Fish Eye View

Three Things Our Fav Fish Photographer Wants You to Know

Plus his top pics, tips and tricks for camera nerds

As told to Amanda Smith, USFWS Columbia Pacific NW Region, External Affairs

Roger Tabor is a USFWS fisheries biologist in Lacey, Washington and he has a penchant for photography. His love for conserving fish and aquatic species is matched only by his love of capturing them on camera. Roger’s passion for snapping photos preceded his profession and here he shares his favorite tips and pics from the past four decades.

Photo: On a recent trip to shot spawning kokanee in Gold Creek near Snoqualmie Pass, I encountered this bull trout hanging out with the spawning kokanee. It was hard to get close enough to the fish to get a good image, so I set my camera on the bottom with weights, backed away and pulled on a string from about 10 feet away to trigger the shutter once fish moved back close to the camera. Taken with an Olympus OM-D E-M1 with an Olympus 8 mm fish-eye lens (shutter priority exposure; ISO 250; 1/160 sec; f 4.5) with natural lighting. Credit: Roger Tabor/USFWS

What got you into taking photos of nature, specifically aquatic species?

I started taking pictures when I worked in the backcountry of the mountains of Colorado. When I moved to this office (Western Washington Fish & Wildlife Office), I started working on a few projects that involved snorkeling and got hooked on taking underwater photos of aquatic life. I found it was not only enjoyable but also a valuable part of my work. I started with a Nikonos V film camera but was always limited by the expense of buying and processing film and the small number (24 or 36) of exposures on a roll of film. About 12 years ago, I switched over to digital cameras which has helped me considerably.

Photo: In an event that only happens once year, I was able to photograph these peamouth bass as they performed their run up Abernathy Creek past Abernathy Fish Technology Center in Washington state. Taken with an Olympus OM-D E-M1 with an Olympus 9–18 mm wide-angle lens (manual exposure; ISO 320; 1/100 sec; f 6.3) and two Sea&Sea YS-D1 strobes. Credit: Roger Tabor/USFWS

What would be your dream species/place to photograph or what is on your bucket list in terms of photography?

In the past few years, I have been fortunate enough to visit a few spots on my wish list. I was able to go on a three-day backpacking trip to visit a mountain lake that has the only remaining population of Arctic grayling in Washington State (originally stocked in the 1947). Also, I was lucky enough to get some photos of spawning peamouth in Abernathy Creek thanks to the help of Abernathy Fish Technology Center and this is a rare sight. I have lots of fish and invertebrates on my wish list but would particularly like to get to some Midwest or Southeast streams to see some of the colorful darters.

Photo: I caught a glimpse of the rare Artic grayling on camera. Credit: Roger Tabor/USFWS

What advice do you have for people looking to become more serious about nature photography?

Underwater photography is quite different than other nature photography and I have a few initial thoughts. 1) Get close — It’s important to get as close to your subject as possible to reduce the amount of water between you and the subject. For me, the hardest thing is to be patient and slowly get close enough to take a good photo. 2) Clear water sites — An important element of underwater photography is to try and pick a spot with clear water. Sites with clearer water will always be better. Where I live, I’m fortunate to have a few nearby springs and those spots are my favorites for taking pictures. And 3) take lots of photos — With underwater photography there are lots of ways to take a bad picture (out of focus, poor lighting, subject moved, backscatter, etc.) and I’ve probably done them all, so it’s important to take lots of photos.

Share some of your favorite photos with us and how you got the shot!

A pair of chum salmon on their redd in Allison Springs, Olympia, Washington. This site is result of a FWS sponsored restoration site that converted an old trout farm into a valuable spawning site for chum salmon. Taken with an Olympus OM-D E-M1 with an Olympus 8 mm fish-eye lens (shutter priority exposure; ISO 500; 1/160 sec; f 1.8) with natural lighting. Credit: Roger Tabor/USFWS

Photo: Sometimes you just get lucky; I unexpectedly ran into these spawning western brook lamprey in late January at McAllister Springs in Lacey, Washington. Taken with an Olympus OM-D E-M1 with an Olympus 14–42 mm lens (manual exposure; ISO 500; 1/125 sec; f 22) with a 2X macro wet lens and two Sea&Sea YS-D1 strobes.

Photo: This photo of amphipods on aquatic moss was taken where adult Chinook salmon had recently spawned. Carcasses provide the amphipods food and in turn amphipods may become food for juvenile Chinook salmon. Taken with an Olympus OM-D E-M1 with an Olympus 14–42 mm lens (manual exposure; ISO 200; 1/100 sec; f 22) with a +10 macro wet lens and two Sea&Sea YS-D1 strobes. Credit: Roger Tabor

Photo: A female Chinook salmon stands guard on her redd at McAllister Springs in Lacey, Washington. Taken with an Olympus OM-D E-M1 with an Olympus 8 mm fish-eye lens (shutter priority exposure; ISO 400; 1/160 sec; f 6.3) with natural lighting. Credit: Roger Tabor/USFWS

For more of Roger Tabor’s photography, check out this Flickr album of his work.