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New photo set up demo...(PICTURES)

Awhile back LordM posted a coin for sale on the BST with the goal that he was going to upgrade his photo set up.



Link to Lord M's post



He really inspired me, and so of course, I copied him image. I sold something and started pm'ing Ray, who puts together some pretty awesome set ups. I wanted something a little different so I'd have the flexibility to image some of my medals too...go small but get a bit bigger.



Looks like this





I've been using my cell phone to decent results...this is a recent random newp from eBay. This is what I got using my basic set up with a white box, a couple lights and my phone sitting on an upturned cup:



image





Well, Ray shipped my set up Saturday, and in a fit of efficiency the USPS had it at my house Monday (??!!??!). It was a work weekend, so Monday I did the basic set up, but only tried the new lights and redid the above photo--using the new lights and the stand, but my cell phone. This is what came of it (posted on the Toner Tuesday thread)



image





Sooo...today after a few false starts (who knew a lens cap would be so hard to remove, and getting help from Canon for the software for a Mac, and had to find a non-generic cord etc), this is my very first attempt. I took all of 5 pictures so far--three of the obverse just playing with the lights. One of the reverse and one detail shot.



There will be a steep learning curve to figure out how use everything--focusing could use a little work, but this is what I got in a first try. My software is PicMonkey which is an online photo-editing-for-dummies type thing. NOT fancy at all.



image



And, here is the detail shot that NO WAY would my phone have gotten close to:



image



A few of you know I've been playing with a vanity website for my 'stuff', and now I will be able to step up that game, quite a bit.



Pretty neat! I can't wait until I get a little used to this set up! I've got some small coins and some varieties to shoot image. So many coins, so little time.




Comments

  • ZoharZohar Posts: 6,629 ✭✭✭✭✭
  • TwoKopeikiTwoKopeiki Posts: 9,528 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Wow, that's quite a difference! Nicely done!
  • OriginalDanOriginalDan Posts: 3,713 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Nice work. I'm picking up mine on Friday! Can't say enough about how nice Ray is to work with. Highly recommended if anyone else is looking for a coin photography setup.
  • SYRACUSIANSYRACUSIAN Posts: 6,445 ✭✭✭✭
    It is a great difference. I had no idea about these personalized set ups, but Rob explained it to me too.

    In the above example, the difference at first glance is impressive, and yet some of the green color on the obverse near the shield in particular

    seems to be less dominant than before, maybe lost in favor of the overall increase in quality which is impressive after 5 or 50 shots already!





    Dimitri



    myEbay



    DPOTD 3
  • ashelandasheland Posts: 22,612 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Great pics!

    Where is Rob, by the way? I haven't noticed him on here this week.. image
  • YQQYQQ Posts: 3,264 ✭✭✭✭✭
    nice comparing shots. But you have not told us what kind of a setup you are using. just noticed that you use a canon. but which one and what lens, make tec...?
    I use a Canon setup for the last 6 years. the Canon SW allows me to use my monitor with it and control it with the mouse.
    Canon has a excellent SW with it, but personally I use ACDsee with great satisfaction. Easy to use and very reasonably priced. Believe it or not, there is a huge difference between free and paid for Photo SW.
    Good luck experimenting. it will take many, many shots with some coins to get the desired effect.
    H
    Today is the first day of the rest of my life
  • brg5658brg5658 Posts: 2,384 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Stunning. Ray is the "guru" of this stuff. You can't go wrong with his set-ups.



    Congrats! image



    -Brandon
    -~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-
    My sets: [280+ horse coins] :: [France Sowers] :: [Colorful world copper] :: [Beautiful world coins]
    -~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-

  • LochNESSLochNESS Posts: 4,829 ✭✭✭
    Very sharp. Great detail, lighting etc.
    ANA LM • WBCC 429

    Amat Colligendo Focum

    Top 10FOR SALE

    image
  • StorkStork Posts: 5,205 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Dimitri--the green was overemphasized in the top photo. The other two are more realistic. I think with the poorer lighting it looked like more than it was. Plus, my 'skills' with the photo editing are about on par (or worse) than the actual photography. The program I use is very dumbed down and I'm mostly using it to do crop circles and put the coins on the background.





    YQQ--what I know about photography fits on the head of a pin image. It is now an official new hobby and my knowledge base is barely above zero. I managed to get an A in Physics in college but what I remember about physics in general, and optics in particular, is basically nil.



    I'm not exactly sure what your abbreviations are (?SW is software?). The camera is an old model Canon Rebel XS (10megapixels or thereabouts), the lens is a Rodenstock Rodagon 80mm f4. The stand is a customized one by Ray (macrocoins.com). The lights are the Ikea Jansco lights that have been modified a bit.



    For editing I'm using the aforementioned PicMonkey which is online access. For now it suits my needs--I need to figure out HOW to take a picture, do the basics with it, then I will perhaps learn the finer art of Photoshop or one of the other programs. The stuff I downloaded from Canon I haven't even looked at. I'm doing this in baby steps image.



    This is my set up--geared for coins (including details) to most of my medals:

    image



    Linkage to his site and the page with the system



    I'm a 'learn by doing' so no matter how much I read my books (the 'for dummies' one and the Mark Goodwin book to start) I won't figure things out until I have my hands on something.



    The equipment is older, used and perfect for my needs. IF (mighty big if) I end up a serious photographer (unlikely) I can always upgrade. But, for learning it's perfect.



    Ray really is a font of information--every time I found a good thread, on multiple websites, I would see him giving great advice and being helpful. I even found an old thread where he was being encouraged to start setting up and selling systems! So glad he did so!



    Cathy




  • PatARPatAR Posts: 347 ✭✭✭
    Glad to see you're on your way! I'm looking forward to seeing your website! image
  • trozautrozau Posts: 3,455 ✭✭✭
    Wow! I'm impressed!
    trozau (troy ounce gold)
  • lordmarcovanlordmarcovan Posts: 43,194 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Awesome! image



    I give USPS full credit for efficient shipping on mine, too. It arrived a day ahead of schedule.



    I see you're doing great (though you were already doing awesomely with the cellphone pix, which really impressed me).



    I haven't tried any slab shots yet. In fact, I haven't had my new toys out of their box since that one initial set of test photos.



    But I will, soon!

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  • lordmarcovanlordmarcovan Posts: 43,194 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Originally posted by: asheland

    Great pics!



    Where is Rob, by the way? I haven't noticed him on here this week.. image




    Was another one of those 4-5-day "lay low and take a break from my digital life" hiatuses. image




    Explore collections of lordmarcovan on CollecOnline, management, safe-keeping, sharing and valuation solution for art piece and collectibles.
  • ashelandasheland Posts: 22,612 ✭✭✭✭✭
    I understand that. image
  • lordmarcovanlordmarcovan Posts: 43,194 ✭✭✭✭✭
    BTW, Cathy, I was always very impressed with your cellphone results, but thanks to the comparison shots you posted of that Swiss franc, I think it's blatantly obvious you've made a smart decision with the equipment upgrade. image

    Explore collections of lordmarcovan on CollecOnline, management, safe-keeping, sharing and valuation solution for art piece and collectibles.
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