Buying a camera - photograph coins AND the world?

JasonGaming

So, I would like to buy a new camera setup. Problem is, I am new to coin photography and I would like to take photos of not only coins, but also the world (ex: beach, mountains, etc). I believe I have to buy two different lenses. Not looking for a cheap beginner camera so I have to upgrade to a professional one later. I’m looking for a semi-pro camera with a decent learning curve. I have a budget of around $600. Any advise/sites to read/suggestions would help. Thank you.

FullHorn

Canon - EOS Rebel T7 DSLR Camera with 18-55mm Lens at best buy for 399.99.

Then you can go crazy with different lenses and copy stands and bellows and all sorts of fun later.

The camera and kit lens will get you started down the rabbit hole.

Swampboy

That T7 would be a nice upgrade for my T2i

Get a copystand, a 100mm Canon macro lens and you'd be on your way for just about 1K @JasonGaming
I'm no great shakes with my set up but there's potential there with that rig.

Edit to say these cameras tether to the computer. That is key.

messydesk

Buy an inexpensive DSLR with a kit lens and then add the macro accessories to it -- perhaps a rig from @rmpsrpms or a 100 mm macro and a copy stand. You'll probably want to make sure you can tether the camera to your computer. There may be some budget models that don't support that.

lkeigwin

The camera is the least important element. Any decent D-SLR will do. Buy used. Save money for a good macro lens, at least 100mm. 180mm is ideal.

A copy stand makes everything so much easier. You can screw around with substitutes, like tripods. Eventually you will succumb and swear about all the wasted time and money spent on alternatives.

Lighting is crucial. Here's a good article on it by numismatic photography guru, Mark Goodman:
Coin Photography Lighting Shootout

Your everyday D-SLR will suit you fine for non-coin photography. A simple portrait lens should suffice, like what commonly comes with the camera purchase. Flexible zoom lenses are widely available and not very pricey.
Lance.

1630Boston

@Swampboy said:

Edit to say these cameras tether to the computer. That is key.

I totally agree

Gluggo

I have spent lots of money 💰 on different set ups. Waisted money like it flowed through my pants.
I ended up buying a middle of the road 6ti Cannon. Then I had to have ALL the lens. There goes that hole in my pants. Finally I found this guy! Love his stuff for coin photography. I think he will supply the camera. His price for the camera stand very reasonable and total quality. I have another camera stand 150 bucks total junk.
http://www.macrocoins.com/
I am so happy with his set up. It has a bellows set up with lens. It connects (tethers), right to my lap top so the picture loads directly into the laptop. Ray is a member here. Now I just have to learn how to use the 6ti. Every now and then I will go out and use the camera for other tasks.

Here is my set up. Very happy.

COCollector

Gluggo, thanks for posting.

JasonGaming

Thank you gluggo and fullhorn. I researched around and found the Nikon D5600 was pretty nice. Saw this bundle on eBay for $650 and it comes with two lenses, but just missing a copy stand. Any recommendation on this camera?

ctf_error_coins

I do not like bundles, I buy what I need.

Sorry, I can't Help.

Just my Canon Body cost about 4 K.

SiriusBlack

The majority of the stuff in the bundle is junk you won’t use honestly. I agree with @ErrorsOnCoins Just buy what you need.

Techie comment, I’ll need to verify, but normally the Nikon 5xxx line of cameras requires the lens to have an af-s motor built into it to perform autofocus which that 70-300 in the photo does not have, rendering it a terrible deal.

EDIT: just checked Nikon’s website and as I suspected no that 70-300 lens won’t even autofocus with that camera. I’d consider this kind of package a scam and stay far away from it.

JasonGaming

I really appreciate the advise, thank you. Which 70-300 mm lenses do autofocus with that camera type? @SiriusBlack

ctf_error_coins

Do not buy a 70 - 300 Zoom. IMO.

JasonGaming

Will keep that in mind, thank you. @ErrorsOnCoins

SiriusBlack

You’ll have no use for a 70-300 with coin photography. Now if you want to use the camera for hiking, vacationing, birthday parties etc, then there are a few lenses we can discuss for those purposes, but it would be useless for coins.

