hey all, just wondering if anyone has any tips techniques and equipment names that I can use to take decent pictures. I have tried using a normal camera except it cant seem to focus on the coin properly with the lens I have. so if you can spare me some advice and knowledge that would be great thanks again
Cooper:angel:
How good do you want your pics to be?
You can get very reasonable pics with a cheap set-up, but if
you want really good pics, it might cost a fair bit.
First up if your using a Point & Shoot Auto:
Find the little flower on camera = Close-up mode.
Then we can start.
Camera make and Model.
(http://i679.photobucket.com/albums/vv160/ford_prefect/Australian%20Coin%20Forum/IMG_2614_800_zpseee0e2c1.jpg)
Quote from: 'Fordprefect' pid='30780' dateline='1381650881'Camera make and Model.
Good starting point.
There are three broad ways to get an image.
1. Camera
2. Scanner
3. Microscope
Each of which breaks down further into categories and specific capabilities. And each has its strengths and weaknesses.
So knowing what you already have access to is a good start.
Cooper S, have a read of this thread. I included scans of recommended settings from a numismatic photography book.
http://www.australian-coins.net/showthread.php?tid=1078
thanks all for the advice, im mainly wanting to take pictures of errors and things like that for example the forum or ebay listings
Quote from: 'Cooper S' pid='30773' dateline='1381649691'hey all, just wondering if anyone has any tips techniques and equipment names that I can use to take decent pictures. I have tried using a normal camera except it cant seem to focus on the coin properly with the lens I have. so if you can spare me some advice and knowledge that would be great thanks again
Cooper:angel:
The simplest thing is to buy a little tripod.
This will mean that the camera will stay still.
Cost is about $5 from a camera shop.
will it take close pictures as close as I need them?
Quote from: 'Cooper S' pid='30820' dateline='1381696254'will it take close pictures as close as I need them?
That depends entirely on the camera. If it has Macro capability, it can focus almost in to the front of the lens. If not, then about three feet is as close as you can get.
So tell us what you have so we can look it up for you.
head along to the year 11 photography classes
there is a young girl who comes to the local coin show with her dad - she goes with her dad as no one else in the family takes any interest in his collecting
she is in grade 12 and does the photography electives
and she has given me some excellent advice on taking photos
she is a real gem
well because im in year 9 next year we recently chose our electives and I chose photography and agriculture. so hopefully I can get some of my knowledge from there. going on fulvios point of view I will have to get the stuff ready for listing so stay posted on the site ill post it tonight.
Here's an email I wrote this morning to someone who contacted us asking how to take better pictures.
Hi XXXXXX,
PPH asked me to respond to your email regarding coin images because I take all the images here and developed the system we use. You can see an image of our setup in the blog article below:
http://www.australian-threepence.com/blog/2011/04/how-we-take-our-coin-photos.html
We use a copy stand, a generic Nikon DSLR with a fixed focal length Tamron macro lens and two 300W halogen spots. Most shots are taken at f10 with an exposure time of anywhere between 1/160 up to 1/1200. The majority are at F10 and 1/320 though.
If I was to prioritize the things to sort out to get the best shots possible it would be:
1. Get a setup where your camera can be mounted above the coin in a fixed position with the camera lens at 90 degrees to the plane of the coin. We use a copy stand to do this but you could use a tripod or some sort of custom mount. The key is to get the focal plane of the camera to match the plane of the coin so that all of the coin is in focus without needing to use a small aperture (high f stop).
2. Get two of the brightest lights you can. When you think they are bright enough try to find brighter. You really want them as bright as possible. And get them ABOVE the coin as much as possible. You want the angle that the light hits the coin to be at least 70 degrees to the plane of the coin. Get the lights to hit the coin at 10 and 2 o'clock.
3. (this is counter intuitive) get your camera AWAY from the coin. At least 30 cm. This allows the coin to be lit naturally. It will give you the best balance between bringing out the toning and lustre on the coin while still producing a decent level of detail.
4. Put your camera in Macro mode (if it has it).
5. Adjust your white balance on your camera. Use the manual setting (if your camera has it).
6. (and finally) get a DSLR with a full sized CMOS sensor and fixed length macro lens.
7. If possible take your images using remote shutter triggering. That is from a PC or a remote cable for the camera to stop the camera shaking when it takes your images.
Steps 1-5 don't cost much at all and can be achieved with a copy stand, some lights and a cheap point and click camera. Our copystand cost $50 second hand and the lights and globes were under $100. And the setup gave perfectly acceptable images using an old Nikon point and click camera that we'd had for years. Step 6 is the pricy stage and there's not much point getting the DSLR without the fixed length macro lens. A DSLR with a generic zoom lens won't give noticeably better images than a point-and-click camera. The fixed length macro lens is what really improves things.
thanks for that my aunty used to own a Kodak shop so maybe she might have some of those laying around.
