More photograhy questions...

elverno

As most of you know my new digital camera and I are struggling for dominance. Unfortunately I seem to be losing!



I took this picture a couple of nights ago. Now I know that natural light seems to produce the best results but that means waiting at least a week between photo sessions. This was taken with a single incandescent light bulb about 1/2 meter away from the medal.

I'm satisfied with the color but am wondering if there are tricks to evening out the lighting besides a second light source?
Has anyone used the OTT light for their photography?
I live in Southern California. That means lots of dust in the air. Has anyone found a safe way to clean this dust off before taking their pics? I'm looking at chemical-free "dust bunny" cloths sold by gaylord.com to archivists but have never heard of anyone using them on coins or medals before.

As always, your comments are most welcome as I continue to assimulate (instead of the other way around)

cosmicdebris

OTT lights deffinately help you still have to play with with your camera settings and light positioning.

theboz11

A light from 1/2 meter works nice too. Sweet Photo

laurentyvan

Elverno, what kind of digital camera did you get and what features prompted you to make the selection you did?

MacCrimmon

The best way to remove non-abrasive particles, i.e. dust, dry skin, dander, critter hairs, etc. is to use #4 Soft Jewelers Brush. The "old salts" with EAC will whip out one of these brushes to remove dust, etc. from a $20,000 mint state copper or a well-worn copper; it matters not, except I would use only a "dry" virigin brush for any mint state piece. I use them all the time for just this purpose.

CAUTION!!!!!!! BE VERY SURE THERE ARE NO METAL BURRS ON THE COIN SURFACE YOU ARE BRUSHING. Fresh, modern BU coins which tend to have these burrs should be handled with some type of compressed air delivery to rid this "contaminant".


Here's the contact info for these brushes.

Rod Burress
9743 Leacrest
Cincinnati, OH 45215
513-771-0696

In the event you order, Rod charges $4.50 for UPS shipping ($5.00 for the Western States). These brushes may be sourced elsewhere, but I've never checked. The imprint on the handle is:

BU 544 GERMANY

You'll want the #4 Soft Jewelers Brush at $8.50 each. I would get two or three. One for dry brushing of coins which do not have an oil protectant, such as Blue Ribbon applied, and one which would be used solely for cleaning gunk from circulated coins with BR or other solvents.

This type of brush will not harm or hairline the surfaces of any coin providing you 'sweep' gently across the surface and leave the Hercules grip behind.

One other note: I was once removing some dust from a proof Lincoln cent which appeared to have hazy fields. When I again looked at the cent under the loupe, I saw these superfine wispy hairlines. I won't repeat what I said! On further inspection, this "haze" was just a film on the surfaces which I guess hadn't hardened (I had just taken the coin from an unopened box set). I continued to gently brush for another few sweeps and viola, blinding haze-free mirrors, and a happy Mouse!!! This is not always the case with haze as I think I've only encountered one other virgin coin with surfaces like this one. Most haze I've seen is "fixed" in the sense that dry methods will not get it off......at least in my experience.

elverno

As always you guys are a fountain of information!

To do:
1. Borrow wife's OTT lights. If they work lose same on work bench...
2. Get a couple of those brushes. They sound perfect MacCrimmon. Of course I can certainly remove the odd dust with Photoshop but I try to avoid playing too much with the surfaces. Most of my stuff took 200 years to acquire their bumps, I figure it's not my business to give granny a facelift!

Laurent I chose the Olympus C5050 for a number of reasons:
1. I had seen some fabulous pics of Neapolitan coins taken with one. I figured I might eventually take decent ones.
2. My youngest daughter let us know we were going to be grandparents. My wife said "we need a good camera".
3. My latest scanner was dying (since deceased).
4. It costs about the same as 3 really nice medals. Patience is a virtue I've heard.
5. It rates really highly, though I'm sure better models have come out already.
6. There's probably a ton of other reasons but refer to the end of #2 above...

Garneteye

Try a piece of white cardboard opposite your lite source. This will reflect the light and help even it out

Dan

newbiecollector

elverno
Once, about a zillion years ago, I had a brush with a squeeze bulb attached. The buld was attached to a tube about 4" long with very soft hair brissles(sp). You could squeeze the bulb and small puff or air would blow out around the brissles.
I have no idea where I got it or where to get another one... I wish i did..

cacheman

I blow the dust off with canned, compressed air that you would use to blow your computer keyboard clean. It's spendy but well worth it. I just broke down and bought an AC adapter and a remote release for my digital too.

Darkhorse

I live in an old house with wooden floors, I can't get rid of any dust so I have to remove it digitally.

Askari

Hmmm, Christmas is coming up ... I wonder if Mrs. Claus thinks I've been a good enough boy this year?

elverno

Really obvious hints work for me Askari... After I got the go ahead on the camera (hey I only have a collecting allowance) I made a point of digging out an old tripod and awkwardly trying to set it up on, near, over... my work bench (desk really). A lot of muttering and banging around and she finally said "don't they have stands to do what you want?"




