Great Egg Artificial Reef

Great Egg Artificial Reef

7.2 Nautical Miles off Atlantic City, 1.03 sq miles
Depth: 50-70 ft [download]

Great Egg Artificial Reef

This reef is composed largely of Army tanks and tire units ( not shown ) and concrete castings. Minimum clearance at mean low water is 40 feet.


M60 tanks reef
M60 tanks undergo a thorough cleaning before use as reefs

The Artificial Reef Program used four types of obsolete Army armored vehicles as artificial reef materials off the New Jersey coast. These were cleaned at local military bases, loaded onto barges for transport, and pushed off at their final destination. Once the Army had disposed of its excess inventory, the program ceased, around 1999. The Artificial Reef Program has sunk almost 400 tanks altogether, far too many to list them here in this website.



rock reef
A hopper barge full of rock

All manner of concrete, steel, and stone rubble from dredging, demolition projects, and other construction is used as artificial reef materials. This material is generally available at very low cost or free from construction companies who are more than happy to get rid of it. Transportation costs determine where this material is used by the Reef Program.


light

Photography is all about light. Good lighting is the single most important factor in getting good pictures. After that, technique, experience, and artistic composition are second, and fancy expensive equipment is a distant third.

Unlike photo equipment, light is generally free, during the day anyway. For good results, you usually want to collect as much of it as possible for every picture. This is the job of your camera's lens. The lens is the most important part of a camera, and it is ironic how manufacturers of SLR systems with interchangeable lenses generally sell kits with fancy expensive bodies ( lots of buttons, etc ) and cheap lenses. Even more ironic, much low-end photography is done with disposable cameras that have no lens at all! Whether you use a point-and-shoot, a digital, or an SLR, make sure your camera has a good lens on it. Secondarily, shutter speed also affects your light-collecting ability. Better cameras have controllable shutters, while point-and-shoots are usually fixed at around 1/100 second.