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Back n Black

Started by morganguru,

24 posts in this topic

messydesk

messydesk

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Big fan of black backgrounds. They're my favorite for documentation of a coin, followed by white. Colors, special effects and artistic backgrounds have their place in more decorative photos, where the possibilities (good and bad) are endless.

 

 

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Coinbuf

Coinbuf

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Black does seem to look best for almost all coins, I really dislike the trueview background as it distracts from the object of the pic the coin. I'm not a fan of the label on the bottom, it would look better on the top/behind the pics. Or better yet as you have lots of space at the bottom just insert a text box with the needed info.

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morganguru

morganguru

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<<Well done. Very sharp photography. Totally envious. Do you mind sharing your set up. Lighting, camera settings etc.?>>

 

Do I have a $1000 Nikon DSLR, with a $1000 lens, no I don't. I use a Fuji Finepix S3280 14MP 24x zoom P&S, with adjustable everything, purchased from a pawnshop for $100. White balance is the key, I use a custom setting. The cam determines the amount of WB I need based on the light smothering the coin. I also use macro mode, set my own aperture, ISO 64 setting and 2 second timer to engage the shutter. The tripod I use is about 18" off the coin this allows the proper amount of light. After uploading to my PC, the post editing is when you tweak the image to represent the piece in-hand. I also go as far as to use a small level to ensure the cam is square to the coin by placing it on the view finder, side to side front to back. The platform I use is also square to the cam. I collect Morgans which are easy to shoot for the most part. Dimes are more difficult because of their size, this is where a lens is needed and when shooting close ups of VAMs etc..

 

It's not pretty but it works. $100 cam, $5 tripod from a yardsale, and two $3 GE CFL's I do have another gold colored matching desk lamp, buy it's one my desk.

I'm unemployed, so this rig will have to feed my coin imaging addiction :) You won't find this in the Trueview Dept. at PCGS, I'm sure of it :)

 

DSCF0247.jpg

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brg5658

brg5658

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I'm a fan of the stabilizer! :) A 3lb weight from Gold's Gym. :grin:

 

I say use whatever works, and you have obviously found what works. Congrats on well done images. I do like black very much. For the past 6 months or so, I have been using a very dark gray background, allowing me to give a coin a little pop with a pure black shadow...and that shadow also separates the coin from the label which I position at the top between the coins.

 

The dimensions I use are:

 

Total size of image is 950 pixels wide by 500 pixels high.

Coin obverse and reverse are circular cropped and resized to 450 by 450 pixels

Label is cropped and resized to 225 pixels wide (and whatever the corresponding height is -- which differs depending on PCGS or NGC).

 

The final product looks like these:

1852_Large_Cent_NGC_MS65BN_composite.jpg

 

1964D_Kennedy_Half_NGC_MS66_rainbow_composite.jpg

 

1879S_Morgan_Dollar_NGC_MS67plus_composite.jpg

 

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morganguru

morganguru

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brg5658,

Very nice work, I like the shadow effect around the coin, tastefully done.

The images are also very sharp, I take it you're using a DSLR with lens?

My setup is quite comical isn't it? The weighted base fell apart it was concrete, so the weight cam in handy. Improvise, adapt and overcome :)

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brg5658

brg5658

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I use a Canon T2i (body around $400) and a bellows set up. I use a Pentax Autobellows ($50) and a Rodenstock APO-Rodagon-D 75mm f/4 duplicating lens (~$250) for almost all of my images. I use a mid-range quality copy-stand (~$80), but my bellows has a built in focusing rail, so the copy stand is just for stability, not for fine focusing.

 

Before my current set-up, I used one similar to yours. A $100 P&S, two $10 gooseneck lamps, and a cheap tripod. The only reason I upgraded my set-up was because I wanted to have more control on filling the entire sensor -- which is what the bellows allows me to do.

 

Your images are stellar though, there is no reason to change something that is working. I just wanted you to see the slight tweak that I have been using with a dark gray background. I still use pure black backgrounds if I'm showing larger single images of the obverse and reverse without a label.

