Shortly after coming home from Maui I was in the Kapolei library and a headline shouted out to me from the periodicals. It was a photography mag with the subject, "Take better pictures at the Aquarium" or something like that. Oops. A little too late. Mistakes were already made and we won't be heading back to Maui anytime soon to correct them. I didn't have a chance to stop and pick up the magazine, so here's my guess at what they said: 1. Use a tripod. 2. Don't use flash. 3. Use manual focus. 4. Pay attention to the signs. I think the guy above did read the magazine; note the textbook use of tripod in the shark tunnel!
I have too many other distractions these days and can't always set up a tripod, so I'm not kicking myself over that one. But I did feel really bad about upsetting an octopus. Above his tank there is a prominent sign that reads, "Do not use flash." Well, I wasn't, so I didn't really think much else about it. But I was using auto focus, which sends out a beam of light on your subject in low light. So I'm happily snapping away at a resting octopus when he starts moving around. Ooh, this is going to be a good one, I think. Well, in a word, no. The auto focus light agitated him and he literally came over to the side of the glass where I stood and stared me down! I realized what was going on, but it still gave me the creeps and made my heart stop at the same time. For a split second I even reflexively looked up to make sure there was no way he could jump out of his tank. I stopped shooting and backed quickly away. I feel a bit guilty still, but here's the picture.
1 comment:
They are incredibly smart creatures, aren't they? By now word has undoubtedly spread around the (sea) world. Death by octopus, yikes!
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