Photo Frustration

Not bad at all! Like I said I really like the pictures you and a few others post. What editing software are you using for cropping?
I just ordered an inexpensive copy stand from B&H. I think it will help me quite a bit, I can't wait to post photos. Hopefully I can start by the end of this coming week. It's probably going to take a little longer to get my photo skills up to your caliber though.

 

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I use Adobe Photoshop but I believe there are some free alternatives, GIMP comes to mind.

 

Photoshop is free ...wink, wink

 

I just remebered! My camera came with an editing program, I don't know how good it is but I guess we'll find out!

 

Photoshop elements is another cheaper version of photoshop.

 

Also Photoscape.

 

you da man Lehigh!

I really like the way you have said that. It is short, concise and to the point.

Thiat point needs to be made over and over. over and over did I say over? again!

then again.... talk is cheap and a pic is worth a thousand words.. This coin is PCGS code 98 damage. If anyone can find the damage on this coin, could you let me know? Thanks!


Make sure you click on this pic several times to get the full resolution.

Gimpy gimp is so sweet. the learning curve is a bit steep if you don't have any experience with photo editing programs . But yeah ffffrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!


Call me John Wilkes PhotoBooth!

raw newp








To the original OP. With Point and shoots and macro. Using the timer is a must as well as a tripod or copy stand. This shot is from an Olympus 10mp




This is my ghetto set up. Notice the monitor in the background. IMO being able to view the coin on the computer is crucial at the next level of coin photography after the Point and shoot.

 

Very Nice EEW! Thanks for posting your setup.
This is exactly the kind of info I was looking for. Being able to see the setup is VERY useful!

Thanks!!!!!!!

 

Google Irfanview. Its free, easy and does a lot of stuff. Easy to crop and resize.

 

That's a lot of lights!

 

I noticed both fluorescent and incandescent. Why? I know the difference between the 2 types of light, are you using both types when you take your pictures?

 

One of the crucial elements for me is to manually focus then use the crank to fine tune the focus. You are looking at 2 broken tripods that I Canabalized to make a copy stand. I shoot very different than the pros do. Not sure what or if I am doing anything wrong, But I have a DOF - Depth of focus down to half a millimeter! I believe that I get crisper and cleaner shots since the camera is looking well past the plastic, However When focusing on the fields, the high points are out of focus. My biggest hassle is when the coin is not sitting square in the slab.

Thats actually a staged photo for exactly this purpose. The 6500k tulips are Pro Daylight bulbs and they suck for copper IMO - I prefer the richer red and blues of the GE reveals and Halogen Flood. I use a 3 light set up at 10-12-2 o'clock positions. It works for all copper coins. It is very very important to me that I shoot all coins with the same lighting angle and position.

In this configuration It does pretty good job with capturing toners however I have never shot a Rainbow Morgan.


My settings are very unusual and the pros pick my photos apart. They see things I don't see. The set up I created produces consistent images with highlights and shadows on Lincolns that I like. The 3 light setup works to capture a balance of luster and detail. You can set your lighting to accent luster or color or detail.


I just reshot a coin tonight. The first coin is a 4 light set up - no highlights - very balanced - does great job of hiding the tic and dings. The second shot isa 2 light setup at 10 and 2 o'clock accenting the luster and....... IMO the last pic is the best, a 3 light set up that balances detail and luster -

HOWEVER it also exaggerates the negative details in the coin that are not there when looking at the coin in hand. !! Hard to believe that these are all the same coin!?

 

WOW! That is amazing! Doing something wrong? I don't think so. I'm assuming the angle in which the light hits the coin is pretty improtant as well. Will a flatter angle show more or less detail and flaws?

I really appreciate all the info, thanks so much!

 

I have my lights at about 80 degrees to the coin. I actually have a little bit of melted plastic on the camera . When shooting straight down I find I can nearly get all the color that a toner has to offer.

Also mention in your other thread is the image hosting service you use. Consider subscribing for an upgraded service level that host the images at full resolution - Actually with photobucket you can choose from about 10 different settings.

Click on these coins twice to see what I am talking about in comparison to the other images I posted in this thread.

 

Indeed. Get one. They cost around $60 on Amazon.

 

the gimps sleepin!

 

I am looking at your setup EyeEatWheaties. Pretty neat. Do you use a dc suppy instead of batteries for you camera? What is the average distance between your lens
and the coin. Is that a 12'' post your camera is coonected to? zeke

 

Hey Zeke, I bought one of those $20 chinese DC power supplies but it never worked - The Canon one is $64.. too much to make worthwhile. I have 3 batteries ($10 chinese) that I rotate around - one in the camera, one in the charger, one on the desk ready to go.

Distance from the end of my 100mm Macor to the Lincoln cent is right at 6 1/4" - no cropping is needed top and bottom. The lens in the picture I posted was about 8" in order to fill the frame with a Lincoln.

As mentioned above, the copy stand you are looking is from 2 broken tripods that I completely tore apart and then morphed them together _ I can get 20 inches above the desk top. Not enough to shoot the entire slab with out changing the lens.

My dream copy stand is to buy one of the $50 drill presses you see in Lowes, throw the drill away and use the stand and cranking mechanism for fine focusing. They aren't quite tall enough for my purposes though and I can justify buying a floor standing drill press just for the column! Its on my to do list... maybe get parts from Delta. ... someday lol

 

You know, I just bought a cheapie canon power supply on ebay for $12.98, the CA-PS700. From what you said though I don't expect too much from it.
I would also like to connect my S3 IS to my laptop but I don't have the CD disc so that's another work in progress. I really like what you do with your 100mm lens with
Lincolns. You've given me a lot to think about. I'm not sure I should start small i.e. 12" stand, 2.5x macro lens or go to a larger stand and 100mm lens. This is gettin' to be fun.
b&h photo here I come.

zeke

 

No - they are in that photo for discussion purposes. I use 3 lights for Lincolns at 10-12-2 o'clock positions going GE Reveal 75w Halogen 100w flood GE Reveal respectively white balance a little to the Red blue side to better match typical room light. That is very subjective. It is my opinion that no one see their coins outside under day light, why photograph them balanced that way? The other 2 lights in the pic are for discussion purposes - I really do not like how the Day Light 5500k CFL performs. It looks ok for most objects, not coins IMO.

spring for the 100mm or buy the easier to use of the 2 and upgrade later if getting into coin photography will be your "thing" I will upgrade my lens when ever I get around to building a more substantial sturdier copy stand. Having a crank to fine tune focusing is of number one importance in a copy stand to me ..