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messydesk

messydesk

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I've talked up cheap-o setups like yours for quite a while, especially for someone just getting into shooting coins that is easily intimidated by either the cost or complexity of a technically more capable setup. Even gave a few presentations on them. One of the problems with cheap setups is that camera manufacturers are removing capability from the cheap cameras a little at a time. The most important of these is the ability to focus close with the lens zoomed. The Canon A800 was a really cheap camera that could do this. It's replacement, the A810, can't (although perhaps it could be hacked to do so).

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morganguru

morganguru

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<<I've talked up cheap-o setups like yours for quite a while, especially for someone just getting into shooting coins that is easily intimidated by either the cost or complexity of a technically more capable setup.>>

 

I'm not intimidated in the least, being UE I have to prioritize. My biggest fear is that a $500 DSLR out of the box may not produce any better images than what I already produce. It's not the body it's the lens. What's the latest macro lens go for? 3 or 4 hundred? I do like the Nikon D5100. The benefit of P&S is they use AA batteries. I have 3 set of rechargables always ready to go. A DSLR requires proprietary battery packs and are probably expensive. Any suggestion on a entry level DSLR? I would like to stick with Nikon.

Scott

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messydesk

messydesk

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Manual focus 105/4 Micro-Nikkor will set you back about $200. This was my main macro lens up until I bought the 200mm AF Micro-Nikkor, which I still focus manually. I still use the 33 year old 105 for slab shots and large coins where I can't get the camera far enough away or I can't see the coin through the viewfinder and reach it on the copy stand at the same time.

 

A DSLR body should last you several years. Buying an "entry level" (i.e., the cheapest) body that may be a little less capable of what you want means that you'll outgrow it and need to buy your next body sooner. Unlike Nikkor lenses, digital bodies lose their value over time. This doesn't mean you should buy a D800 or D4, but look at the features of the least expensive bodies and rule out those that would force you to compromise. I don't think the new, entry-level, 24 MP D3200 can be tethered to a PC, for example, and this is something that is worth the extra bucks up front. The D5100 (16MP) is currently a really good deal ($600 including kit lens, $500 body only at B&H), as it will be replaced next spring by the D5200 (24MP). It is the Nikon body I would recommend, once you're prepared to make a purchase. Until then, continued practice with your current setup will serve you well.

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blu62vette

blu62vette

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<<I've talked up cheap-o setups like yours for quite a while, especially for someone just getting into shooting coins that is easily intimidated by either the cost or complexity of a technically more capable setup.>>

 

I'm not intimidated in the least, being UE I have to prioritize. My biggest fear is that a $500 DSLR out of the box may not produce any better images than what I already produce. It's not the body it's the lens. What's the latest macro lens go for? 3 or 4 hundred? I do like the Nikon D5100. The benefit of P&S is they use AA batteries. I have 3 set of rechargables always ready to go. A DSLR requires proprietary battery packs and are probably expensive. Any suggestion on a entry level DSLR? I would like to stick with Nikon.

Scott

 

The latest macro will be over 400, the sigma 150 is around 1000 and the current nikon 105 is around 1100. AS John mentions, Nikon is great because the mount is unchanged and except for a few weird exceptions you can use any old lens. I think I have 6 or 7 macro lenses now, from brand new to 30+ years old.

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morganguru

morganguru

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Thanks for all the valuable input MD. An 18-55mm VR Lens is equivalent to a max of 4x zoom? Seems many bundles include this lens which appears to be not so good for coins. I do like the D5100. 16 MP will produce some large pics and Nikon lenses are interchangeable even if 20 years old right? If your gonna go DSLR the smart choice is Nikon, from what others have told me.

Thanks again,

Scott

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messydesk

messydesk

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Barring the weird exceptions Todd mentions (and they are weird), Nikon lenses back to 1977 (start of the "AI" mount era) will work unmodified on current DSLR. 35mm SLR lenses back to 1959, which is the first year Nikon made them, require a small modification on the aperture ring, and many such lenses have already been modified, as Nikon used to offer that service.

 

16 MP is 6 more than what's in my camera.

 

18-55 is about 3x. It's the lens you'll use for snapshots not involving coins.

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