Lesson learned, OTT Lights make all the difference

coinsarefun · January 17, 2021 2:50PM

I upgraded my camera set up a year or so ago and used 3 led spots with coffee filters to diffuse the light.
Walking through a store today I saw this set of OTT led lights and thought....hmm, maybe these will work
and I won’t have to struggle with light set up on every coin.
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Well....I’ll be damned, the images are even sharper. I never would have guessed better lighting can have a
clearer result. I’m happy, happy, happy
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Just some quick images.
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Probably over paid u here’s a link if anyone is interested.
https://www.joann.com/ottlite-lighting-dual-head-led-desk-lamp/16156606.html
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It’s 2 adjustable lights and the pic just how you can adjust them.
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TennesseeDave · January 17, 2021 3:01PM

Great pictures for sure.

derryb · January 17, 2021 3:04PM

$34.99 at my local Best Buy. Thanks for the tip, will be picking one up this week to take for a spin.

TurtleCat · January 17, 2021 3:06PM

Good lighting makes all the difference. I have some adjustable ott lights but they aren’t the long bulbs like those. What you might consider is buying some cheap diffusion material from B&H or Adorama and cut it to fit the bulbs. It’ll reduce the harshness some while not adding an additional color cast.

coinsarefun · January 17, 2021 3:06PM

@TennesseeDave said:
Great pictures for sure.

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Thanks! Here are a few more. It is very enjoyable to not struggle taking images
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TurtleCat · January 17, 2021 3:09PM

This is the OTT I use. I have three of them. https://products.ottlite.com/p-436-led-flexneck-desk-lamp-with-usb.aspx

coinsarefun · January 17, 2021 3:10PM

@derryb said:
$34.99 at my local Best Buy. Thanks for the tip, will be picking one up this week to take for a spin.

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The same lights huh.....ugh. At least I’m happy with the outcome.
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@TurtleCat , thanks for the tip. Will do it. Probably better for proof coins.

TurtleCat · January 17, 2021 3:12PM

@coinsarefun said:

@derryb said:
$34.99 at my local Best Buy. Thanks for the tip, will be picking one up this week to take for a spin.

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The same lights huh.....ugh. At least I’m happy with the outcome.
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@TurtleCat , thanks for the tip. Will do it. Probably better for proof coins.

It also really helps for satin finish and brilliant. This is what I bought. I traced a pattern and cut with scissors. It worked really well. https://www.adorama.com/ro116.html

ɹoʇɔǝlloɔ · January 17, 2021 3:15PM

I use kleenex / toilet paper for diffusion 😂

ɹoʇɔǝlloɔ · January 17, 2021 3:17PM

@coinsarefun would you be able to share a shot of your setup? have been searching but have not found many people sharing their setup - would like to up my game in photographing coins - your shots look great - thx for the heads up on these lights

coinsarefun · January 17, 2021 3:17PM

@TurtleCat said:
This is the OTT I use. I have three of them. https://products.ottlite.com/p-436-led-flexneck-desk-lamp-with-usb.aspx

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I had something similar but had to put coffee filter to diffuse the light and always ad to move them.
I like this because it a long light and can almost stay in one place. Only needed to move slightly for the
slabbed coins. Raw are piece of cake.

coinsarefun · January 17, 2021 3:19PM

@ɹoʇɔǝlloɔ said:
@coinsarefun would you be able to share a shot of your setup? have been searching but have not found many people sharing their setup - would like to up my game in photographing coins - your shots look great - thx for the heads up on these lights

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Sure, give me a few minutes.......I’m a slow moving kinda gal
Btw, tried tp but it drops fibers

Mr_Spud · January 17, 2021 3:20PM

The photos look great. I’m using Ott lights too, 2 fluorescent and 1 mini LED. Here’s a picture I just took using them with my iphone

coinsarefun · January 17, 2021 3:22PM

Wow! Excellent @MrSpud im impressed with the iPhone

Mr_Spud · January 17, 2021 3:25PM

Thanks. Here’s my whole setup 🌞

1Mike1 · January 17, 2021 3:26PM

Your photos have always been great. Now they're jumpin!

coinsarefun · January 17, 2021 3:35PM

@ɹoʇɔǝlloɔ said:
@coinsarefun would you be able to share a shot of your setup? have been searching but have not found many people sharing their setup - would like to up my game in photographing coins - your shots look great - thx for the heads up on these lights

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Here you go, nothing fancy by any means. The camera is plugged to 110v so no battery worries and I take pics remote using
by using Photoscape X
Sorry pics are a little shaky....Ive done a lot for today and now time to rest....lol

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ɹoʇɔǝlloɔ · January 17, 2021 3:48PM

thanks @coinsarefun - v much appreciate that - mounting the camera has been the trickiest thing for me - that mounting bar you have is incredible!!

coinsarefun · January 17, 2021 4:12PM

@ɹoʇɔǝlloɔ said:
thanks @coinsarefun - v much appreciate that - mounting the camera has been the trickiest thing for me - that mounting bar you have is incredible!!

