Video failure

I'm taking a break from attempting to join the video generation. After seeing some big dealers posted videos of coins that made it easier to see details 'in hand' I wanted to see if I could make a video without employing a hand model. To do this, I constructed a rocking platform that would make it possible to tilt the coin back and forth hoping to get light play on the surfaces. My lighting turned out to be too flat to show sparkle and my rocking mechanism was jerky. I first tried it with my full frame DSLR (Canon RP) but even at f/22 a very small amount of the coin was in focus at any time so I switched to a phone which gave overall poor but more even resolution (as expected from a phone sensor). I was hoping to make a video record of my ten favorite coins of all time but decided that video is not adding anything to the mix. Is anyone else working on something like this? My last (and last for a while anyway) attempt is below. Lets face it: I am not a videographer and too lazy to put in the work needed to become one.

 

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I think that is better than a still image. Like you, I am too lazy to put much effort into videography. My static imagery is bad enough.

 

The only thing I like about videos are that they can show the thickness of the coin. Beyond that, I don't find much value in them
Not to mention, I can barely take a decent coin picture. I can only imagine how awful my videos would be!

 

I must say that I appreciate the self-depreciation routine, Gentlemen.

I don’t think it was so bad. I’m not sure why it was a goal to not have fingers in the frame, though.
I actually like to see big hands holding small coins, gently shaking in the effort to make the coin as viewable as possible. It looks human.

 

Very interesting attempt... I tried a few ways.. and I really was not as successful as you. I haven't tried recently.

-stationary coin and camera - moving the light only
-stationary coin and light - moving the camera only
-stationary camera and light - moving the coin only

The only one that worked for me (and seems to be the standard for dealers like HJB) is the third option. But as you say - I find the hand very distracting - unless you are the HJB lady.

My attempts to remove the hand included feeling like a fool as I placed some felt and a coin on a ping pong paddle and tried to move it around to catch the light. The results were as you would expect. The fingers can quickly make dramatic changes to the angle and micro corrections to make the most use of the light.
I would love to see any other attempts and hear other ideas.

Being such a poor photographer I was really hoping that quick little videos would help show my coins as they really are... but I am just as bad with video it seems.
However in some cases I was able to get a fairly good screen shot from my video to make an acceptable image:

My photography attempt (terrible):


My in-hand shaky video:



My screen grab from my video - better .. at least shows a more realistic representation of the coin.



Then try editing out the hand... I don't know... don't have an answer yet..

 

Yet most collectors at shows ask to see a coin and tilt it in their hands before purchasing.

A good video can reveal luster in great coins. It can make visible details that only show up from a particular angle in poor coins.

 

Personally, I like the hands holding the coin.

Although, seeing a coin without hands or props give it a "clean" look, I rely on the human touch. Hands are very personal, links a lot of subliminal information and cues to the mind. They give an intimate perspective:

- Coins were / are transacted by hand from human to human.
- Seeing in-hand gives a relative scale for size. Let's the mind see "how big or small the coin is."
- You can get a visual effect of the "heft" of the coin. How heavy it is as you visually see it in hand.
- Seams, edges, thickness can be compared when shown in-hand.

Isn't this why many of the Ancient Collectors reject having Ancient Coins slabbed?

 

I do like to see them in hand, especially when purchasing, since it shows relative size and heft. My coin pictures though, I like them to be standalone.

 

Samsung phones have an annoying "Beauty Mode" for selfies. It smooths skin and probably does other stuff as well. I wonder how hard it would be to produce a filter that does something similar with hands, magically removing hangnails and fingernail dirt?

 

There are many good points made in this thread. I'd like to devise a smoothly moving platform that would mimic the in-hand motions but agree that having fingers in the shot lends scale and other less tangible information.

Critique of Doug's video and method: because of the relatively large size of the platform (a cut in half sports ball of some sort, if I recall), the tilt also causes the coin to move off-center, and your camera didn't track the focusing well.

A smaller diameter of the ball or platform would help the centering. Perhaps a metal ball joint of some sort, with a flat platform on top?

Here are a couple of my in-hand videos.

There are too many fingers in this Philip II tet video but it did allow for better control of the coin. This video is a good example of how dynamic imaging can convey the toning and iridescence better than a still image.



This one-handed video looks a bit nicer but I didn't move the coin around enough. Still, the video certainly shows the relief better than a single still image.



Bronze coins don't benefit as much as silver but it still gives good information and allows raised areas to be seen more clearly. I should have moved the coin around more in this video.



I take back what I said about bronze coins not benefiting as much as silver. Maybe they benefit more. Bronze coins with dark or shiny patinas pose a dilemma when shooting stills: do you take a picture of the reflections, which often shows the devices more clearly, or do you use indirect light to more accurately show the color, sacrificing device detail? With a video you can show both.

 

I've tried it without being handheld and never got anything acceptable to me, so I tried it again handheld, and I think that's the way to go. Holding a coin allows a lot more movement, and quick subtle changes, and it's not the same when you're simply rotating a platform of some kind. Like others, I also like the idea of showing the coin in hand. The cheesy music is to distract from visual shortcomings

 

I agree with desire not to have hands in the video. Even though it provides scale and allows control it seems to me at least to be a bit distracting.

I was at one point considering how best to make a platform that rotates 360 degrees at a constant speed. Then I could find a way to place the coin upright 90 degrees to the platform. Set a camera at a stationary position and rotate the coin. The video could then be looped to make it look seamless. I haven’t put more into it than just the thought though.

This is how many sites photograph diamonds.

 

Cool Doug I was trying to make a decent video yesterday with my latest post. I used my phone and just placed myself in a well lighted place at my dinner table think it worked quite well. I like videos as you can see more of the coin. A picture can be heavily edited or even manipulated, videos can of course also but it gives a more true representation imho. I also agree it's prefereable with not having hands in video so will try some ideas I have.

 

I like the music!

 

An old discussion board buddy from the ebay board used to use a caliper that he clad in black electricians tape, with a black background. That worked pretty well.

 

We've got this massage ball floating around the house and that is pretty much a ball and socket joint or a single ball bearing. Using this as the base instead of a staticly attached half-ball would allow you to move the lower part right, left, up, or down instead and keep the top part from moving and centered on the coin.

https://staminafitness.com/handheld-massage-roller/

 

I made an attempt to show all sides of my steelyard scales. Like @Clavdivs I attempted several combinations of moving scale, camera and light.

My best result was holding my phone, using sun light (an option only a few hours per day) and moving the scale. I think I will try a Lazy Susan next.

Athena and Emptess Byzantine steelyard scale weights - YouTube

 

My experience with the Harlan J. Berk videos leads me to believe that coin videos can be a very helpful supplement to still photos, but not a replacement. Sometimes I like just to zoom in on and closely examine a particular part of a coin, and want it to hold still while I'm doing so!

I don't find hands per se distracting. What I do find extremely distracting, and actually had to complain about in the ancient coins Facebook group I belong to, is many people's failure to make sure that they've had a manicure -- or, in current circumstances, that their nails are at least clean and trimmed -- before shooting such videos. There's nothing more distracting, and more likely to be a literal turn-off, than long, dirty fingernails, some with alarming hangnails at the corners. Ugh. Please, guys!

 

I’ve got climbers hands with guitar player fingernails.... They look like they’ve got a multiple personality disorder.
I’ve better go and find that caliper and electricians tape.

 

My comment wasn't intended as a criticism of your hands; I didn't notice them in your photos!