JasonGaming

I’d like a lense for vacations and a lense for coins. It looks like my new target camera is the Nikon D7500, so I’m probably going to look for lenses for that. My budget for a camera body is actually probably around $700 and lenses/copy stand/other accessories around $300. Any recommendations for a body around this price would be appreciated.

neildrobertson

I have a ~$600 set-up. I have a Sony A6300 ($300 used) with a bellows (~$30), a Minolta Rokkor-X enlarger lens (~$30), thread adapter ($10), copy stand ($80-100), lights ($50), and an old copy of photoshop elements ($70). That's about $600 dollars total. I have some other lenses and things, but what I listed is what I use the majority of the time. It's not a top of the line set-up, but it gets me 80-90% of the way there. Top of the line would require a full frame camera and a very nice macro lens, which are well over $1000 dollars each. I have a mirrorless camera. DSLRs are 100% not required even though they are recommended nearly 100% of the time. From my point of view the main benefit of DSLR (especially Canon) is their prevalence. The more widely used something is, the easier it will be to get used cameras and peripherals fairly cheaply. Mirrorless can be better especially if you want to take your camera places. One drawback of my camera is that it doesn't support live tethering.

My set-up works well and it produces nice photos. Once you have a set-up that can take sharp, large photos it becomes all about the lighting, which is more technique than cost. These were taken with my $600 set-up.

Raw

Slabbed

Everyone should read this website before spending too much money on photography stuff. It's worth understanding what you are doing. https://www.cambridgeincolour.com/camera-equipment.htm

SiriusBlack

I don't think you're budget will be high enough for a D7500. The body alone new is nearly $900. You have to be careful with Nikon. They will not repair grey market (Non US cameras) regardless of warranty. Usually if you are finding super deals on those bodies on eBay and stuff that is the problem, they are non US market cameras. Nothing wrong with Nikon cameras in general. You might consider the fact that I think the majority of the people here all shoot Canon from what I've noticed. Certainly Nikon make great cameras, but if you start asking a lot of questions here about settings and stuff there might not be as many people familiar with them. Just a thought.

You honestly don't need a camera that high of a level for coin and normal family photos. The D7500 is a mid ranged camera and an awesome one at that, but you could get the job done with a less expensive camera like the D5600 and have some money left to put towards a macro lens. The 105mm Micro lens from Nikon that has been mentioned as a good option for coin photography here is about $900 on its own. Canon has two 100mm macro lenses and they run between $600 and $750 new from a legitimate dealer.

Some in this group have recommended that bellows set up, others have recommended a 100mm or 105mm lens. I don't know anything about the bellows they are using but I will mention that if the bellows is an older manual style bellows, none of these modern lenses are going to be compatible with it because they won't communicated with the camera. The bellows don't have any of the electrical contacts for communication between body and lens. I'm guessing they are talking about different lenses than the factory Canon or Nikon lenses but they'll need to chime in here for you to explain in more depth what they mean.

As others have mentioned, you're going to want to find a camera that allows you to tether the camera to a computer. It's not something I do much of so others here will need to chime in with help on that, but not all models work well at that so it's something to keep in mind when researching.

As for non coin lenses. Most cameras have a standard entry level zoom like an 18-55 or 18-140mm range. They are ok. Not great, not fantastic, but they will get you started and on your way to learning.

Sorry for such a long winded post. I am not a coin photography expert by any means, I'm just starting my own journey in that area. I have been dealing with photography for a couple decades though and happen to work in that field so hopefully I can help a bit on the technical side of things.

JasonGaming

@SiriusBlack I like your long posts. They are very helpful and informational. Now, I’m considering between a D5600 and a T7i. Thanks for your help and everyone else’s help on this thread, I really do appreciate it.

neildrobertson

@SiriusBlack said:
You honestly don't need a camera that high of a level for coin and normal family photos. The D7500 is a mid ranged camera and an awesome one at that, but you could get the job done with a less expensive camera like the D5600 and have some money left to put towards a macro lens. The 105mm Micro lens from Nikon that has been mentioned as a good option for coin photography here is about $900 on its own. Canon has two 100mm macro lenses and they run between $600 and $750 new from a legitimate dealer.

Some in this group have recommended that bellows set up, others have recommended a 100mm or 105mm lens. I don't know anything about the bellows they are using but I will mention that if the bellows is an older manual style bellows, none of these modern lenses are going to be compatible with it because they won't communicated with the camera. The bellows don't have any of the electrical contacts for communication between body and lens. I'm guessing they are talking about different lenses than the factory Canon or Nikon lenses but they'll need to chime in here for you to explain in more depth what they mean.

There are some bellows set-ups and focusing helicoids that allow communication between the camera body and the lens. These tend to be a little more expensive. A lot of us that are using bellows are using old enlarging lens that don't have any focusing ability and have manual aperture adjustment. Those set-ups rely on manual bellows adjustment for focus. Most cameras now will have settings that allow you to use completely manual lenses. On my camera it is just a quick setting adjustment in the menus and is pretty painless.

