Analysis of the 3 most beautiful reef tanks on youtube

[chrisgold]

Maybe I’m too cynical but threads like these strike me as an attempt to drive up YouTube views.

Strikes me as butt licking

 

[desagon]

I’m lost with this thread and the meaning behind it.
your tank is nice and I’m sure a lot of people would agree. Why would you call it ugly?
If you don’t like it, do you even enjoy the hobby?
At the next reefapalooza, you should set up a stand with a banner that says “reef tanks are ugly. Change my mind”.

that’s basically what I’m getting out of this.

 

[monkeyCmonkeyDo]

I need spreadsheets and facts not opinion. Lol
D

 

[Ardeus]

I know why I find 99% of reef tanks ugly.

They lack depth, they have an inverted proportion between the size of fish and corals and suffer from the fact that we collect 1 of each coral species. Add blue light and no sand and you get a disco nightmare.

People study all sort of visual arts, from painting, to cinema, architecture and all of them share a few basic principles. Why should reef tanks be imune to these principles and a similar study?

 

[Ardeus]

Maybe I’m too cynical but threads like these strike me as an attempt to drive up YouTube views.

Here's a screenshot of my youtube analytics showing the search terms that lead to my channel. I'm not even joking. Youtube is really confused about my videos.

 

[Lasse]

The goal with the interior of my aquarium was to create a tiny part of a natural reef without bother about 1.618 or center pieces. I have model my aquarium in the way it looks best in my eyes not after some theoretical principles

The result today is that you can find both 1.618 and a center piece in my aquarium. The Golden section A:B in my aquarium is 0.74:0.46 (total length - 1.2 m) and 0.17:0.27 (visible height 0.44 m). And I promise you - this was not my intent even if I know about the theories - as always with me - theories should be overruled and tested. Image my surprise when I took out the ruler today and check my numbers

Here is my aquarium with two dominating structures - the Seriatopora bush and the largest clam below plus the "flak" structure to the left

My tank is only 300 L (80 G) and 120*50*50 cm. In order to create something interesting and living I also decided to work with light and shadows - creating a little more "virtual" depth in the tank.

There is also a lot of areas that you cant spot directly from the front - even a lot of corals that you not see the first 10 minutes. My fish selection is concentrated on small species - and/or species that normally is very stationary in their nish. Some exploring species is also included. I have try to create an aquarium there the fishes just swim and doing normal fishy things and avoid species that have huge hunting territories in the wild. I have done one exception with one of my favorites - the copperband butterfly. But - in the mornings I often regret this choose because when it is brighter in the room than in the tank, he / she can see that there is something else outside the glass. It results in a nervous up and down swimming along the side glass - searching for the way out to the unexplored. If I feed a little or covers the side glass - it stop this behavior ans instead start to cruise the aquarium for food.

I agree with the thread creator - Saltwater and aquascaping seems often to be two words that is as compatible as Apple and Microsoft are (or as I use to say as incompatible as the two words Good and Mornings)

This is my favorite scape ever. I tried to create something similar in my 300g and failed miserably. You need serious depth to get this look. It’s my inspiration for my next house and giant tank!

Look closer on that tank - you will found exactly what the thread creator try to highlight - the number 1.618

I need spreadsheets and facts not opinion. Lol
D

Your welcome

Sincerely Lasse

 

[desagon]

I don’t think making the claim that most everyone’s tanks are ugly is a good way to get people to respect you and your opinion. I would have left that out of the original post and all of the following posts where you repeat it and try to justify it by depth and whatnot.

 

[Sleeping Giant]

Over the last years I've searched high and low for beautiful reef tanks and these are my top 3 and I decided to analyze them and see if I could learn somethings that I could apply to my own tank.

The main things for me were how to make the tank look deep and the value of dark areas.

I would love to see examples of what everyone considers the most beautiful reefs they have ever seen.

Just look at build threads, there's plenty of tanks to pick from. I feel that your wrong about how beautiful saltwater tanks are. There is depth, there is artistic expression, there is plenty of living life in these tanks, especially if your comparing FW to SW. I've had both.
Not everyone like Picasso, not everyone likes those 3 tanks you picked, including me.
We all have different likes and dislikes.

 

[Lasse]

especially if your comparing FW to SW.

There is a lot of ugly freshwater tanks too. I have a friend that have a good description of a Cichlid tank.

One stone pile on the left, one on the right and finally a tree root in the middle for the aesthetic

What the thread creator meant is the freshwater tanks from the aquascape part of the hobby. Takashi Amano is an ionic name for this

Sincerely Lasse

 

[Tom Blevins]

my vote's Rob's & Tim Plaza links below

watch: Robs -
Tim's -

 

[Sleeping Giant]

Maybe I’m too cynical but threads like these strike me as an attempt to drive up YouTube views.

I feel like you hit the nail on the head 100 percent

 

[Sleeping Giant]

clownfish feeding with Anemone 2

clownfish feeding with Anemone listening to First Division - Pure

youtube.com

 

[Sleeping Giant]

 

[Sleeping Giant]

 

[Sleeping Giant]

 

[Sleeping Giant]

 

[Sleeping Giant]

 

[wjgeese]

Tank #3 and Steve Weast's old tank. THE two best reefs ever

 

[Ardeus]

I don’t think making the claim that most everyone’s tanks are ugly is a good way to get people to respect you and your opinion. I would have left that out of the original post and all of the following posts where you repeat it and try to justify it by depth and whatnot.

That's just 1% of what I wrote and I don't regret it. It's important, because it's the acknowledgement that this is a neglected area of research and that's why reef aquascaping interests me. It's virgin land, like freshwater aquascaping was before the 90's.

The result is that the lowest ranked tanks in the hundreds of freshwater tanks that enter aquascaping competitions every year have more thought put into their scape than the most beautiful reefs.

The other 99% of what I wrote is what I found that can be used to improve reef aquascaping. I really really wish a salt water Takashi Amano emerged and helped us out.

Our systems are extremely expensive and include some of the most beautiful creatures on the planet. I think that it's a shame we don't put more effort and into learning how to make them look their best.

To say that it's just a matter of personal taste implies that there's no reason to learn anything about it. The goal would be for each one of us to learn how to achieve something we like.

 

[monkeyCmonkeyDo]

The op is talking about funkshuay? Lol. I cant even spell it. Im sorry but in nature their is room for life to become natural and balanced.
D