With New Camera Equipment...

[Flumpus]

And hopefully better pictures. More to come in this thread, but here's the best picture of my community tank I've gotten so far (I think).

 

[Flumpus]

Ok, here are the other pictures with the new stuff

First up, I've never posted pictures of my tetras, but I've got a couple pics now, and here they are...

And finally, a couple pictures of my puffer. He's slimmed down some (he went on a diet ). Please excuse the water marks, I would have cleaned the glass if I'd planned this photoshoot...

 

[Cheffi]

Nice tank, and great photo's, keep them coming.

 

[Ginge]

Nice picture now with the new camera. I adore your puffer what kind is he?

 

[ajbettle]

figure of 8

 

[Neal]

Nice photos, also your tank looks great, it doesn't look packed in but it doesn't look empty, mines either one of the two, any tips for me? Also your puffer is great, are figure 8's brackish water only or not? I may consider it in the future.

Neal

 

[andywg]

Impressive, most impressive.

Any shots of Dolphins on the camera?

 

[Flumpus]

Andy, dolphin shots are in the private collection

Neal, thanks for the comments. I don't know if I really have any advice. It took me about 9 months to get that tank looking like that, and I think it's where I want it now. We started out with fake plants, the center tall piece of wood, and the caves on the right side of the tank. A lot later, probably six months, we ditched the fake plants and went all live plants. Then we upgraded the light, and went through a couple plants until we found this combination. We also dealt with a lot of algae (which shrimp have taken care of). All that to say it's all personal preference. My goal was to NOT look crowded, so I do appreciate your comments. As impressive as the heavily planted tanks are, I think I prefer a more minimalist approach. As for tips or advice, I think first I'd say take it slow. You could get one plant that grows into enough for a big space (like our onion plant). Second, I'd say leave some good swimming space, and some good open sand/gravel space. Finally, make it your own. I see tanks all the time that I think look cooler than mine, but I've tried, and I just can't recreate them. I finally stopped trying and ended up with the tank you see here. Personally, it's the perfect balance for me and I wouldn't change anything. You asked a simple question and got a lot you probably don't care about, but hopefully something in this long rambling mess will help you

Also, Figure 8 puffers are brackish. They can be kept in freshwater (the live in freshwater in the wild), but for some reason their lifespan is MUCH shorter in freshwater in captivity, so it'd be best to stick with brackish.