I don't have a working camera, but I have a Canon scanner that works o.k. with flat coins, but not with high relief coins. Now I was told another type of scanner could do the trick, an Epson scanner. Would that be a good idea? The cheapest I see for sale costs 90 dollars (here in Europe). I hope somebody can help.
Ditch the scanner and purchase a cheap (Canon) 'point and shoot' camera with macro capabilities. Scanners suck.......
Well, I have a 2006 Leica, but it doesn't work at the moment, and with a camera you have to contrive a device for putting the coin on a grey background on 7.683 inch from the lens opening on a cloudy day with the light on 2 o'clock to get a sharp picture. Or am I seeing too many bears?
It's really quite simple......scanners don't capture what you want to see in a coin photograph. Too flat and too grainy and too lacking in definition. Heck, a camera phone will do you better.........
I have a camera phone, that's not too bad, but you need a real steady hand for that. Here's a pic I made with the camera phone.
I have a flatbed that I use for paper and for bulk copper coins. You lose a lot of color, depth, and luster, but for quick bulk pics it's okay. Camera is the best though.
Gotta agree with you, scanners suck more than a Hoover Vacuum! If I see a scanned coin for sale on ebay, I'll move on. just sayin' scanners are bad for business. jmho
If all you want to do is define the physical details of a coin, an average inexpensive scanner will do nicely. If you want to post coins for grade opinions, a scanner simply will not do it. They cannot show the coin as it is in-hand. No luster, improper color, no chance at considering the originality of the surfaces. That said, I wholeheartedly recommend scanners for folks who have lower-end cameras that can't quite get it done for coin imaging. They can still usually get color and luster close enough, and in conjunction with a second set of scanned images of the same coin, you can usually work around the limitations of both and come up with a pretty decent opinion of what you're looking at.
I was set on the scanner for a long time, but once I finally got someone decent with the digital camera I have used it ever since. The scanner sits and gathers dust.
Uhh right, the scanner image may not accurately represent what the coin looks like in hand, but in this case it looks a lot better.
