Any Tips for Taking Better Photos of Coins?

Discussion in 'Coin Chat' started by *coins, Apr 12, 2018.

  1. *coins

    *coins Well-Known Member

    I've always struggled with taking photos of coins. I have a Nikon D3100 w/18-55mm lens that I am using because it takes better photos than my cheap digital camera. Here is a photo of a 1979 SBA dollar. Any tips for how this could be better?
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  3. furryfrog02

    furryfrog02 Well-Known Member

    Do you have a cellphone? I have an iphone 6 and it takes great pictures. Perhaps you should give yours a try.
     
  4. paddyman98

    paddyman98 I'm a professional expert in specializing! Supporter

    Yes.. Try a dark background. Black is best.
     
    Bud1 Wilson, Two Dogs and JCro57 like this.
  5. cpm9ball

    cpm9ball CANNOT RE-MEMBER

    What are you using for a light source?

    Chris
     
  6. BooksB4Coins

    BooksB4Coins Newbieus Sempiterna

    While equipment can certainly play a part, in photography the quality of the results have more to do with the photographer. There have been many past threads on this subject that may be of interest to you and are certainly worth searching out.

    In the meantime, exactly what do you wish to accomplish with your coin photography? Detailed closeups, quality whole-coin shots, or...?
     
  7. V. Kurt Bellman

    V. Kurt Bellman Yes, I'm blunt! Get over your "feeeeelings".

  8. *coins

    *coins Well-Known Member

    Sorry, I thought I had missed something. I would like to take close-ups better. An example would be of the mintmark of a 1981-S type 2 dollar coin.
     
    LA_Geezer likes this.
  9. BooksB4Coins

    BooksB4Coins Newbieus Sempiterna

    You've never shot coins with film, Kurt?
     
  10. V. Kurt Bellman

    V. Kurt Bellman Yes, I'm blunt! Get over your "feeeeelings".

    Only several hundred Kodachrome slides. But not this Daylight 64 stuff. I used the Type A 40 speed emulsion.

    Alas, Kodachrome has ceased to exist. Take THAT, Paul Simon.
     
    ominus1 likes this.
  11. BooksB4Coins

    BooksB4Coins Newbieus Sempiterna

    Give it a few more years and maybe Nikon will give old Paul a double whammy. ;)
     
  12. BooksB4Coins

    BooksB4Coins Newbieus Sempiterna

    Then you're going to want to find a way to get closer than your kit lens will allow as-is. There are many different paths/options to achieve this, so you're going to have to decide how you want to go about it, by which I mean how much money and effort are you willing to invest into this? Do you want pro-level quality of simply passable images?
     
  13. Beefer518

    Beefer518 Well-Known Member

    Your 18-55mm lens is a decent consumer lens, but if you really want to get close, you need either a macro lens, a reverse lens set-up, or an enlarger lens with bellows on a copy stand, or a digital microscope.

    I shoot Canon, and was using a Canon 100mm Macro, but then I tried a Nikon 100 (or is it 105mm), and I like the Nikon better - no CA with the Nikon.

    Once you decide on a lens, then you'll be asking about lighting. The more light, the better. ;)
     
    Two Dogs likes this.
  14. V. Kurt Bellman

    V. Kurt Bellman Yes, I'm blunt! Get over your "feeeeelings".

    I'm still struggling to come up with a coin photography niche in my new place that my demon-spawn cat won't destroy.
     
  15. Beefer518

    Beefer518 Well-Known Member

    You can pick up the Nikon Macro, manual focus lens for relatively cheap, and it will (should) work without an adapter on your camera.
     
  16. Dave M

    Dave M Francophiliac

    Tripod, macro lens, two lights, black background, white balance, focus.
     
  17. *coins

    *coins Well-Known Member

    Ok, so a regular 100mm Nikon lens will not work? It has to say 'macro' on it?
     
  18. BooksB4Coins

    BooksB4Coins Newbieus Sempiterna

    Nikon calls macro "micro".

    Which 100mm Nikkor are you referring to?
     
  19. BooksB4Coins

    BooksB4Coins Newbieus Sempiterna

    If the OP wanted to take the macro route and wanted AF, he needs to understand that his camera is very limited as to the lenses that will work with it in this capacity. Of course AF shouldn't be viewed as necessary for such purposes, but could come into play if he wished to use the lens for other things.

    There are other possibilities than those mentioned, but all depends on what he's willing to do and spend.
     
  20. Dave M

    Dave M Francophiliac

    You want something that will focus down to about a foot way from the subject. Macro, Micro, zippidyo, whatever they want to call it. Just check the specs on the lens.
     
  21. *coins

    *coins Well-Known Member

    Ok, here is what I have set up at the moment and what I used for the above photo. I have the coin as close to the camera as possible, and that usually still isn't close enough. I then put it on my computer, and crop it as needed. The one is of it before it is cropped. The coin in the photos is a 1990-D Lincoln that has a weakly stuck date. I did try cropping everything except the date out after taking the photo, but it is very blurry and unclear.
     
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