attention being paid to the sheet of 
glass facing the camera. 
The bottom of the aquarium should 
also be thoroughly cleaned, and all ac- 
cessoi ies, such as stones, shells, water- 
plants, etc., which are to be used should 
be washed and rewashed until all mud, 
silt and loose particles have been re¬ 
moved. These operations are most im¬ 
portant, because if there is any dirt 
in the apparatus, or on the accessories, 
it will be stirred up by the movements 
of the fish and the water will be ren¬ 
dered so cloudy that clear photographs 
will be an impossibility. 
The box connecting the aquarium is 
arranged on supports and the camera 
is set up. The aquarium is then filled 
with clear water, the accessories are 
placed in position, and the fish is intro¬ 
duced into the aquarium. 
A clean sheet of glass, as long as the 
aquarium, is useful for dividing it into 
two sections, the front one containing 
the fish and the rear one the water- 
plants, as by this means the fish’s move¬ 
ments towards and away from the lens 
are restricted, and the fish cannot get 
behind or among the plants. 
The lighting must be carefully stud¬ 
ied, and the aquarium must be moved 
as the sun’s position changes, so that 
the fish is illuminated in the most effec¬ 
tive manner. 
inconvenience, and these differences 
must be taken into account in deter¬ 
mining how long the fish is to remain 
in the aquarium and how frequently 
the water shall be changed. 
The reflex is the mpst efficient type 
of camera for this work, as the move¬ 
ments of the fish can be watched on 
the focussing-screen and the shutter re¬ 
leased the moment the desired position 
is assumed. 
Because of the activity of most fish, 
of the constant movement of the pec¬ 
toral fins of nearly all species, expo¬ 
sures must be brief—1/25 to 1/50 sec¬ 
ond. It is highly desirable to use pan¬ 
chromatic plates on many species of 
fish in order to record their coloration 
and markings, and if the lens is used 
at a wide aperture (f:5.5 to f:6) a 
special rapid panchromatic plate (300 
H & D) and a light filter, such as the 
Ki orthe Ilford Alpha, can be employed 
and still bring the exposures within 
the limit. 
Successful insect photography de¬ 
pends chiefly upon two factors — the 
securing of a large-scale image and cor¬ 
rect color rendition, the former calling 
for a long bellows-extension and the 
latter for use of panchromatic plates 
and suitable filters. 
Insects less than half an inch in 
length are too small to make success- 
many moths, locusts, grasshoppers, 
beetles, bugs, wasps, bees and flies, and 
the majority of butterflies and dragon¬ 
flies, may either be photographed life- 
size or taken on a somewhat reduced 
scale and subsequently enlarged to life- 
size. 
There are two main methods of in¬ 
sect photography — uncontrolled and 
controlled. In the former method a 
search is made for an insect of the de¬ 
sired species in a favorable location, 
and it is photographed with the reflex 
used at full extension. In the latter 
method the insect is captured, anaes¬ 
thetized with ether and placed in any 
desired pose in a suitable location. The 
former provides the best sport; the lat¬ 
ter the best pictures. In both methods 
it is equally important to show the in¬ 
sect in its natural surroundings, though 
in the latter method a plain neutral 
background may often be used very 
effectively. 
The first method is of application 
only to insects of considerable size, 
especially butterflies, large moths and 
dragonflies. In using the reflex in this 
work, rapid panchromatic plates, such 
as the Ilford Special Rapid Panchro¬ 
matic, and a light filter, such as the 
Ilford Alpha or the Wratten K,, and 
the smallest stop which the lig’hting 
conditions allow, should be used. 
Different species of fish differ a great 
deal in their requirements as to the 
temperature and oxygen content of the 
water, some demanding cool, well- 
aerated water, while others are able 
to withstand relatively high tempera¬ 
tures and deficiency of oxygen without 
Page . 435 
ful pictures unless magnified, which in¬ 
volves the use of a microscopic attach¬ 
ment and prolonged exposures; but 
species between half an inch and an 
inch in length make effective pictures 
when photographed life-size. Still 
larger species, which category includes 
If the posing method is to be used 
successfully, it calls for very close ob¬ 
servation of the food plants, or the 
natural resting-places, of the insects to 
be photographed, and of the character¬ 
istic positions of the various species. 
(Continued ov page 452) 
