I am not an expert coin photographer, and I have no sophisticated equipment with which to take coin photos. I just use a lamp and a Canon PowerShot A2500 camera. I’ve been experimenting by placing the lamp at different distances from the coin, and now I am experimenting by alternating between 100-watt 5000k and 2700k bulbs. The 2700k bulbs seem to work better for bronze coins and the 5000k bulbs seem to work better for silver coins. Any suggestions?
No, but i will be curious to see how things go. I am so new at coin photography myself some of my pics. have to be dipped in development solution. James
Also, try different background colors with different colored coinage. It’ll help set off a coin. Object id to have some fun with photography. Seems you may be on that path already.
I like warm (2700K) bulbs for general illumination, but I had better photographic results with cool (5000K) bulbs. You can fiddle with color balance in the camera or in your post-processing software, but cool white gives a more even signal across all three colors (red, green, blue) in your camera's sensor. On the other hand, I mostly was not shooting copper or bronze. If most of the interesting detail is in the red end of the spectrum, warm bulbs might well be a better choice. Experiment! And don't forget to try incandescent bulbs and direct or indirect sunlight as well, if they're available.
Lighting is key. Bulb choice is the correct call. LEDs are convenient but difficult to work with. But they take up less space which at present for me is essential. The backing color is also pretty key. In my examples, chartreuse was not a good choice. Blue or black were a better choice. Light reflecting off a color will confuse the camera especially on my phone. my objective with the box was to play around with with a low cost setup. All materials except the LED light were packaging materials. I used my old iPhone 5 to take the pictures. But it eventually gave up on me. Now I’m going to have to reset the optimal focal length for my iPhone 13.
i am experimenting with using a bright light. Not trying to steal thread but would l ike to see if this is a good light to use.
Thanks for feedback. i am in the VERY early days of coin photography so there is no other direction BUT up. LOL James
Watching this thread and eating popcorn.........coin photography frustrates me to no end. And I too, have been using the Canon Powershot.
With the advancements of cell phone cameras, it's all you really need in my opinion. Also, Microscopes are a waste of time for Pics. in my experience. A good editing program helps also. ( I use PhotoScape X or LunaPic). Both FREE!
I agree Sal. Unless you’re trying to build a photo album. Time and investment are needed. A nice camera and setup.
I agree that you can get fairly decent photos with just your cell phone and decent photo editing software. Certainly better than most people present on ebay. All depends on what you want out of it. If you want decent, you're all set - prop up the phone on a cup or a few books (don't hand-hold the phone). Still have to work on decent lighting. Set the phone to timer. Focus and take the shot. Edit in software as needed. If you have "special" coins that you want more professional-looking photos (like you see from some of the people here, or from the TPG/Auction companies), a better camera and lens with good macro capabilities is more optimal. Then, you might want to invest in a copy stand, better light fixtures, backgrounds depending on coin, etc. A good book to read and learn from is "Numismatic Photography", by Mark Goodman. So, what do other people use for Free photo editing software? I don't want to spend the money on Photoshop, so am looking round at free software. @SensibleSal66, I'll be looking at the two that you suggested. I do also have Photos, Paint, Paint.net, IrfanView, and GIMP (GIMP I haven't used much yet, due to learning curve and laziness).
