Coin photo skills

When it comes to taking photos of coins, i am far from a beginner... meaning i got a lot of work to go before i can even consider myself a beginner

i would like your thoughts on this coin picture ..


too much light, not enough ... anything.

I like how the pics come out with a camera so much better then scanning them! Let me know what you think, and what i could change to make the image better

Thanks!

 

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try to fill as much of the screen you can with the coin.

 

Your lighting does not show the fields very well and the devices have hot spots. Try moving your light(s) up at a higher angle (closer to the camera).

 

That's a good one ! We should form a club... "The Not Ready for Prime Time Photographers" !

Here's one of my experiments... everything black except the coin. Background, slab, everything. That way the vast majority if the light entering the aperature is from the coin itself, and bright areas around the coin have less effect on the coin's image. Good cameras give weight to whatever is in the center.

I use black construction paper to cover up slabs, especially white NGC slabs.

This is VERY important and successful on dark coins i.e. early copper.

 

Well . . . I know almost nothing about photography, but I have opinions about what's pleasing to the eye (or, at least my eye) . . . and my first thought is that a silver coin on an almost silvery-white background doesn't show enough contrast. Perhaps it'd look better on a dark blue? I dunno . . .

 

Nice picture Jon, Your fields look a little dark, maybe try putting the coin on a more contrast background color. something dark perhaps.

 

I agree with the others as using a darker background for your coin. This looks like a photoshop background but it's too light taking away from the coin. Also it looks as tho' your coin was taken at an angle due to it being in focus on the bottom but out of focus at the top of the coin. Not a bad picture really, maybe a little more adjustment to your lighting. This will help take out some of the bright spots on the coin. As anyone knows who take a lot of coin pics, it takes many shots to get to the one you will like.

 

thanks folks

it does seem that the concensus is to use a black background. I will try that tommorrow. The background that is there is not PS but actually a piece of plexiglass covered with a translucent 'tack paper' if thats what its called. They used to use the stuff for the bottoms of cabinet drawers and such in the old days

I will post another pic with the modifications tomorrow.. its a bit late now, and the wife would kill me if i turned on the light box

 

I feel like my photography skills are getting worse as i get older.

Ruben

 

Maybe it's the eyesight ;-) . . . I find reading mintmarks completely impossible without a decent magnifier . . . much easier to show the coin to my 13 yo daughter, who can read it no problem!

 

Most important information about photos yet. I use the top of my Bar-B-Que grill. Of course not when in use.

 

Here is another tip I got a long time ago from a friend that owns a photo studio. If your using a digital camera, and today most do, get the highest capacity card you can afford. Take as many Pictures of a subject as you can. Use a standard cheap photo program and go through them all. Delete all the out of focus, to far, wrong lighting, etc. ones. Even if you took 500 photos and ended up with only one or two great ones, don't tell people that. Pretend you do this great work all the time.
One of my cameras, Fuji S7000 holds two cards. Compact Flash and XD. Compact Flash is 4 Gigs, XD is 1 Gig. Together I could take thousands of photos with the camera set on 7 megapixels. At 3 megapixels I could shoot all day long probabaly. And there are even cards that hold more.
When I go to someone's house for anything and take many, many photos I usually end up deleting half or more. No one knows that though.
To take coin photos I do the same thing.

 

That is pretty much my technique

:goofer:

 

Here is the same coin on a black background.

 

Ok, so i have taken a dozen images witht he black background, and i keep getting that yellowish haze ... is that coming from the light bulbs - even though i am using those natural light bulbs?

 

It is the bulbs. Burried in your camera somewhere is a setting for indoor bulbs.

Ruben

 

I would take the photo on a white background and then use photo-editing software (eg. photoshop, gimp etc.) to add the black background.

 

I never thought to do that. That would lessen the yellowing?

Ruben

 

i wouldnt think that would work. If taking the photo with a darker background is so the camera can adjust the light settings only on the coin instead of using the background as well.. then taking the image with a white background and digitaly changing it to black after the shot... well, it just doesnt sound like it would have the same effect.

I changed the settig gon my camera to an incandescent setting. It seems the shot is coming out better then before.. although i still think it has a slight yellowish tint. although that could also be from my staring at the lights through my camera for too long

 

The black background gives a different appearance of the photo but you don't need to include the black background in the actual photo to achieve that effect. I use OTT lights with a copy stand. I then manually adjust the white balance of the camera by using a blank piece of paper. Then I switch to macro mode, zoom in, focus, and shoot. Once I am done, I upload to the computer and edit with photoshop. Here is my latest coin with both the white and black background. The coin has a slightly different appearance but it is the exact same photo.




If you are using incandescent lights, that is what is causing your yellowish tint. You need as white a light source as you can get.