1941D RPM

[Keith]

Hi everyone - I am new around here. Anyone have any suggestions on how to "properly" photograph a coin for posting?

[jallengomez]

Keith,

Search "photography" using the forum search feature and you'll find a lot of discussions with lots of helpful information.

[Keith]

Thanks, I appreciate the help

[jcuve]

We have a whole forum on photography here: http://lincolncentresource.net/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=33

[ray_parkhurst]

Keith...welcome to the forum! There are so many different methods and types of equipment suitable for coin photography that it's hard to describe. Perhaps you could tell us what you want to accomplish? Do you want to do whole coin shots, detail closeups of varieties, or both? What equipment do you already have? There are lots of photographers on the forum, though each of us has his/her own way of doing things that we've developed mostly on our own. We can give you advice, but you will likely have to integrate it all together and come up with your own way, and that way will likely change over time as you gain experience.

[Keith]

Actually I would like to photograph whole coins and detail close ups. All I have now is a small digital camera that I fix to a tripod and set it on macro setting, then in a moment of inspiration yesterday I figured out a way to affix my loupe to it and really zoom in! :bigsmile: but the lighting is all bad. I am thinking about purchasing a stereoscope but have no idea what to buy. So any help or info you have is much appreciated!

[Peter]

There have been a lot of discussions on stereoscopes and various microscopes on LCR. Try the search function above to find those old threads that should prove helpful.

[ray_parkhurst]

The key to good lighting is to get the camera as far away from the coin as possible so that it doesn't block the light. You can also go with small lights that can get in close to the coin, even between the camera and coin. I like the IKEA Jansjo LED gooseneck lights for this. They are available at IKEA stores for $10 each, and a pair of them make excellent light sources for coins. You need to diffuse them a little with tissue or vellum to minimize glare.

Regarding microscopes, most folks will recommend Amscopes, though some report bad results with them. Amscope makes versions that have camera ports, but you will probably get as good or better results just using your digital camera directly with the loupe or held up to the camera eyepiece. My personal favorite for microscopes are the vintage Bausch & Lomb Stereo/StereoZooms. You can get them fairly cheaply, especially the fixed magnification (1x or 2x pod) types. Even the Zoom types often go for <$100 on eBay and are a great bargain as long as the optics are good in them...

One thing you can try with your camera is to use an enlarging lens as an infinite objective. I know, lots of words and terms...basically you already know what to do using a loupe for high magnification. If you do the same thing using a long-focal length enlarging lens, you can get full-coin Cent photos pretty easily and the quality is excellent. Plus, you will get more working distance for your lighting. I would recommend starting with an inexpensive lens to test it out. A good starting lens is a Vivitar LU 75mm. These sell on eBay for about$15-$25, so not a big investment. Hold the lens up to your camera like you did the loupe, with the front of lens toward the camera and back of lens toward the coin, with the lens about 3" or so from the coin, and you'll be good to go. The 3" working distance is big enough to get Jansjo lights where you need them to be.

[Keith]

Ray, Thanks so much for the information - you have been a big help. I am sure I will get this figured out shortly!

[Arjohn]

Do you have an Iphone? I ask only because there is a free app called "Magnifying Glass" that also utilizes the camera - I find using a 4 inch high stand and placing the phone on that and adjusting the magnification, allows you to take very passable full coin shots with some decent detail. I include a shot of a coin from my collection using my Iphone
Also if you have a scanner and it is able to scan at 1200 DPI -- this takes nice shots too and with the higher DPI allows some enlargement without pixilization... Don't have any examples on this computer, sorry, but they are great.

[Keith]

Awesome! Thanks for the info