Forum Photography Pros: What do you think of our proposed camera set-up (Nikon D40)?

GoCoins

This is totally new for us. We have a 60mm Nikkor macro lens, but no camera body. We are thinking of getting a used Nikon D40 for $350. It comes with a Targus battery grip, two batteries, and a charger. Will this set-up work for basic coin photography? I understand that the lighting and camera stand are very important, so that's the next question: Where's the best online place to buy a camera stand/lights?

Here are images of what I have in the office. Is the Bower macro kit of any use? It was a gift from a customer. If you guys think that a D40 will complete the package, I may get it tomorrow. Thanks in advance for your advice!

Barndog

I got a Beseler CS-14 copy stand with lights for $240 delivered (ebay). Ebay can be a good source for copy stands if you are not in a hurry to get one.

adamlaneus

The 60mm lens is very limiting. You really want a longer macro lens, 100mm or longer.

Why? Because your camera will be too close to the coin and that will dramatically limit your ability to illuminate the coin properly.

Yes, lighting is terribly important. You want the camera to be as far away from the coin as possible to allow flexibility in positioning those lights.

The macro kit is useless with this lens. A kit like that consists of 'close up lenses' to be screwed onto the front of a non-macro lens. They turn non-close focusing lenses into close-focusing lenses. However, this typically comes at the expense of corner sharpness. The 60mm lens you have already focuses as close as you need; the only problem is that your camera will be very close to the coin itself, shadowing the coin.

Go ahead and get the D40; one needs a camera body before one can shoot pictures. But i'm pretty certain you will find that you want a longer macro lens than that.

airplanenut

I would personally go for a stronger lens (I use a 180mm, and rarely a 105mm), but I'd think the camera should work just fine. As far as lighting, simple swing arm lamps (the ones you see at shows) are just fine, and really cheap.

As with Adam, don't use the kit. A quality macro lens won't need little things added to make it better.

rgCoinGuy

Pay the extra hundred bucks for a new camera Would be my recommendation.

mgoodm3

Cheap add-on macro lenses aren't worth the money.

GoCoins

<< <i>Pay the extra hundred bucks for a new camera Would be my recommendation. >>



Wow. That is something to think about. I mean, the used D40 does not include a lens, but the Best Buy package does. However, for the $350, I would get a Targus battery grip. Hmmmm.

adamlaneus

If the battery grip is one of those big things that fits onto the bottom of the camera...Like this

Well, that should not be a consideration for you with respect to coin photography.

I have these; most of my camera bodies has the option of attaching one of these. I rarely use them.

They come in handy if:

1) You are one of the 2% of humans with exceptionally large hands

2) You are doing hand-held shooting with a very large heavy lens and need a solid grip on the camera.

3) You are shooting all day long, in the field, and don't want to change batteries.

But for coin work on a camera stand, a vertical battery grip is needless.


You need a 100mm or longer macro lens. Like this

morgandollar1878

That AF 60mm lens you have pictured is not 100% compatible with the D40. You have to have the AF-S lenses for the D40 otherwise you will have to focus manually.

Bcsican

need to get another lens a 180mm is best???

DennisH

My camera is a Nikon D200, and I have the identical 60mm lens you have and a 105mm Nikon micro lenses. The one I use the most by far is...

The 60mm. That's because the great majority of coin pictures I take are not ultra-closeups of one teeny part of the coin. Most of the time what I need to show is the entire PCGS holder or the entire coin only, and for that the 60mm is just dandy. (In fact, a 105mm or 180mm is too long to be able to photograph an entire holder... unless you have a monster copy stand that will let you back up several feet. Cost of the longer lenses is a serious issue too.) On the infrequent occasions that I do need to take a drastic closeup of a tiny detail, I use the 105mm lens and either one (but usually two) Nikon PK-13 extension tubes.

In either case, I have found that a copy stand is invaluable, as is the mirror lockup feature on the camera and use of a remote triggering release.