Why yes...

MacCrimmon

<< <i>she finally said "don't they have stands to do what you want?" . . . "Why yes". >>

Ah, huh! The Elverno School of Tool Aquisitions......

An A+ graduate.

Lloyd

What's an OTT light?

newbiecollector

Linky

Lloyd,

Have a look here. I don't have this but the have some info.

elverno

They're interesting. They look like regular phlorescent (sp?) lights but things look like natural daylight under them. My wife has a couple of embroidery machines and the colors are pretty true to life even at night. That's why I asked the question. Here's a link to their site. We got the wife's at a local craft store.

cacheman

A GE Reveal light works just as well and only costs $2.00....I just screwed it into my reflector light stand instead of my halogen or incandescent.

This image was taken with a Reveal light bulb...

newbiecollector

I wish I could get Reveal over here.......

Lloyd

<< <i>A GE Reveal light works just as well and only costs $2.00....I just screwed it into my reflector light stand instead of my halogen or incandescent. >>



I was just about to ask about a cheap bulb as opposed to the full works.... did you have problems with a halogen? That's what I'm using now and my copper photos suck - total inconsistency and the best is about 25% as good as the first photo in this thread...

L

elverno

Dang Cacheman! Nice one Do I need to go to the hardware store or do they have them in the grocery stores?

cacheman

You should be able to pick them up wherever light bulbs can be found. I'm using a 40 Watt and I think, personal opinion, that 60 would be too bright but you can do like I do if I want to tone down the glare...I stretch a white t-shirt or any white cotton over the reflector fixture and keep it stretched and attached with a large rubber-band. The light still gets through but not as intensely. It looks like hell but it works.

Oh, Lloyd....halogens are just too "hot" for my liking and they are notorius for showing every single imperfection, especially hairlines, that exist on the coin/medal. In fact, they show things I've never seen before which can really bum you out. I still prefer natural light but I am finding that working with a reveal after dark you have a lot control. I am going to try fiber optics here soon too....

Bruce

I haven't ventured into digital photography yet.

cacheman

" I haven't ventured into digital photography yet."

I have more than paid for my camera but not having to deal with wasted film, time, etc.. You instantly view your shot and take another if need be and it doesn't cost a cent. I held off for a long time too but it has worked out well.

Askari

Hey Scott, is that one taken through an olive oil filter too?


Actually, if you have both a Reveal and an OTT light, it would be a neat experiment to take pics under otherwise identical conditions and see what the difference is and which better catches the "real coin."

elverno

I'm with you there Cacheman! I take a lot of shots with different settings and write them down to try and develop a set of settings that generally work for copper, silver, etc. Not worrying about film costs or the time to process it is really freeing.

Ok, here's another stab at the same medal that started the thread. This time I've used two Reveal bulbs (4/$3 at the local hardware store). I diffused the light a little with a piece of paper taped loosely in front of the reflectors.



An improvement I think, thanks to you guys...

cacheman

Unfortunately, I'd have to say I like the first ones better. It appears that these have more blue in them. Do a white light reading and set it automatically and see if that'll help. On my camera I can set it to read the white light and adjust the setting BEFORE I shoot the image. Are you having fun yet? heh heh

BigAlan

Hmmm, Christmas is coming up ... I wonder if Mrs. Claus thinks I've been a good enough boy this year?

Don't use the "I need it" reasoning, that makes it a tool and requires justification. Just say "it's a toy and I want it."

elverno

Hm... On this camera the white balance has been on auto up until this point. It appears I can adjust that "auto" setting to be more red or more blue. Should I try adjusting it a tick or two toward red (and away from blue)?

cacheman

Why not? You ain't paying for film! Does it have a manual measure setting too? You push a button and it measures and adjusts to compensate and then you photograph....

elverno

Ok, I found a manual white balance setting so this is the last try for this thread anyway...

1jester

Elverno, first of all I'd like to say that I love that subject medal you're photographing. And, I appreciate your being the guinea pig for this thread, and I'm looking forward to any more attempts of shooting that medal!

Wayne, I was wondering the same thing about the availability of Reveal bulbs in Europe. It seems there must be some equivalent at least. And what about OTT lights for Europe? It would be possible to buy one designed for the US, but you might have difficulties with either the voltage or cycle differences. I would definitely like to know what the equivalent lights are over here.

newbiecollector

I have searched in Norway and can not find either option.

Askari

So, don't hold us in suspense, Elverno -- which of the 3 pics looks most like the actual coin?

elverno

The last one is probably truest to the color. I'm not sure I got the blue entirely out that Cacheman mentioned. Now my problem is that it's just a bit dark overall for my tastes.

1jester I like this piece too! I bought a large lot (well two purchases over a period of time) of Napoleonic era Masonic medals. This is the first I've tried photographing out of the set; "The Lodge of the Seven Scotchmen" established in 1809 under the auspices of the Orient of Paris.

wybrit

ttt for mushroom-breath.