It's better but I agree- probably not worth the time at this juncture, at least as a standalone. You'll still need traditional obverse and reverse shots.
Are you shadowing the black so less light hits it? The less light that hits white, the blacker it gets. I suppose you might cut down by using a blacker base but it is easier to keep the light off it. This is not my current setup but it shows the idea. Replacing the skinny tube with a plastic flowerpot lessened internal bouce but is hard to show in a photo. H below replaced G above. Adding a top J with hole a little larger than the coin helps when using light straight down from the ringlight.
No, I'm not . I just haven't gotten around to that but perhaps I should at least try placing an inside-blackened tube around the post. Here's my cheap homemade setup:
Even placing something right of your movable dowel stand so the was no shadow from the dowel might help enough to save buying a liquid black hole. Try a dark card about 1/2" shorter than the dowel. That should give you a tone like you show in the photo on the left of the stand. A tube would be better but more work. If you have a shed full of various size black plastic disposable flower pots from buying things at the garden center, you may be set. Cut out the bottom as needed. Don't buy thirty from Amazon. Find a gardener/neighbor.
You did notice this at the Surrey Nanosystems description of Vantablack S-VIS, didn't you: "The fine nanometre-sized optical cavities that make Vantablack S-VIS so dark mean it cannot be used in environments open to direct contact and mechanical abrasion. It needs to be protected from accidental touching, for example behind or inside a component, or situated where contact is avoided." If this is to be used as a background, how do you suspend your coin without putting the background in jeopardy? BTW I have been having a lot of luck with black velvet and a clean toothbrush. The coin lies directly on the velvet and even sinks into the fabric a bit for total background isolation - no shadowing. The fabric lies on a metal plate which is used for positioning. The surface is brushed between removal and repositioning of the coin. Very consistent and reliable.
