Working on my photography skills

So the toning on this coin is simply amazing. I thought I'd share it here. old white anacs, au55

So glad the owner of these is allowing me to photograph them. I love just looking at these coins and being able to show them as you would see them in hand.

Thanks to the great tips on all the threads and personal messages from robec, I think I'm doing the owner some good by allowing them to have these long after they've sold them.

Critics are welcome too!

 

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The contrast on the one on the right is off Here's some images of the contrast either being to low or to high .
The first image on the top right looks the best to me .

 

Thanks for sharing! and thank the owner for me. Regarding what Rick said, you might also try shielding the coins from direct light via a form of translucent shielding. I used to use piece thin translucent plastic. I know some who have cut out the bottom of a one gallon plastic water container and then cut the top so the camera lens would fit. Placed the light source OUTSIDE the container to eliminate the glare. Just a thought. Please post more.

 

Darkly toned seated in cavernous holders (old ANACS, old NGC) can be tricky. Look at the coin in hand with one eye closed and move it around in the light until you get the best view. Then stop and look at where the lights are relative to the coin and your viewing angle. Try to duplicate this under the camera.

Another thing that may work if you have sufficient bit-depth in the raw images is adjusting the contrast on the image with the glare on it. The glare looks uniform enough that it might be removable that way. The few specks and scratches on the slab will be enhanced, though.

 

As far as the image on the right it was in direct light. I tried messing around with the exposure to make the coin look like it does in great light.

Here's the coin unedited, in direct light with a filter over the light. As you can see it's a long way from where it started in the picture pictures. The image on the left was in light but it wasn't in direct light like the second picture was.

 

Not all the Seated coins were as difficult to do.

 

Here we go so this is how I got the picture on the right in the top post.

I put the light onto he coin like this, then filtered the light.

Any advise on how to get it so the contrast doesn't look off then?

 

Can you post a picture of your setup? It's hard to make specific recommendations without seeing what you're able to do.

 

I really like this coin. Thanks for posting.

 

It appears that your light is emanating from one source, correct? I'd suggest adding more sources, such as two or three lamps positioned randomly around the coin. I usually position my two light sources at 11 & 2 o'clock. I haven't tried three lights yet but will sometime soon in the future.

 

I'll take a pic of my setup shortly.

 

It looks to me like you have the light bulb itself reflecting in the slab. You need the bulb off from the centerline enough so that it's reflection isn't in the slab.

 

This is my moveable setup. Still waiting for the right copy stand to come along.



As far as the light not being over the coin that was the result of the picture on the left. The details look good but it doesn't show the color. Which is why I had the light directly over the coin and then filtered the light. It was the only way I could get all of the color to show.

 

What kind of camera and lens, and how far from the coin is the camera?

 

Yours isn't too different than mine!

 

Canon T3i with a 30-80mm macro lens.
1.3 feet away is what the lens I'm using is.

 

It would be nice to be farther away from the coin if possible, even if it means more cropping. An 80mm lens is a little short for what most people use for coins, but isn't unusable.

Anyway, get a white piece of paper and cut a hole in it so you can jam it on the front of your lens. It'll look like a big, floppy reflector. Then point your lights up at the lens, not at the coin. This will give you even light at a high angle, although a bit diffuse. You might get a really good picture this way. Of course, you might not. Sometimes this works for me, sometimes it's a waste of a piece of paper. There will be some glare on the slab, but it'll be flat and easily corrected in post-processing, assuming the slab is clean.

 

Well, IF they still sell them, try your local camera shop(s) and ask for a light stand. Then create yourself a light diffuser to eliminate the glare. Worked for me for years without any glare issues. In fact, the camera store might even have something to use as a glare protector, never hurts to ask.

 

Um, take the light off the slab. Seriously. The moment you adjust the angle of the lamp sufficiently that it does not directly reflect off of the slab and into the lens, the problem should go away. Switch to two lamps at 10 and 2 o'clock, preferably, so as not to force a single source to light the whole coin sufficiently.

Yes, you're probably already thinking that this will kill the color, and you're right. You hit on the right way to bring out color in a coin - light reflected perpendicularly into the lens - but the wrong technique. This is what axial lighting is for.

 

I like to shoot close ups.
What I do is center the light to the area I'm interested in and then crop that area ..