Five dollar gold..learning to photograph coins

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Those are nice photos.

 

The color is a bit off.

 

All of my photos are too yellow. I have tried incandescent and led lights, changing backgrounds etc. Suggestions for improvement s will be warmly received.

 

One suggestion: try shooting from directly overhead.

 

Are you using a camera or a phone?

 

How are you photographing it?
Can you check your white balance against a white or grey card?
Can you adjust white balance after the image is taken ? ==> https://www.cambridgeincolour.com/tutorials/white-balance.htm

Make sure you understand the color of the light source you are using ==> https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explor...-balance-and-color-temperature-digital-images

Learn to use non-direct diffused lighting. Ie you can point a light source(s) at a white piece(s) of paper / display board to bounce the light off of it, which then becomes diffused light which will assist in removing hot spots.

Can go on forever .... but unsure of your starting point.
You could always join a photography forum too and learn more about lighting various subjects. There's also many experts here with various threads.

 

And, if you are using a camera, have you set your "white balance" for the type of lighting you are using......incandescent, fluorescent, etc.?

 

Good Book!

 

You can also look at the settings for the camera on a phone. Normally you have options on choosing macro etc, adjusting white balance to the light you are using and letting more or less light into the aperture. I have a Samsung which has all these options

 

This is really helpful! I will find my white balance and get my hands on that book. Thanks!

 

A little post processing

 

I had the same problem (photos too yellow), especially with silver. I spoke with a few coin dealers who take very good photos. The result was that I had to go back to the basics of experimenting with different light sources, different background colors and most of all, different settings on my camera. Each of these variables has an effect on the outcome of the photo and you won't have a "one size fits all" answer for gold, silver and copper coins. I found that the one adjustment that really helped was the one in the cameral where I can adjust the temperature setting of the light.

 

It's not "experimenting",
But it's about learning about
(a) different light sources "temperature colors" - and especially if you are mixing them such as sunlight and a lamp.
(b) different backgrounds - use white, black or grey if you can
(c) learning about your camera.

We still don't know what kind of camera or light sources you are using.

 

You need to have a dominant light source to help white balance.
That's why cameras have flashes. But then one needs to control the light from a flash, and that is normally done with off-camera lighting.

For instance,
in my bathroom I have 2 LED lights
They are of different colors which is quite obvious when you look at it.

When you add sunlight to the mix the bathroom now has THREE independent colors to the light. This would throw off WhiteBalance.



Here are 2 boxes of light bulbs.
Notice the TWO Different "Light Appearance"
one is 5000K
the other is 2700K
and sunlight is normally about 5000 Kelvin but can vary greatly

So I'm mixing lighting with these two.



https://www.lightingdesignlab.com/r...icles-lighting-fundamentals/color-temperature

 

The best advice I received which worked, was to "experiment." Please check your dictionary, I'm not sure why you don't like that word. Once I had satisfactory results from my experiments, I then used those results as they applied to silver or gold coins. A couple conversations with Mike @ ToughCoins really helped me.

 

These are really helpful suggestions. I was Not aware of a white balance function but I will look for it. I have some stiff white paper that I can use to diffuse light. I will pay attention to the light appearance characteristics of the led bulbs I use. I hope to have some improved photos to show off.
That fine book is out of print so I am looking for something similar.

 

I use my phone camera and a microscope with digital camera.
I have been learning and experimenting for four or five months. Only recently felt confident enough to start posting.

 

You give me a good idea. I have never tried natural light. I will take some coins outside and give it a try!.I do have a tripod for the phone.

 

If it's a bright day put yourself between the sun and the coin.
There's enough light bouncing around for a proper exposure. Otherwise you'll get a lot of glare & reflections and hot spots.
Of course if you are standing next to a colored wall you'll get color contamination => https://petapixel.com/2018/02/28/problem-color-contamination-photography/


here's another more overall white balance, color web page ==> https://petapixel.com/2018/02/28/problem-color-contamination-photography/