not sure if this question has been asked before but I am curious how many people in the forums rate tanks and what do you look for. I rate tanks everyonce in a while and I look for plants of course I like to see different colors with the plants I usually give it a quick glance at first to see it it catches my eye and then I look closer and base my score accordingly. I am also not necessarily looking for the natural look or what I think might be the natural look I just have to like the way it looks. What about everyone else.
Sometimes I rate tanks. I prefer the more natural look, densely planted and with a splash of colors. No treasure tests opening and closing as bubbles come out of it. I like the natural look because I think that fish would prefer it and my fish seem happier the more places they have to claim as their own. I also think it's harder to create a natural-looking tank. And that's another point, tanks with some artistic content. Some are just ugly. We're not all interior decorators, but clearly there needs to be more than one rock and one plant . Effort gets points, too.
I tend to agree with zambize. The happier the fish look and the more natural the tank looks, the better rating I give. I cant tell you guys how many times I'v been distracted in class by rating tanks. Its just so much more fun than learning about civil litigation procedure! lol
I also rate on the more natural side. I also rate on how much effort is put in because it's not really that fair if someone worked so hard on their tank but it's not that natural.
But if the person hasn't put any effort into their tank or doesn't keep their fish healthy because of carelessness or over population that I rate harshly on the low side.
I never rate on how well the picture was taken, as I said in the other thread because not everyone has picture-taking skills or a nice camera.
This site isn't about quality of picture's, it's called "Rate My Fish Tank". Not rate my photo.
lol i do rate sometimes on the quality of the picture, if it's blurry and completely out of focus and i can't tell what the tank really has in it, also if i can't clearly see the fish, i really do rate a bit harsher, anyone who takes as much pride in their tank as i do, would not put up a horrid out of focus shot of a colored blob that is suppose to be one their fish or a jumbled tank, i also rate on the cleanliness of the tank, if there are tons of water spots and dried drips on the glass, i feel this is a distraction and you haven't taken the time to wash the glass, makes me wonder when the last time they did a water change, appears lazy in a photo, other than that i rate more on the natural side, if the plants look healthy and the fish look happy i am fairly generous, however it does take a special picture of a fish or a tank to really stop me, and get me thinking about how i can improve my tank beyond the one in front of me, and how much time and energy they put into it, you can tell who just plopped plants in the substrate with out much consideration as to where the fish will swim and claim territories. if the tank is dirty, unclear, and the water looks murky or if the fish don't look like they belong in the tank i will rate very harshly, but it takes that special tank for me to rate it a zero, and takes a special person to take a picture of a fish in a certain lets say situation or scenario that warrant a zero, but those are few and far between.
Brandon
oh forgot to add, generally if a tank or a fish that comes up and really takes my breathe away, you will see a comment from me, or receive a msg, i think everyone that has taken the time and effort and shown the appreciation for this hobby as most who have posted here, deserve cudos along with encouragement to keep up the good work, i think i have only left one negative comment on a persons fish picture. and that person knows who they are and why i left the negative comment. lol for those who wonder who it is, check the general forum and look for the WTF in the header.... LOL
Brandon
I agree... take some pride in your fish... we spend enough time and patience caring for the fish, why not spend some time capturing them in a way you'd be happy remembering them.... if a shot does come out blurry, people should not just discount their camera as a cheap instrument (all cameras take clear enough pics), but rather spend time taking some more shots until one comes out nice. Practice makes perfect... i can't tell you how many photos I've taken in my lifetime to achieve ones i'm even happy about keeping. I dunno, thats my opinion...
some people spend weeks or months making their tank look great, then they spend about 5 minutes taking photos they arent proud of and thats all they are left to remember the tank by... seems like a shame.
