkshire in advance.

 

[Tim Harrison]

Lovely shot and growth Tim, Those Rosy tetra are one of my fav...cheers

Thanks CooKies, they're a favourite of mine too, I think they might be the closely related bentosi tetra. I find the whole Hyphessobrycon genus fascinating

Lovely part of the world, whereabouts?

Near Leeds

Great photo - everything looks so clean.
Oh and welcome to Yorkshire in advance.

Thanks, got to sell my house first, but looking forward to moving to Gods Own County

 

[Wookii]

Fantastic looking tank Tim.

how many fish and shrimp do you have in there - looks like quite a few from your Flickr pictures?

 

[Tim Harrison]

Thanks. Not that many really, atm 16 small tetras, a couple of Scarlet Badis and countless cherrys.

 

[Tim Harrison]

The scape is becoming increasingly overgrown, and my urge to rescape is becoming increasingly hard to resist, despite the future relocation...

 

[KeeperOfASilentWorld]

Looks absolutely amazing! If you don't mind sharing; Which source did you get the Mini Christmas Moss from?

 

[Tim Harrison]

Thanks, I got it from a friend. I think Aquarium Gardens sell it.

 

[Tim Harrison]

Some reflections on NatureScape...

Tim Harrison

 

[Jayefc1]

It's still a beautiful scape though Tim

 

[Janci]

Beautiful Tim
What is the recipe for such a moss growth? Mine seems not to take off that fast and colours are less green.

 

[Tim Harrison]

Thanks @Janci, I'm not sure, most mosses seem to do really well in my local tap water, which has been anything from very to moderately hard.
I guess good lighting, balanced with good stable CO2 flow and distribution and fertz. Also, shrimp to keep it clean and algae free. And regular maintenance of course especially early on.
For more even growth I also chop it up in to tiny pieces around 5-10mm and bind it on very tightly with nylon thread or super glue.

 

[Wookii]

Thanks @Janci, I'm not sure, most mosses seem to do really well in my local tap water, which has been anything from very to moderately hard.
I guess good lighting, balanced with good stable CO2 flow and distribution and fertz. Also, shrimp to keep it clean and algae free. And regular maintenance of course especially early on.
For more even growth I also chop it up in to tiny pieces around 5-10mm and bind it on very tightly with nylon thread or super glue.

Tim, when you say maintenance early on with the moss, what specifically are you referring to? My moss in my new tank is really starting to grow well, but I’m wondering if I should trim it back really close to stimulate more and thicker growth?

Also, fantastic images as always Tim. Am I correct in thinking they’re all with an iPhone? I’m starting to get used to taking some close up images with mine, and have invested in one of those clip on macro lenses (but one that can be 70mm away from the object, which seems to work well also. Any tips for getting good images? Do you use a tripod of any kind?

 

[Tim Harrison]

Tim, when you say maintenance early on with the moss, what specifically are you referring to?

I just mean keeping on top of water changes, for me 100% a day at start up for a week, and then every other day week 2, and every third day for week 3, and then 50% once a week thereafter. Also, keeping the filter clean etc.

My moss in my new tank is really starting to grow well, but I’m wondering if I should trim it back really close to stimulate more and thicker growth?

I tend to tie mine to wood really tightly, or chop it up if I'm gluing it to hardscape. I also place it quite densely giving 100% coverage where I'd like it to grow. Sometimes it will spread, but often it just stays were it is. I tend to trim quite harshly at times, but it depends on the look I'm aiming for. Either way, it usually grows back dense and even, but mainly because of the way I attach it in the first place.

Also, fantastic images as always Tim. Am I correct in thinking they’re all with an iPhone? I’m starting to get used to taking some close up images with mine, and have invested in one of those clip on macro lenses (but one that can be 70mm away from the object, which seems to work well also. Any tips for getting good images? Do you use a tripod of any kind?

Thanks. It's all a bit hit and miss really. Most times it's just off the cuff when I see something I think is worth photographing, but I also use a tripod at times. Another trick is to place the camera on the glass and take images that way, no glare, reflections, or shadows, and perhaps most importantly the camera is stable, which gives sharper images.

But I also take loads of images of the same subject from the same and different angles and then choose the best. I also usually run them through a basic photo editor just to adjust colour, and light etc to what I actually see, and sometimes to crop the image to place greater emphasis on the subject I'm trying to capture or to create a bit of tension and a more interesting photo.

 

[Wookii]

Thanks Tim - do you use the default Apple camera app, or a different app?

 

[Tim Harrison]

I usually just use the camera as is. Apple software does a fantastic job of processing the data by itself.
However, if I'm shooting something that needs to be of publishable quality I use Halide which you can download from the app store.

 

[Wookii]

I usually just use the camera as is. Apple software does a fantastic job of processing the data by itself.
However, if I'm shooting something that needs to be of publishable quality I use Halide which you can download from the app store.

Thanks - I’m struggling to get good subject focus on the native app, the camera always seem to focus on an adjacent leaf or similar - it may be down to technique more than the camera though.

Thanks for the suggestion of Halide, I’ll give that a whirl.

 

[Tim Harrison]

Know what you mean... I just try to use it for what it's good at and don't really expect it to perform otherwise. Maybe a DSLR would serve you better, I know I could use one occasionally

 

[Wookii]

Know what you mean... I just try to use it for what it's good at and don't really expect it to perform otherwise. Maybe a DSLR would serve you better, I know I could use one occasionally

I actually have a DLSR, an old(er) Canon 450D, but believe it or not, I can't get nearly as good images with it as I can with the phone for the close ups. Probably because I'm lacking a decent telephoto lens. There is also the whole convenience factor!