Inspired by DeplorableDan's post, this is my second try on photography
Seraph21
Posts: 49 ✭✭✭
Hi all, I got inspired by @DeplorableDan and giving numismatic photography a try again. I will have to say manual focus on a macro lens without remote shooting is insanely hard. All my previous tries always turned out weird with bad colors or nowhere close to in hand visuals. I'm still working on it, and it's been quite fun. Photoshop's also doing alot of the work ha.
So here's my second try at photography after increasing the amount of lighting.
There's no TrueView for this coin as it's in a OH, I probably also overpaid for this coin.
GTG reveal - MS64FH
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I'm no photography expert, but I know what I like in coin images and that one is most appealing.
AU58
edited to add: I know nothing about SLQ's. 😉
MS65
peacockcoins
Nice photography. Your photos look quite detailed. Much better than any of mine. MS-65 FH.
65FH.
Looks AU58 to me, there appears to be rub on the obverse based on the photos.
Not bad! Glad I was able to help
.
I’ll go 64 to be different.
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@FlyingAl would you be willing to give me some advice on how I can improve these photos? Right now I'm using a singular light source.
You're gonna want three light sources - I recommend LED desk lamps.
Coin Photographer.
I can't take a photo of a coin to save my life, or even show the denomination! My attempts are childish at best, as you can see from past posts. But, I have a friend whom is a leading expert in glass paperweights. It's very hard because of reflections, etc. What he does is take a photo with a bright light source and macro lens. He will then move the light source to another position from the first. He then uses photoshop or a similar program and combines the photos and removes the glare. He's written/photographed several books and the photos are fantastic. Maybe try this? Just my 50 cents. Ray
@FlyingAl Why 3 vs 2? I'm currently using a cinema light for the singular source. 1 is definitely a little dark.
@raycyca Yep, using a overly bright light source is definitely an issue. Initially I tried using a high output flashlight, but it would always cause this weird haze. Reflections is also a huge issue as well.
Three lights generally gives you lighting similar to what you see in hand when looking at a coin. The combination of three areas getting covered in light removes most shadows while still keeping depth in the image.
I've done images with one, two, and three lights. The three light images are by far the best.
Coin Photographer.
I'm going to guess 64fh as I can't zoom in on my pc. Nice job! The reverse could possibly use a little more lighting? Or is that just how it's toned? Other than that those pictures are very well done! Great job on the clarity without using a PC!
https://www.the4thcoin.com
https://www.ebay.com/str/thefourthcoin
Or, for most shots, 2 lights......................
Sure, but in most cases, 3 lights can wash out contrast............... Most applications, 2 works best. This is something I learned a decade ago from reading Goodman, and have empirically tested and confirmed multiple times.......................
Interesting. Do you think the book Numismatic Photography is worth the cost @spacehayduke? Also that's an amazing photo.
@spyglassdesign The darkness is due to not enough lighting.
Good photos in the OP! A little dark at 12:00 so you'll want to adjust the position of your light(s).
While practice makes perfect, something I found helpful was adjusting the lights and observing how the coin reflects the subtle change in lighting positions through the camera lens.
You can get away with one light source, but you may want to set up bounce boards using white paper or even aluminum foil to bounce light back towards the coin and then up to the shutter. Otherwise, two are preferred and three can be overkill without post-processing software.
Custom album maker and numismatic photographer.
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@The_Dinosaur_Man I just checked out your photos, they look awesome! Makes sense that it's a bit dark at 12:00, my lighting source is at 6:00.
Is there any preferred positioning of the lighting, or would you consider that on a per coin basis?
These tips are awesome everyone, please keep them coming!
@Seraph21 lighting is always a per coin basis, though over time you will be able to recognize which set-ups and angles will work best for a particular coin before you shoot the photo. The Mark Goodman book mentioned above is a phenomenal resource and you can get some additional practice by aiming to replicate other photographs on your own. That in itself will be a better teacher than anything we might say here because you will be actively learning from your own experience.
Custom album maker and numismatic photographer.
Need a personalized album made? Design it on the website below and I'll build it for you.
https://www.donahuenumismatics.com/.
Lovely pics of a very attractive coin here. A few tweaks on this coin, and you'll say "Nailed it!" Then, your next coin will be completely different and you'll have to jack with that 15 times to get to the same point. :-)
I'm going with 64 on this one.
New website: Groovycoins.com Capped Bust Half Dime registry set: Bikergeek CBHD LM Set
@FlyingAl @spacehayduke @The_Dinosaur_Man I tested 3 new lighting setups, still trying to figure out white balance properly. I'm leaning towards liking 2 Lights 12/6 for obverse, and 2 Lights 6/10 for reverse.
