melev

It was time for me to get up on the walkboard and get some nice pictures of a number of corals from the best perspective: looking down. Here are the results from today's session.

Using a Nikon D90 and 105mm Macro lens in a Top Down Photo Box, pictures were framed, shot and processed in Lightroom.
You can purchase one here: http://www.melevsreef.com/node/42


Chalice

Chalice

Montipora sp.

Montipora sp.

Blue tort acropora sp.

Zoanthids - one is expelling zooxanthellae

Chalice

Frogspawn

Birdsnest

Hammer

Montipora sp.

Acanthastrea echinata - I like the green mouths on the right side

Chalice - Hollywood stunner

Montipora sp.

Lime in the Sky Acropora sp. - the green only stays on the corallites and the core appears blue to the eye. Beautiful, right?

Lithophyllum - the mouths appear to be blue.

Milka coral

Montipora sp.

Chalice

Pink branching hammer

Montipora sp.

Acropora sp.

Acropora prostrata

Montipora sp

Sea World montipora with blue mouths

Sebae anemone tentacles

Sunset Montipora denae

Torch coral

Turbinaria "Scroll" coral

Acropora sp.

Chalice

Favia "War" coral

Zoanthids

Zoanthids

Zoanthids

As you can see, a lot of vivid corals. This is a big turn around from where things were back in early September when the entire reef looked brown and bland. Chalices have colored up, montipora have rebounded and there is plenty of new growth. It's to the point that that I need to start trimming things back to provide adequate space so corals don't sting each other hoping to have room.

I really like the mixture of zoanthids mixed up together like the final picture.

One thing that hadn't really occurred to me until yesterday was that one of my Montiporas had scrolled around and around to create that whorling look. Super excited, I planned to take a picture of it today but within a couple of hours a chunk had broken off, ruining the rose-like look. I'll still try to get a shot, but it won't be what I saw.

A few corals were swapped around yesterday to change the look a little and provide some space for growth and reduce aggression.

If you aren't following my Youtube channel, you're missing the weekly videos I've been releasing every Thursday night. Lots of good information is being offered in 15 minute segments. The next video will be about an 800g reef set up in a home not far from me, and a week later how to drill a hole in a glass aquarium. Good stuff.