GoCoins

Great information everyone! Thank you.

I should have mentioned that I already have Mark Goodman's book and I will begin reading that soon.

As for the AF 60mm macro lens not being compatible, I thought that most coin photographers use manual focus anyway. Is that not true?

And as for the price, I think we will just buy a new camera for the extra $100. So, the kit will include:

* Beseler CS-14 copy stand with two lights

* D40 camera

* 60mm Nikkor AF macro lens (Only because the company already owns it. We will eventually invest in a 105mm lens)

* Mark's book

* Anything else???

Raybo

<< <i>need to get another lens a 180mm is best??? >>



105mm is more than fine.

adamlaneus

I always switch autofocus off when i'm on a camera stand.

You have not mentioned a memory card. You will need at least one of those.

You will also want some software to manage your photos, because taking them is just one step of the process.
Start cheap, and get more expensive software based on what you find your needs are.

True, 100mm is plenty fine for coin photography. I used to have a 100mm macro lens. But I also use these lenses in other situations and find that the extra money spent on the 180mm gets me 'extra bug pictures' that I would not have otherwise gotten.


(gnats, making more gnats. Approximately 8mm field width. 65mm micro lens)

mgoodm3

I use manual focus exclusively. helps to have good vision though. The 60 will work fine. the one limitation that you may see with it is limited working distance (coin to lens distance). It should be OK with larger coins, somewhat limited with small coins. That will limit the lighting quality a bit. 105 is a good compromise with good working distance, but not so much that you need a bigger copystand to shoot dollars. Longer lenses (>100 mm) will give a touch better lighting, but get big and heavy and need more robust equipment to hold steady.

Bcsican

<< <i>105mm is more than fine. >>



Thank you Raybo...

intence

bhphoto.com is where i go for most camera accessories.

crazyhounddog

Here are some pics from my D40 with the same lens....

messydesk

I'm not positive that the D40 can use all the old manual focus lenses that others can, but I think it can. Like many others, I'm using a 105mm Micro-Nikkor (in this case a 1978 vintage manual focus on a D80 body). A 60mm you might find a little constricting when shooting smaller coins. The cheap close-up lenses will let you focus closer, but aren't particularly good optically, so don't bother with them. Look for a sturdy copy stand with a mast of about 3 feet. That will give you room to grow. For lights, I use two CFL-D bulbs in gooseneck desklamps with quite a bit of success. Also consider investing in Nikon's Camera Control Pro, which allows you to control the camera from your PC and instantly view on your monitor so you can check critical focus. That will save you lots of time in a hurry.

RaginsteveK

<< <i>The 60mm lens is very limiting. You really want a longer macro lens, 100mm or longer.

Why? Because your camera will be too close to the coin and that will dramatically limit your ability to illuminate the coin properly.

Yes, lighting is terribly important. You want the camera to be as far away from the coin as possible to allow flexibility in positioning those lights.

The macro kit is useless with this lens. A kit like that consists of 'close up lenses' to be screwed onto the front of a non-macro lens. They turn non-close focusing lenses into close-focusing lenses. However, this typically comes at the expense of corner sharpness. The 60mm lens you have already focuses as close as you need; the only problem is that your camera will be very close to the coin itself, shadowing the coin.

Go ahead and get the D40; one needs a camera body before one can shoot pictures. But i'm pretty certain you will find that you want a longer macro lens than that. >>



strongly agree w/ adam-

had a marvelous 60 mm macro lens, but just encountered too amny difficulty arranging the lighting/ camera combination.

GoCoins

Thanks to everyone for the input. Guess I need to look for a 105-mm macro lens..... Is Best Buy a good place to buy a 105-mm Nikkor macro lens?

adamlaneus

For new equipment, I prefer B and H.

For used equipment, eBay is a good place.

Also, and this may sound old-fashioned... open up the phone book and call your local camera shop. They often have great deals on used gear!