In the same vein, there are a lot of high quality completely manual macro lenses from eras past that can be used on a wide range of cameras with the proper adapters. Because coin photography is stationary the difficulty of manual focusing and setting an aperture are not a big deal. It's not like real world photography where speed and automation make a very noticable difference. Clunky set-ups are generally less problematic for us since we mount our cameras. That gives us some freedom to pursue some of these more affordable, but still very high quality, options.

You generally do not want to use a bellows with kit or most factory lenses. It's possible that you won't be able to focus or it could make focus distances impossibly close. Many camera lenses can be turned into more of a macro lens by using smaller spacers and helicoids like I mentioned above. Some can be turned into macro lenses by reversing them, but that requires even more expensive adapters. If anyone reads that Cambridge in Colour website I linked, it has tools that can explain (and do calculations for) some of those options I mentioned.

ctf_error_coins

The one thing that I can say about a high-end canon sensor is that when working on post-production, the ton of information in the huge digital file can make pulling a great image from hard to photograph coins doable.

AUandAG

I own a Nikon point and shoot and use for both coins and treks. Here are pics with it. Scenic pics and a couple of coins. I was more than 1/2 mile away when I took the pic of the rock climbers (dau and grandkids).

QCCoinGuy

I would highly recommend the Sony a6000 series mirrorless cameras (2014 model costs a couple hundred used, maybe a bit more). They take fantastic photos, are light and easy to use. For coin photography, I use my a6000 with a 75mm nikkor enlarging lens, some extension tubes, and a helicoid. No copy stand yet, just a cheap tripod. I would like to upgrade to a bellows and copy stand but have not gotten around to it yet.

rawmorgan

My recommendation would be a Panasonic Lumix Series

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1444716-REG/panasonic_lumix_dmc_gx85_mirrorless_micro.html

The above link is to a 2 lens and body kit that would do well.

ctf_error_coins

Pay for the best Canon sensor that you can afford.

Buy a Canon 100mm macro lens.

Buy your "world travel" lenses later.

Be happy by doing it right the first time

YQQ

Instead of the 100mm Canon Macro, consider a 90mm Tamron for less than half the canon cost.
You can buy a copy stand usually at a 2nd hand store and attach your Canon to it. As indicated before: it is important that you can tether the camera .
Canon usually comes with all the SW needed for that. If u buy a used canon, check their website for the tether SW.
I amusing a canon and the SW for about 7 years now. at that time Canon was the only one which supplied the SW
Cost for my setup inclusive inclusive ACDsee photo SW: less than 750 US incl a Tamron 90mm macro lens
good luck

ctf_error_coins

FYI

AS a pro who does tons of coin photography almost daily, I never tether. I just load the card to Lightroom then to the desktop and then go to post-production.

ChrisH821

@YQQ said:
Instead of the 100mm Canon Macro, consider a 90mm Tamron for less than half the canon cost.
You can buy a copy stand usually at a 2nd hand store and attach your Canon to it. As indicated before: it is important that you can tether the camera .
Canon usually comes with all the SW needed for that. If u buy a used canon, check their website for the tether SW.
I amusing a canon and the SW for about 7 years now. at that time Canon was the only one which supplied the SW
Cost for my setup inclusive inclusive ACDsee photo SW: less than 750 US incl a Tamron 90mm macro lens
good luck

This guy here?
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Tamron-SP-90mm-f-2-8-Di-MACRO-1-1-Lens-for-Canon-EF-NEW/182117984299?_trkparms=aid=111001&algo=REC.SEED&ao=1&asc=20160908105057&meid=7aac6c6d2d6f46408c4286985b633146&pid=100675&rk=3&rkt=15&mehot=lo&sd=123831473052&itm=182117984299&pg=2481888&_trksid=p2481888.c100675.m4236&_trkparms=pageci:ac37cb8f-a513-11e9-b99e-74dbd180f1bb|parentrq:e91a6fd316b0a4e922463b65ff71c4ba|iid:1

savitale

For some time I was a professional photographer (not coins). Everything you could want to know about modern digital SLRs for general purpose photography is available here: www.dpreview.com. Any recommended SLR on this site when paired with a 100mm macro will give you a perfectly fine "coin camera".

YQQ

Yes, exactly his guy there...

ChrisH821

@YQQ said:
Yes, exactly his guy there...

Picked one up.. figured it's a good use of ebay bucks.

astrorat

I really like my Nikon D5600 ... and I have liked all my Nikon DSLR cameras. If you want to shoot coins, then a Nikkor macro (aka Nikon Micro) lens will be something you want to pick up. The 105 mm lens works great for coins and the 60 mm lens works great for slabs.

Usually the 'bundles' are not a great deal ... just a lot of low-quality fluff added to bulk up the offer.

Check amazon.com for a body only and separately for the lens you want. B&H also has good prices.

