Vancouver Aquarium II

I’m skipping a day. Not that it matters, since I’m writing about it a couple weeks after the fact, but since I have the photos online from my aquarium visit, I will talk about that first. I went to the aquarium–this time with Chris. And my camera. The first time I went I experienced and saw the exhibits as a person. This time I was there as a photographer and it was a much different experience. The dolphin show was the main difference. I didn’t see one the first time I was there, and although it wasn’t a long show, everyone enjoys dolphin antics. And they make interesting subjects of photos.

The hard thing about taking photos at an aquarium is that most of the time you are going to be shooting through glass–or plexiglass which is even worse. Reflections, light abberations and various spots and scratches can make your well intentioned photos look a little bit underwhelming. You want to get as close to the glass as you can to minimize the reflections, bearing in mind that the angle at which you shoot can also affect how the light plays. For the indoor tank photos, the light is usually one stop away from awful, so you will want a fast lens and perhaps a higher ISO. I was lucky to have my f/1.8 50mm which, while limiting my focal range, allowed nicer photos without resorting to a grainy ISO.

It was a good day, the aquarium being the highlight with a nice photo taking session in Coal Harbour before hand. After the aquarium we tried out Stanley’s Park Bar & Grill. The food was a bit below average I’m sorry to report. At least on our visit. They were out of Diet Coke (seriously) and salsa for our nachos. I had the chicken burger which was a little over-charred. The location is nice in the park, but the restaurant doesn’t provide its own washroom facilities instead relying on the public washroom nearby. Trough urinal… classy. Definitely wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone.