acroporas

Forum username: acroporas
Location: Atlanta, Georgia
Posts: 1,400 across 83 threads started
Active years: 2004–2010
Camera: Canon 300D (Rebel), Canon EOS 5D
Housing: Ikelite
Primary forums: Photography Gear and Technique (530), Critter Identification (254), Photo/Video Showcase (229)
Specialization: Marine life identification, Canon/Ikelite systems, reef photography, coral biology

Community Role

acroporas was a distinctive voice on Wetpixel, combining serious photography gear discussion with exceptional marine biology knowledge. Their username — referencing the Acropora coral genus, one of the most diverse and important reef-building corals — signaled a dual identity as reef naturalist and photographer that permeated their contributions.

With 530 posts in Photography Gear and Technique and 254 posts in Critter Identification, acroporas had the highest Critter ID participation ratio of any comparably prolific member, effectively serving as the community’s informal marine biologist. Their peak year was 2005 (641 posts), an extraordinary output that made them one of the forum’s most active contributors that year. Activity was concentrated in 2004–2008, with a sharp decline after 2009 and only 10 posts in their final year of 2010.

acroporas progressed through Canon’s lineup from the 300D (Rebel) to the full-frame Canon EOS 5D, always housed in Ikelite housings, making them a key reference for photographers on that ecosystem.

Notable Contributions

Canon 5D advocacy

acroporas started the “5D is the bomb” thread in October 2005, one of the earliest enthusiastic user reports of the Canon EOS 5D. Their post captured the visceral excitement of upgrading to full-frame: “When you put it up to your face. WOW that viewfinder is huge. I had never used a film camera… Once you try it, you will buy it.” They noted the 2x pixel count over crop sensors, the massive LCD, and the only criticism being the clustered AF points. The thread (30 replies) helped establish the 5D as a desirable underwater camera body (^[1]).

Marine life identification expertise

With 254 Critter Identification posts, acroporas was one of the forum’s most reliable marine life identifiers, covering:

• Caribbean gobies and blennies
• Mantis shrimp species
• Invertebrate identification
• Coral species (reflecting their username’s taxonomic focus)

Their Critter ID contributions made them a go-to reference for other members seeking species identifications from their underwater images.

Technical photography discussions

• “Sensor size vs max DOF” (33 replies) — started a substantive technical thread exploring the relationship between sensor size and depth of field, which drew expert commentary from James Wiseman on diffraction limits and fisheye lens DOF characteristics (^[2])
• “What’s wrong with harassment?” (77 replies) — their most-replied thread, addressing marine life interaction ethics in underwater photography (^[3])
• Nikon D80 launch (70 replies) — active in the “D80: It’s Official” discussion, following Nikon’s mid-range DSLR evolution even as a Canon shooter (^[4])

Trip reporting and image sharing

• Organized and documented a Great Barrier Reef liveaboard trip aboard Mike Ball’s Super Sport, sharing reef images including lionfish, pygmy gobies, hermit crabs, and “sunball” compositions (43 replies, their most active Showcase thread) (^[5])
• Created “Starting to get a handle on sunballs” (14 posts) and “How to Crop a Stingray’s Eye” (9 posts) — technique-focused showcase threads
• Authored the “First dives with Ike eTTL housing” review, documenting real-world Ikelite E-TTL performance

Community governance

Active in the Feedback forum (23 posts), contributing to site governance and policy discussions.

Activity Profile

• Activity score: 1,649 (person_matrix.json)
• Dual expertise: Rare combination of Photography Gear (530 posts) and Critter ID (254 posts) focus
• Active window: 91% of posts in 2004–2008

References