Davideo

I would emphasize some of the previous posters and would strongly recommend a used body. I buy a lot of used bodies on fredmiranda.com

JasonGaming

Okay, thanks for everyone’s guidance. I’m now thinking about the D5600. I saw this listing on eBay, used: https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/254294437120 but it doesn’t say shutter count. Should I ask? It comes with a wide angle & telephoto lens which is good for landscape photography. Opinions on this? Thanks.

@astrorat
@SiriusBlack

SiriusBlack

@JasonGaming Keep in mind that is probably an international version and you will have a hell of a time getting it repaired if you are here in the US. Not only does Nikon not repair international version cameras in the states, they also don’t sell parts so independent repair shops have a difficult time repairing them as well if parts are needed. I would personally avoid non US market cameras.

SiriusBlack

Adorama and B&H in New York are both reputable companies for new gear, or if you want used try to find listings that specify US cameras. It really is crappy that Nikon has this policy. They claim they are trying to prevent grey market cameras but the only people they hurt are customers that unknowing buy them and then can’t get a repair done when something happens down the road.

JasonGaming

@SiriusBlack is there an easy way of differentiating between a US and non-US camera? I have $50 in eBay bucks and would like something there.

SiriusBlack

Some lenses say US in the serial number, but no there’s no foolproof way although if you can get a serial number from an eBay sale you could probably call nikons repair phone number and ask. I’ve never really tried that.

airplanenut

@JasonGaming said:
Okay, thanks for everyone’s guidance. I’m now thinking about the D5600. I saw this listing on eBay, used: https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/254294437120 but it doesn’t say shutter count. Should I ask? It comes with a wide angle & telephoto lens which is good for landscape photography. Opinions on this? Thanks.

Yes, shutter count matters. My D90, which I'm phasing out, is well past its shutter's lifespan. If I just sold it as "used" I wouldn't be wrong, but I'd be setting a buyer up for disappointment.

Keep in mind that for everything you want to do, there's a big range of quality. Yes, that body comes with an 18-55, but understand what 18-55 it is. If you go somewhere like B&H, you can see how many such lenses are available, and the prices will usually be commensurate with the quality picture they take. I had the older version of that lens for a time, and the results were okay, but not wonderful. You'll have to balance the quality you can live with and the price you can afford.

For what it's worth, I just upgraded my camera to a D850 (Nikon's second-highest SLR). I got a 28-300mm to go with it (I already have two macros that don't need to be replaced). The 28-300 is quite good, especially when I am in a situation where I need range and don't have an easy way to swap lenses (I take a lot of photos while I'm flying an airplane). That said, there are 24-70 and 70-200 lenses that I'm looking into that are both going to be better than what I have, but each costs more than the 28-300 did (and is more limited in zoom). This is where you have to figure out what you can afford and, what's the best use of your money for your specific needs. As I play with my new camera and lens, I'm figuring out the zoom I use the most to determine where to next invest in a lens.

Twobitcollector

I must admit I've been using my phone here are some images.
Note: I do down load to my computer and use Photo Scape to crop and combine.
![](https://us.v-cdn.net/6027503/uploads/edit
or/rr/b9bop9sn4inx.jpg "")

ctf_error_coins

I felt bad about giving advice and having my photo link Not working.

I hired my daughter to go into the control settings on my webpage and also on my domain name control panel to fix it to make it work. It worked for years and the recently stopped and some things had to be changed and I do not know how to do it ....

Anyway, I have been a professional nature photographer for 40 years now ...

This site will blow you away ....

https://ctfphoto.com

spacehayduke

For coins:
1. Buy Mark Goodman's book and read it several times. Then make a plan for your photo gear/setup.
2. DSLR body, decent one.
3. Macro Lens
4. good copy stand - Kaiser or another brand
5. Good lighting set up - you can go cheap and make it work, or buy a made for lighting set up associated with a copy stand and pay alot. You will hear different recommendations from different folks. But read Goodman. I pretty much have a very similar set up that he shows on the back cover of his book.
6. Focusing rail (see Goodman about these), these can fine tune the focus and insure the coin have sharp focus. Works every time
7. I have a magnifier: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/37321-GREY/Nikon_2355_DG_2_Eyepiece_Magnifier.html?ap=y&smp=y&lsft=BI:514&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI7-SA0qK94wIVwsDACh0pGQSmEAQYBCABEgKQevD_BwE
Helps me fine tune the focus.
8. Buy some image editing software like Photoshop.

Then, spend a decade taking images of coins while you are taking images elsewhere with the appropriate lens(es). I am still learning after a decade, it takes time but I think my images are getting better.

Best, SH