“Shooting” Koi

Reprinted from the Oklahoma Koi Society Newsletter, August 2000

During the Tulsa Water Garden Tour 2000, Tom Graham, photographer for “KOI USA” gave a demonstration on how to take a picture of Koi. He also discussed Koi photography during his briefing at the Winston Company after lunch. I took some notes, which he gave me, permission to use so here foes it:

1. Use a blue tub; rectangular is preferred over round. “Koi can swim around and around forever in a round container.”

2.Put clean pond water in the container. Koi stress out after being netted and placed in a small container and this stress can cause them to drop their slime coat, which can discolor or cloud the water. Therefore it is important to remember to change the water periodically if photographing several fish. The Koi can also deplete the oxygen in the tub of water - another reason to remember to change the water.

3. Place the tub in the shade. Use a flash for shade photography. There will be less shadows and reflections in the shade to contend with.

4. Have from 1 to 3 inches of water covering the dorsal fin. You do not want the fish making ripples in the tub.

5. This is a quote of my secretary’s mother that is relevant to this subject. “Patience, jackass, patience” - take your time and let the fish settle into its new environment. Let all the ripples subside.

6. Type of shot you should wait for:

a. You want the fish to be slowly swimming directly towards you. Better yet, let it be hovering quietly, facing you.

b. You do not want to see the tub’s inner shadow in the picture either.

c. Do not have bystanders around the tub for they too can cause shadows and/or reflections across the water.

d. You want the correct pose on the Koi - pecs out, mouth closed

e. Try to avoid as much of the tub in your picture as possible.

a. Do not use zoom lenses and wide-angle shots - this causes distortions of your Koi.

b. Shoot at 90-degree angle (or to a 45). Stand close to the tub, but you do not want to stand directly over the fish. This will also distort your picture.

c. Do not listen to bystanders on when to shoot your picture. They do not know if you are focused, if the fish is centered, mouth closed, pecs out, etc., only you know that.

Tom also recommends that you take a lot of shots of the same Koi. This gives you the opportunity to choose the best picture of your Koi.

When taking photos of ponds, do not try to get the entire pond or yard. Take lighting into consideration. Walk around to get the best lighting. Take your picture in one type of light. Do not take the picture incorporating shade and brightly sunlit areas.