Family Activity NYC – NY Aquarium

Yesterday I mentioned I would tell you about a fun family activity involving sea creatures. Yep – the NY Aquarium!

Whenever the weekend approaches, panic sets in for the dreaded “what are we doing this weekend” squeal coming from my 2 girls. They would love to go to playgrounds or Dylan’s Candy Bar every weekend but we try to mix it up and try different things.

Over the summer I decided to get a family membership to the Bronx Zoo and with it is included entrance to a few other attractions in the area – one of them being the NY Aquarium. Last week when the schools were closed the girls and I headed out to Brooklyn by subway (see yesterday’s post) to check out the aquarium. I figured it would be fun since we had never been before.

So, I messed up a bit with the subway directions – having to switch trains multiple times but we eventually got CLOSE to where we needed to be.

it

Apparently if we were on the correct train it would have left us off directly in front of the aquarium, but instead we had to walk a few blocks. The attractions at Coney Island don’t open until April so it was pretty desolate in that area right now. I already got the demand (I mean request) to go back in April.

The NY Aquarium is pretty small so you won’t need an entire day to go through it. We managed to stretch it out to 3 hours – including a lunch break.

There were things to see outdoors

as well as indoors.

There was even a show – not quite Sea World but still enjoyable.

Some favorites of the day included

sharks

sea turtles

sea horses

jellyfish (my fave)

and even little Nemo peeking out of the anemone.

Looks like a big ol’ bowl of spaghetti – doesn’t it? I think I know what I’ll be having for dinner tonight.

There was a big walrus the kids could climb on as well.  Just be careful of the spikey whiskers!

By the end of the three hours – they were done.

I thought I would share some photo tips in case you decide to go to the aquarium or anyplace similar.

Photo Tips For The Aquarium

• Safety first! Don’t worry about getting a perfect shot. (you’re probably carrying a million things anyway) You’re really just documenting your day with your family. Keep your eyes on your kids more than your camera! (I’m actually saying this more to remind myself!)

• Take your camera off of auto mode!  If you’re not comfortable with the settings, at least try “P” mode so you can change your ISO

• For the indoor shots, remember to bump up your ISO settings. The darker the situation, the HIGHER the ISO number has to go.

• When you go back outside, remember to LOWER your ISO setting. The brighter it is outside, the smaller the number for ISO.

• Don’t use a flash to photograph the fish tanks – it will just bounce back and look like a big bright spot.

I don’t want to overwhelm you with aperture and shutter speed but if you have any questions, just ask me in the comment section.

Have a great weekend!