Goniopora palmensis "A Struggle for Survival"

[Jim_Zablotny]

What technical feedback would you like if any? I corrected the black point and reduced the saturation of blue and cyans. It may need additional reductions in those colors.

What artistic feedback would you like if any? The comp is unplanned as this was one part of the coral that was parallel to the plane of the glass.

Any pertinent technical details: D500 105mm bellows len, manual settings (Iso 800, F16, 1/20sec, 3 flashes with TTL settings). I used levels to control the blue part of the spectrum which my aquarium lighting is biased towards blue and purple. I purchased this coral as it was bleaching in the pet shop. Corals lose their symbiotic algae when stressed and this usually leads to the death of the coral. Goniopora are especially difficult to keep alive in captivity, but I have figured out how to keep them healthy–lots of preferred foods! This species readily eats large zooplankton and it appears to be on the road to recovery.

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[Dennis_Plank]

This is gorgeous, Jim. They certainly look healthy. I suspect the apparent color could cover a wide range and still be true to life unless they’re confined to a very narrow depth band. I keep looking at this and debating whether or not it would be better without the pale out of focus blob in the lower left.

[Richard_Sandor]

Jim: I am always amazed and intrigued by the beauty found in the smallest of creatures and your photo is a great example. I like the subtle, warm tones and the shapes of the corals. My only suggestion would be to clone the oof blob in the LLC. Excellent otherwise.
PS-are zooplankton available for sale on Amazon? Richard

[Allen_Sparks]

Hi Jim, very nice image and your attention to the proper foods definitely seems to be working. I like the placement of the critical focus area here and the color tones are nice. Really interesting subject. Well done.

[Tony_Kuyper]

Sounds like you’re a Gonipora palmensis whisperer, Jim. This is certainly something beautiful to try and connect with. I can’t really figure out the scale here, but don’t actually care all that much. The shapes and color are just fun to look at.