I would like to take "good" (loaded word, I know) photos of my coins. Ideally, all coins would be raw, not encased in anything. That would enable me to get the best shots, obviously. Realistically, I have a number of slabbed coins (so I'll have to shoot through the slabs' plastic), about 60 coins in my Dansco 7070 (which I could take out and shoot raw), and about 275 coins in cardboard 2x2s. For you coin photographers out there: What would you do with those 275 raw coins in cardboard 2x2s? Do you take all of them out, shoot them, then put them in new 2x2s? Or, do you shoot through the plastic of the 2x2 and be done?
Agree. Unlike a slab, the plastic in a 2x2 is rippled and wavy. It will introduce unmanageable hotspots where your lights catch a ripple and shoot right up into the lens. Plus, 300 2x2’s are pretty inexpensive. Get a good stapler that presses the staples flat on both sides. You don’t want your new holders to snag or scratch an adjacent coin when sliding into the box. Look for “flat clinch”, as in this example: Amazon Basics Office Heavy Duty Stapler, Flat Clinch, Effortless, 40 Sheet Capacity, 1000 Staples
I say, let them free for their photo shoot. Then simply put them back and tape, not staple, them back.
Are you concerned about whether the adhesive on the tape might react with the coin? Any reactants in the stickum will be trapped in close quarters with the coin for a long time. I think folks trust staples because they squeeze the plastic lining tight for the width of the staple, and putting one one each side of the coin creates a really good seal against air circulation. I don’t have any 2x2’s but I would be concerned about tape. There are probably a lot of collectors who could tell me whether to worry about it or not. Or you could go with flips instead. It might be easier.
Thanks for the reply. I kind of figured this was going to be the standard response from most people. Was wondering if people had success shooting thru the cardboard 2x2 plastic. Yeah, 2x2's don't cost that much, that's true. I wouldn't want to try to remove staples from and preserve 275 2x2s, and try to put new staples in the same holes. I wouldn't want to see that. And, I already do use a flat clinch stapler. That's the only way to go.
My question would be, is it worth photographing them all? Honestly I have a fantastic set up and can get quality pictures of all I want. That being said, I have only photographed a portion of the collection. For me stuff falls into categories and I don't feel obligated to photograph everything. You have to decide how many image files you want to edit, label and file. 275 front and back becomes 550. That's a lot of time.
I agree with this. If you want to just have a record of everything, put the 275 in groups and take one picture of each side for the group in the 2x2s. It will do the job for record keeping. You can set aside the nicer coins and take those out of the 2x2s to photo individually.
Is it worth it? Well, for me, maybe it is. Maybe some of the coins I only shoot with my phone. I'd like better photos of my nicer coins. I want to put pics of all of my coins into my coin software. I want to become a good coin photographer, so, since I'm retired, this would be good practice! To be honest, probably 90% of my collection isn't worth the effort of taking "professional-style" photos with my DLSR and copy stand. But, I'd like to get good pics anyway, whether using the phone or the camera setup.
It depends on why I'm photographing the coin. If it's to document it for insurance purposes or to post here, I typically just shoot through the 2x2's. If it's to print or list for sale, I take it out of the 2x2. I'm out of 2x2's, so any coin I take out ends up in a mylar flip.
Just looking back through my bookmarks and found a thread here that might help out: https://www.cointalk.com/threads/coin-photography-lens-commentary-using-nikon-d7000.247641/