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I can’t remember where I bought it but the copy stand with camera mount came together.
I do remember it was used, probably eBay 24” tall

Namvet69 · January 17, 2021 5:14PM

My wife is a quilter and swears by Ott lighting. She has assorted models of Ott lamps in use. Peace Roy

Lakesammman · January 17, 2021 7:43PM

Very nice pics!

coinhack · January 17, 2021 10:30PM

Wow! Nice pictures!

rec78 · January 18, 2021 2:44AM

I have other OTTLights- I love them

ricko · January 18, 2021 5:17AM

@coinsarefun... Wow Stef... those shots are amazing.... What a difference a light makes... I have always liked your pictures, would have not thought they could get better - but they have. Cheers, RickO

coinsarefun · January 18, 2021 9:54AM

Thanks @ricko and thank you everyone for the nice comments. Here are 2 HTT's I haven't been able to show off because
I couldn't really get a good image of them, Both are MS64RB Old ANACS holders. Probably upgrade nowadays.

Btw, if anyone has suggestions for taking pics through slabs and gets a clearer shot it would be appreciated.
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Zoins · January 18, 2021 10:19AM

@coinsarefun said:
I upgraded my camera set up a year or so ago and used 3 led spots with coffee filters to diffuse the light.
Walking through a store today I saw this set of OTT led lights and thought....hmm, maybe these will work
and I won’t have to struggle with light set up on every coin.
.
Well....I’ll be damned, the images are even sharper. I never would have guessed better lighting can have a
clearer result. I’m happy, happy, happy

Just some quick images.

Those are awesome photos and that's an awesome coin!

Nice to see the coin with the RL initials instead of the COPY stamp.

The Smithsonian does it with their SI initials so I always thought that would be better than using COPY.

Is Ron doing these on a semi-regular basis now or are they just one offs?

coinsarefun · January 18, 2021 10:21AM

Thanks @Zoins No, he is not doing any of the old stuff. I kept after him for years and he struck 2 for
me and I bought the dies.

I should have added.......he re worked the reverse die to get rid of copy and counterstruck it with RL

Zoins · January 18, 2021 10:30AM

@coinsarefun said:
Thanks @Zoins No, he is not doing any of the old stuff. I kept after him for years and he struck 2 for
me and I bought the dies.

I should have added.......he re worked the reverse die to get rid of copy and counterstruck it with RL

It would be great to make more Gallery Mint pieces with the RL initials without COPY. I bet those would sell for much more and also create a stronger following for Gallery Mint pieces.

coinsarefun · January 18, 2021 10:35AM

@Zoins said:

@coinsarefun said:
Thanks @Zoins No, he is not doing any of the old stuff. I kept after him for years and he struck 2 for
me and I bought the dies.

I should have added.......he re worked the reverse die to get rid of copy and counterstruck it with RL

It would be great to make more Gallery Mint pieces with the RL initials without COPY. I bet those would sell for much more and also create a stronger following for Gallery Mint pieces.

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I’m fairly certain the die would not make it through the first strike as it has so many die cracks.
Plus I would rather just enjoy them and know I have a piece of GMM. He also sent me a video
of them being created.

Zoins · January 18, 2021 10:38AM

@coinsarefun said:

@Zoins said:

@coinsarefun said:
Thanks @Zoins No, he is not doing any of the old stuff. I kept after him for years and he struck 2 for
me and I bought the dies.

I should have added.......he re worked the reverse die to get rid of copy and counterstruck it with RL

It would be great to make more Gallery Mint pieces with the RL initials without COPY. I bet those would sell for much more and also create a stronger following for Gallery Mint pieces.

I’m fairly certain the die would not make it through the first strike as it has so many die cracks.
Plus I would rather just enjoy them and know I have a piece of GMM. He also sent me a video
of them being created.

That's still in better shape that other pieces Ron had struck, but I can understand not wanting to further damage the dies.

I'm mostly thinking of creating a larger legacy for Ron, Joe and the Gallery Mint. While many were purchased with COPY they don't seem to have that much of a secondary market offering and I'm guessing it will decline over time. With what we know about the Hobby Protection Act now, it seems there's an opportunity to make a longer lasting legacy for Ron and Joe.

coinsarefun · January 18, 2021 11:04AM

@Zoins said:

I'm mostly thinking of creating a larger legacy for Ron, Joe and the Gallery Mint. While many were purchased with COPY they don't seem to have that much of a secondary market offering and I'm guessing it will decline over time. With what we know about the Hobby Protection Act now, it seems there's an opportunity to make a longer lasting legacy for Ron and Joe.