2 Lights, at 12:00 and 6:00
2 Lights, at 6:00 and 10:00 (this one has the correct white balance, the coin looks like this color in hand)
3 Lights, at 2:00, 6:00, and 10:00
Does anyone want to revise their grade guess, I'll reveal the grade on monday?
One more, 2 Lights at 2:00 and 10:00 and also the lights from an 80 degree angle, vs the above where the lights are coming in at a 45 degree angle, trying a bit of focus stacking in this one. There's definitely ALOT more detail with focus stacking.
I feel like the luster and contrast capture is slightly better with the single light in the first post? It's a bit harder to get the lines in the recessed sections.
And the grade reveal is... MS64 FH, though to me it looks more like a 65 like the others that have guessed.
Still trying to improving my photography skills. This is my latest attempt. Using 2 lights at 10/2 at 80 deg angle of incidence.
These images also look much closer to what the coin looks like in hand.
Anyone have any more notes on how I can improve?
There are some particular coins that just don't seem to photograph well.
Seems like the obverse of that coin may be one of them.
Your photos of the reverse appear the best in the first two of your May 25th post maybe along with the Jun 26th. I'm of the view that it may take multiple photos to add up to the real appearance of a coin and sometimes each side may need a different setup.
"To Be Esteemed Be Useful" - 1792 Birch Cent --- "I personally think we developed language because of our deep need to complain." - Lily Tomlin
That's a good point on the different lighting for obverse and reverse, might have to try that out. You're right in that the front of this coin just doesn't photograph very well.
I guess I should lower the angle for the reverse shot to get the luster bands out better, as it looks much flatter on a higher angle.
I typically use 3 and 9 o'clock works on most coins but some I have to move them around and experiment until you get the coin lit up like you want. Sometimes I have had to use a third broad light. I also switch between fluorescent and led daylight bulbs depending on the coin. You just have to experiment!
For the most part I stick with the led daylights in 2 desk lamps but no 2 coins are the same! And for proofs I have to use a polarizing filter to prevent the camera from reflecting in the coin!
Good job! Coin photography is tough!
https://www.the4thcoin.com
https://www.ebay.com/str/thefourthcoin
I'm very interested in how you arrange the three lights. Also, whether the intensity is the same on all three, if any type of diffusion helps, etc.. Anything you would be willing to share would be very welcomed.
Still continuing on this journey, this time I got brighter lights! Still would like more advice.
For this attempt, I've tried using much brighter lights than before (still 2 lights at 10 and 2). Also trying to get color to be as accurate as possible to the in hand look. It's a much more interesting challenge to photograph coins that look like they'd be hard to photograph.
Anyways, here's an easier to photograph coin that's much much more lustrous than the SLQ and also almost blast white. Guess the grade if you want to
I think i need to position the lights better for the merc though as there's some shadow in the 12 o'clock region for a 10/2 light position.
Thanks for looking!
Consolidating https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/1104269/continuing-on-my-photography-practice-more-gtg-this-time-merc-and-hawaii-revealed into this thread. Here's some more photos.
This one is from the thread, older attempt:
Same coin, new attempt, the color on this one is also more accurate:
More coins:
This one's sorta dark, and I'm thinking about cracking this out for my 7070, though I don't know if I should instead look for a XF45 to crack out instead.
Some more of my photos! I think they're looking more "True View" ish, I'm still trying to go for the "in hand" look rather than the juiced up adjustments that the glamor shots do. Let me know what everyone thinks!
Are you using photoshop? If so, try working with Levels and Offset in Exposure to dial in the image, but use only very small adjustments or the coins will start to look less realistic. These images are very nice, well done, the seated dime can use just a bit of adjustment as noted to bring out the richness. I agree you don’t want to juice, stay away from ‘Saturation’, and stick to small adjustments in the forementioned. Amazing progress tho’, well done.
And to your question about Goodman’s book, yes pick up a copy if you can. It is a touch out of date in some ways bc of advancements in cameras, but the principles he discusses are all key to taking great images.
Best, SH
@spacehayduke Thanks! I am using photoshop, but mainly for layout. I did adjustments to the shadows/highlights, and a little bit in the blacks/whites to reduce sections of overexposure on the RAW files in lightroom. I avoided changes to saturation, and only a slight bump (+5-10) in vibrance. I haven't used the levels tool though (the curves). I'll give that a play around for the SLD.