Photographing My Coins & Not Happy with What I Did

Discussion in 'Coin Chat' started by kanga, Jun 9, 2020.

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  1. Beefer518

    Beefer518 Well-Known Member

    Start here
     
    Beefer518, Jun 14, 2020
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  3. ldhair

    ldhair Clean Supporter

    I use a Sigma 150 macro. It gives me lots of room to work and still have 1:1
    A lot of folks try to get the lens too close to the coin and have problems with focus and lighting. I have about 14 inches of room to play with the lighting.
    Image_0173.JPG Image_01252.JPG Image_05672.JPG 1860-s-10c-r.jpg
     
    ldhair, Jun 14, 2020
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  4. expat

    expat Remember you are unique, just like everyone else Supporter

    @Beefer518 thanks. Downloading the software to my computer now so it recognises the camera and USB connection.
     
    expat, Jun 14, 2020
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  5. geekpryde

    geekpryde Husband and Father Moderator

    He listed a macro lens. Micro is what Nikon calls macro, just to keep it interesting. :bag:

    Definitely increasing the f-stop would help however you would be even better off to look up that specific lens and find the ideal tack sharp f-stop range. The sharpest f-stop varies from lens to lens.
     
    geekpryde, Jun 23, 2020
    #44 + Quote Reply
  6. geekpryde

    geekpryde Husband and Father Moderator

    1,000%, yes. But you didn't tell the OP how to do this.

    Many years ago another CT member told me to use a flat mirror. Works absolute wonders and only take seconds. Dramatically improved my coin photography.

    Paragraph from my website which describes the method. OP I hope this helps.

    Set up the camera on the tripod to shoot directly down onto the surface of the coin. There is no need to exactly level the Tripod, but it doesn't hurt. However, It is critical to level the camera on the ball-head by setting the flat mirror on the table as if it were the coin. Manually set the focus point of the camera to the exact center-point. Move the whole camera on the ball head until the lens aperture opening reflected back from the mirror is shown through the viewfinder to be directly over the selected center focus point, lock the camera in place and set aside the mirror.
     
    geekpryde, Jun 23, 2020
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  7. expat

    expat Remember you are unique, just like everyone else Supporter

    Is it possible to connect a DSLR camera and computer to see on the larger screen what you see through the viewfinder, live as it were, before you take the shot?
     
    expat, Jun 24, 2020
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  8. Denis Richard

    Denis Richard Well-Known Member

    I've never tried that. What a cool idea. I use bubble levels for the camera and table top but you know I'll be trying the mirror thing today. Thanks for the tip.
     
    Denis Richard, Jun 24, 2020
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  9. Denis Richard

    Denis Richard Well-Known Member

    It certainly is. It's called tethering your camera. You need software and a cable or wireless connection. I use Control my Nikon, but there are several choices. Word of warning; not all models of DSLR are made for this. Check your manual or the cameras web page first to see if your camera is compatible.
     
    Denis Richard, Jun 24, 2020
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  10. expat

    expat Remember you are unique, just like everyone else Supporter

    Thankyou, sorry for the delay in acknowledging your reply. I posted before I left for work this morning (I am in Spain). I will look into this, however it is an older version camera (Sony a-330 DSLR) so i might be disappointed but it does have ports for USB and HDMI cables
     
    expat, Jun 24, 2020
    #49 + Quote Reply
  11. geekpryde

    geekpryde Husband and Father Moderator

    Yes, tethering is extremely helpful when shooting static things in a studio-like environment. Coins are a perfect example. The camera doesn't need to move, and the coins don't move during the shot. In fact, I wouldn't even photograph coins without tethering, it would be far too tedious without it if you are shooting more than a few coins at once.
     
    geekpryde, Jun 24, 2020
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  12. Publius2

    Publius2 Well-Known Member

    I use digiCamControl to tether my Nikon D610 and it works just fine. It's a free download but the website does not indicate that it supports your Sony a-330.

    http://digicamcontrol.com/cameras

    You could always contact them or just download it and try it.

    I am reasonably sure that there are other free tethering software programs out there that might work with your Sony, you'll just have to go surfing unless someone here can suggest something.
     
    Publius2, Jun 24, 2020
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  13. Denis Richard

    Denis Richard Well-Known Member

    If your camera is compatible, you can tether through Lightroom, if you have it. I think it’s fairly common. Does it come with Photoshop Elements? I’m not sure. It doesn’t support live view but it does allow you to see the image immediately after shooting. Another plus of Lightroom tether is you can apply a variety of presets to images as they are taken. This can be helpful to correct colour casts or other known issues during shooting. It also has a good set of image editing tools. This will bring your coin photography up a notch. Lightroom is good but it’s not free so I’m sure others here can point you in the direction of free software with similar qualities.
     
    Denis Richard, Jun 24, 2020
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  14. expat

    expat Remember you are unique, just like everyone else Supporter

    Thankyou all for your suggestions. My camera is not supported by any I have researched so far. However, Sony customer support has informed me that new camera models have just been included in their upcoming software release including the a330. It is Sony's own tethering and image editing programme, so I think I will wait for that.
    Thanks
     
    expat, Jun 24, 2020
    #53 + Quote Reply
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