Photographing silver coins.

I have a Canon PowerShot SX200iS ($70 second-hand, eBay), mounted on a camera stand ($14 eBay). The lamp is a battery/mains powered LED 'ring' light (with 3x magnifier removed) with two settings low/high ($6 eBay). The coin sits on blue-tak on top of a CD spindle that pokes through a piece of black velvet, and rests on 3x VHS cases (to get the coin high enough to use the 'Macro' setting on the camera).
A simple set-up, and I am happy with the result. (Note: I have turned the set-up sideways on the desk to take the photograph for you.)

The following photo was taken with my humble photo set-up, without any 'photo-shopping' afterwards. What you see is what you get. I am happy with the result.

Camera stand - http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Lightnin...147749?hash=item5d51c9f225:g:PQIAAOSwcF9UYDG2

LED Light - http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Flexible...869029?hash=item2ec7a361e5:g:hIwAAOxyFIFSAnVj

 

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Nice job, TC! I like that camera stand and might replace my homemade copy stand with this one.

Note that you may find the colors off, particularly with bronze coins, due to the color of the LED lights.

 

@>TIF

You are absolutely right so I use a 'flouro' light box ($51.50 eBay) for my bronze coins and I shoot through the hole in the top, (Having removed the 'grey card' in the photo).

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Professional-1x-LED-Studio-LED-Photo-Light-Lighting-Box-Softbox-Portable-Desktop/142020522811?_trksid=p2045573.c100643.m3226&_trkparms=aid=555017&algo=PL.CASSINI&ao=1&asc=20160706105314&meid=2171d0300bcb455ebe7ef43199148ad9&pid=100643&rk=1&rkt=1&

P.S. My photos will never be as good as Doug's, but I don't have a background in photography to call on, so this will do me , for now.

 

Rube Goldberg would be proud of you.

 

I like the set-up. I may need to follow your example...

 

That is a really nice photo! We would have killed to get photos like that with such a reasonably priced set up before digital cameras.

That is a nice coin too...

John

 

Nice setup! Wow, very impressed with the equipment, but the pic is spectacular!

 

that's a cool set up TC, i like you "lightbox" as well. the picture looks NICE.

 

I think you are doing well. The first Gordian could be improved in postprocessing by adding just a bit of yellow and lowering the overall saturation to make the blue less glaring. Of course our computers may not be showing the same thing so you may not like what I do and you may not be seeing what I see.


I'm not fond of the idea of the florescent straight tubes which I am not aware of coming in high color index (CRI) models and may come to problems with some patina colors. LED rings come better and less but usually are better than straight tubes. Some twist bulbs are excellent.

I suggest you follow the following steps from here:

1. Be proud of what you have accomplished so far.
2. Play around with little changes that make the pictures worse and be aware when one of these little changes makes it better.
3. Don't think of postprocessing as a sin. In many cases, it is necessary to make little changes to make better into best.
4. Some coins are easier to shoot than others. Either buy coins you can photograph or don't be too hard on yourself when you find a coin that does not want to play.
5. Share your work here. You might just inspire some others here to get off their couches and make CT a prettier place.

 

Thats a pretty cool setup. Not saying anything bad about anybody's pictures but sometimes I find there is too much light. This usually makes the coin seems brighter, I know that brings out the details but for me it doesn't represent the coin. Without seeing the actual coin, we don't know if thats how the coin actually looks like. So many times when I buy coins online, the image is brighter than the actual coin.

 

Coins are not bright. They reflect the light that falls on them. Take your coins outside on a sunny day and they look different than they do under a 40 watt bulb. I suggest collectors invent in a good light for coin viewing.

 

Along with learned professionals having appreciable credentials!!

I don't know about others, but I'm humbled, where my associates would normally express "Oh Yeah"!!

Great Job!!

 

LOL, I love #5! Well said!

 

How could it get any prettier what with you and me here already.

 

Right and thats the problem, some sellers will blast the coin with so much light. If the picture looks brighter than the coin in actual sunlight then its not representing how the coin actually looks. Thats part of the reason why I always take my own pictures after I receive a coin.

 

@>Doug
By doing this you have lowered the light 'glare' and introduced more colour. Your 'result' is more like the coin 'in hand' than mine, (without you actually seeing the coin - neat trick). Congrats. I will keep your comments in mind.

I have the cardboard centre tube of a toilet roll cut and rolled 'tighter' and fed onto the flouro tube to 'disperse' the white light, in the flouro box. This reduces the glare and allows more natural colours to be seen in the resulting photos.

 

Yah, I find photography totally frustrating and my results are weak ...




*FAIL* .... ummm, maybe I'm not pedaling fast enough?

 

Rube Goldberg just called and told me you are cool! RG is right.

 

I am trying to find the same products here in the U.S. by following your links, and it is not as easy as you might think!

But my results are poor, too, and inconsistent, so a simple setup would be great.

If you get the light box with LEDs instead of fluorescent, I wonder, is it easy to get the right white balance with copper coins? I have seen some that say they have a daylight spectrum. Anyone try this?

 

I just got the same USB microscope. Have you tried putting some white sheets of paper standing around the coin to kick more light onto the surface?

The camera seems to be calibrated to the built-in LED's so if that color temperature is not matched by your primary light source, you may have to fix it in post-processing.