Got a copy stand for Christmas

Some good ideas. I haven't thought about tethering the camera to a computer. I'm just starting out with the below setup. Hope to start taking some decent photos (when I find some time). The OP - nice Merc and photo.

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

I disagree. For the dime, the light is too low, not too weak. You are getting a bright front of Liberty's face and a dark cheek because of this. If you simply raise the lights, which may require you raising the camera and cropping more, you'll get a better picture.

Then you can address the next problem you'll have. For lighting the reverse of a Mercury dime, you don't want the lights at the 9 and 3 position (or even 10 and 2) with respect to the coin. The reason is the fasces. The two lights hitting it from opposite directions will fill in the shadows that give the vertical lines depth. I typically light these at 9 and 1 on the reverse -- or maybe even 7 and 11 -- whichever gives the nicest texture to the axe blade.

Another reason I wouldn't use 9 and 3 for uncirculated coins is that lights at 180° from each other will reinforce the same luster band on the coin. If the lights are 90° from each other (10:30 and 1:30), the luster bands will be as well. This is easiest to see on the reverse of a Morgan dollar, where on semi-prooflike coins, you'll see a nice, white X across the reverse if you do this.

For the amount of light, I have two 100W-equivalent daylight LED bulbs. Not quite as much light as you have with 4 60W bulbs, but since they're LEDs, they're much cooler to work with (unless you touch the porcelain base).

 

The lights were actually positioned directly above the camera for the photo
As pictured on the table. At least as vertical as they can possibly go.

 

Sounds like it's time to stop using the incandescents and go with Jansjo LED's. You will have a much easier time with micro positioning the lights for best effect. Take messydesk's advice to heart here...each coin type, and indeed obverse and reverse of each type, needs to have very specific light positions to get the best shadow details for showing off the coin's design elements. With the lights fixed as you have them in your stock copy stand, you are forced into a one-size-fits-all approach.

When you get the Jansjos, I highly recommend removing the plastic lens and replacing it with diffusion material. I think of this as "first level diffusion" as you will probably need a bit more but it's a good start. It immediately eliminates the extreme pin-point characteristic of the LEDs. The process is:

Carefully pry the plastic retaining ring that holds the lens in place using a knife (did I say be careful yet?) or a small screwdriver. It's hard to get to come out, and you'll think you're going to break it, but then it will just pop out and go flying across the room.

Go searching for the lens, and when you find it, use it as a circle template to trace a circle on some Canson Opalux art vellum.

Cut out the Opalux circle and place it where the lens goes. If you cut it to the right diameter, it won't go in easily, so you should use the lens to push it in place, then let the lens fall back out.

Snap the retaining ring with the Opalux diffuser back into your Jansjo.

Because the Jansjo LED runs cool, you can do this kind of trick and get away with it. Do not try this with a Halogen bulb!

edited to add:

If you're worried about getting enough light from the two LED's, realize that you will place them much closer to the coin than you have the incandescents. It looks to me like your incandescents are around 18" from the coin. For Dimes and Cents, I like to place the lights around 4" from the coin. The closer distance has a dramatic effect on brightness, which goes as the cube of the distance, so the LED's will be 90 times brighter at 4" vs 18", so this compensates the difference in brightness of the two sources.

 

Frankly, I'm about to ditch the Jansjo's in favor of R20 full-spectrum plant lights in all but the closest light placements. The chroma noise on silver is wearying, and I think transitioning to less of a point source will keep me from having to diffuse anything that isn't copper.

That said, the farthest I ever place a light is perhaps 6" from the coin, although I don't work with anything longer than 75mm and therefore minimal working distance. With the 50mm, lights are less than 4" away.

 

How do you guys light up these blasted things? I'm clueless.....

 

Thanks for all the advice. Tonight was a struggle. I was trying to shoot a rainbow toned Morgan. I could not get the thing to focus with the bellows/macro lens set up so switched back to the regular lens. Eventually got it to focus. Adjusted the aperture, F-stop etc... Finally got it in as close to perfect focus as possible with the colors showing very well and the camera wouldn't take the picture. Remote shutter wouldn't work. Button on the camera wouldn't work. I changed the auto focus setting. It then snapped pics but didn't save them to the card. So I have no pics to share and am done for the evening. I have no idea what happened. This didn't happen once last night.
You guys really have me thinking about better lights. I agree I need something more versatile than what I have.

 

Dave...try getting rid of the lenses before you give up on the Jansjos. Immediately diffusing seems to help a lot in getting rid of the chroma issues of the point sources. No direct light gets from the LED to the coin...it all has to go through the Opalux.

Curved surfaces require more diffusion. Basically, you need to light from more angles.

 

Right.......more Janscos? I've only two. Was planning on adding a third. Maybe a fourth? Still, with that, I can envision the center of the convex area still lighting up hot......

 

Take a piece of paper, fold it in half, open it up enough to stand it on edge near the coin so that the halves face the coin from different directions. Shine the lights on the paper.

 

That'll mean more Jansjos because I still want the direct light for luster on lesser coins. Good thing there's an Ikea in town.

 

I came close to doing that this afternoon. I had some vellum, taped to a piece of white card stock, behind the coin that I was shinning the light on to. I'll try your recommendation in the morning.........in the meantime, the subject coin has been added to the pocket change. Seems I'm experimenting with curvy coins as well worn pieces, but I'm sure I can salvage the subject piece before it has been through too much........

 

They're doing "fluorescent tube substitutes" these days out of inline LED arrangements. I wonder what one straight across a curved coin, maybe playing with angles of attack, might do. Perhaps a flexible one....

 

That's Nice. Nice Case Of Doubling too.

 

Sweet toner

From the hobby center and think tank of MTS.LLC

 

That's a pretty sweet setup! I look forward to seeing the pictures that come out of your new studio!

 

Wow. Well, judging from the dime you showed in the thread, whatever you're doing, you're doing it right. Enjoy your present!

 

You too? Lol.

 

I got a Nikon El-Nikkor 75 mm as recommended by Super Dave. Works great for the larger coins. This is a NGC graded MS-64 star, toner of mine. You can get numerous different looks of the toning. I tilted it so as to try to get the most colors to show up. The reverse is almost proof like.




Since it's tilted, some of it is a bit out of focus.

 

Lovely......just lovely.