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I totally agree and a man with his talents should not be wasted!

astrorat · January 18, 2021 12:59PM

@coinsarefun said:

@Zoins said:

I'm mostly thinking of creating a larger legacy for Ron, Joe and the Gallery Mint. While many were purchased with COPY they don't seem to have that much of a secondary market offering and I'm guessing it will decline over time. With what we know about the Hobby Protection Act now, it seems there's an opportunity to make a longer lasting legacy for Ron and Joe.

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I totally agree and a man with his talents should not be wasted!

Yeah ... Ron Landis is an incredible engraver and under appreciated for his talent.

astrorat · January 18, 2021 1:03PM

@coinsarefun said:
Thanks @ricko and thank you everyone for the nice comments. Here are 2 HTT's I haven't been able to show off because
I couldn't really get a good image of them, Both are MS64RB Old ANACS holders. Probably upgrade nowadays.

Btw, if anyone has suggestions for taking pics through slabs and gets a clearer shot it would be appreciated.
.

The Ottlites are only 300 lumens. Have you found this relatively low light much of a hindrance?

yosclimber · January 18, 2021 1:08PM

I have had good results with the older Phillips PAR30L Flood (non-LED).
But these have been switched over to LED versions.
I find the LED arrays do not overlap enough! They are bad for photos.
The OTT could be a similar solution for this.

The nice thing about the PAR Floods is that you control the direction of the light (compared to a spot).
So you can avoid slap reflections.
With a spot, there will always be a reflection, because light comes out of the source at all angles.

coinnut · January 18, 2021 1:14PM

Wow!! Those are really amazing pics. I would love to be able to take pictures like that.

coinsarefun · January 18, 2021 2:46PM

@astrorat said:

@coinsarefun said:

The Ottlites are only 300 lumens. Have you found this relatively low light much of a hindrance?

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Actually it seems bright enough. To the point I need to raise my level from 600 to 1000 so
it won't be a bright white circle.......I hope I'm making sense as I don't understand cameras
that well

nwcoast · January 18, 2021 5:20PM

That’s some excellent imaging! Great coins too!
Thank you for sharing your techniques on lighting upgrades.

Walkerguy21D · January 18, 2021 5:35PM

@Namvet69 said:
My wife is a quilter and swears by Ott lighting. She has assorted models of Ott lamps in use. Peace Roy

I have one sitting right next to me in the family room, with multiple levels of magnification built in, that I use for tying intricate knots for fishing leaders, etc. Never dawned on me to use the light for coin imaging!

Coinscratch · January 19, 2021 2:54AM

Tag

johnny9434 · January 19, 2021 3:54AM

Wow, I really like this thread. Nice job on the pics and all

WAYNEAS · January 19, 2021 7:25AM

so impressed with your pics, I just ordered one from Best Buy

erwindoc · January 19, 2021 1:57PM

What photo editing software are you using?

coinsarefun · January 19, 2021 4:53PM

@erwindoc said:
What photo editing software are you using?

PhotoScape X I've had it for a long time now and it works pretty good for me. Simple and reasonable price.

Bullsitter · January 19, 2021 5:03PM

@WAYNEAS said:
so impressed with your pics, I just ordered one from Best Buy

Me too, looks like a nice light.

coinsarefun · January 19, 2021 5:12PM

@Bullsitter said:

@WAYNEAS said:
so impressed with your pics, I just ordered one from Best Buy

Me too, looks like a nice light.

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.I hope your experience will be like mine.......it was instant gratification!
Please post some pics when you get them

Bullsitter · January 19, 2021 5:18PM

@coinsarefun said:

@Bullsitter said:

@WAYNEAS said:
so impressed with your pics, I just ordered one from Best Buy

Me too, looks like a nice light.

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.I hope your experience will be like mine.......it was instant gratification!
Please post some pics when you get them

I will...maybe the MCMXXI BS Peace will be my first subject.....

coinsarefun · January 19, 2021 5:33PM

Here is my first try with a very high relief 2 ounce silver medal from 2018 Stamp & Coin Expo in Tailand.
The medal is super deep with high relief, just like our UHR's
Its in an NGC slab so everything about it is hard to shoot. I may have to work harder at shooting through slabs,
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Wahoo554 · January 20, 2021 8:19AM

Thanks for all the tips. I bought an Ott light yesterday. You should get a kickback from the company!

Pickwickjr · January 20, 2021 4:20PM

Thanks for the tip.
A few quick pictures with my phone.

coinsarefun · January 20, 2021 4:28PM

Wow @Pickwickjr those are great pics of some beautiful coins!

Pedzola · January 20, 2021 5:47PM

I ordered one of these lights from BB when the thread was posted, arrived today. Just spent a little time playing with it.

Nice form factor, but think I prefer my (2) 5k led bulbs on their own individual stands.

The dual-head ott was a little too diffused, and wish it were a little brighter.

Ott on the left. 2 brighter 5k led bulbs w/greater separation on the right.

It is still a pretty good light, and easier than my other setup. Nice and compact. I'll keep it.

Lesson learned, OTT Lights make all the difference

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