Quote from: 'Cooper S' pid='30909' dateline='1381739824'thanks for that my aunty used to own a Kodak shop so maybe she might have some of those laying around.
That's a terrific idea. Scanners and photocopies killed off copystands, they can be found very cheaply.
Quote from: 'markn' pid='30913' dateline='1381739949'killed off copystands, they can be found very cheaply.
A lot of stuff has been killed off. We've got tons of assorted gear and supplies still in storage from the shop which will likely go to the tip one day. :(
Anybody want to buy a Linhof in pristine condition?
Quote from: 'Fulvio' pid='30933' dateline='1381741009'Quote from: 'markn' pid='30913' dateline='1381739949'killed off copystands, they can be found very cheaply.
A lot of stuff has been killed off. We've got tons of assorted gear and supplies still in storage from the shop which will likely go to the tip one day. :(
Anybody want to buy a Linhof in pristine condition?
what the hells a linhof
Quote from: 'Cooper S' pid='30935' dateline='1381741167'what the hells a linhof
A
REAL camera. ;)
are they those really old ones with the weird case?
Quote from: 'Cooper S' pid='30940' dateline='1381741619'are they those really old ones with the weird case?
Can't recall the exact model off the top of my head, but they're all more or less like this:
(http://www.butkus.org/chinon/linhof/linhof_color/linhof1.jpg)
Worth about seven grand last I looked.
we have two of those I think :)
Still on of the best cameras to take high quality pictures with.
Can one still buy film for these cameras?
4 X 5 inch Kodak last time I checked still produced this size film
Quote from: 'Goldseeker' pid='30992' dateline='1381754577'Can one still buy film for these cameras?
I doubt it will ever go completely out of production. This is a niche that isn't going to disappear anytime soon.
Yeah I seen a thing on TV not so long ago and they reckon that they will always make film of all sorts as people like different things but you'll pay more as the need isn't there due to computers but some film/movie/picture makers and pro's that still use dark rooms will still want it, sort of like B&W photos, I still think they make a good photo but colour does have it's place :)
Quote from: 'ausjack' pid='31011' dateline='1381762595'as people like different things
Its not that so much, as certain industrial uses where film can't be replaced.
it's only a matter of time as when I was at the hospital and me mate Kyle showed me around the new scanners he showed me the new creamy coloured boxes that they use instead of x-ray film and he did tell me the prices but I've forgotten sorry and also the weights and something about you can drop it from a certain hight and only once or something and then they have to go back to get fixed but the prices he said were just BS :)
By mixing the best of new technology (dslr cameras) and old technology (bellows and fixed lenses) some truly amazing results can be achieved.!
Editing programmes allow easy conversion from colour to black and white.!!
(http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o787/robster836/de36d7e2-8e0c-41e2-99e8-8f1213b07c36_zpsffc6f5bb.jpg)
omg , I tried it and look what happened to my dog https://fbcdn-sphotos-
https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/p480x480/1150779_369597989836439_90779745_n.jpg .
quick, kill that rodent Robster ;) and Kel that was a rippa :laugh2: I want one :)
I took him for a haircut , and said to give him a hair cut like tony curtis and this is what they did to him , I said that is not a tony Curtis hair, don't you know tony Curtis , and the barber lady said , sure I do , I saw the movie ( the king and I ) 3 times .
no body gets into our yard without us knowing and we have never
been robbed .. ,, kel ,,
Quote from: 'keldaw' pid='31045' dateline='1381797994'I took him for a haircut , and said to give him a hair cut like tony curtis and this is what they did to him , I said that is not a tony Curtis hair, don't you know tony Curtis , and the barber lady said , sure I do , I saw the movie ( the king and I ) 3 times .
no body gets into our yard without us knowing and we have never
been robbed .. ,, kel ,,
Hmm...I think you might have meant Yul Brynner. :grin:
joke nancy, joke ,
that is a joke nancy ,sorry , I know who tony curtis is but the lady who cut his hair made a mistake and thought it was tony curtis who had the bald head and acted in the movie , the king and I
and not yul brynner . sorry mate forgive me please .. ,, kel ,,
Don't you just hate having to explain jokes? ;)
OK Kel. I mis-read it. Solly! That'll teach me to pay more attention to what I'm reading. :dodgy:
no need to be sorry nancy , you are the same age as me you know ,
so I can understand what we are going through ,.I do the same thing
it,s called growing old and it frightens hell out of me every day . ,, kel ,,
testing testing i 123 (http://i57.tinypic.com/v3kr9k.png)
First is a scan at 1200dpi I used to think was great for detail and awfull on colour.
[attachment=3042]
Second is USB microscope, the best I can get out of it yet, even so were ar all scratches ?
[attachment=3043]
Third point and shoot camera set to M manuel played with a few things, detail is great, outside bright sunny day in the shade out of glare, tripod and time set 10 seconds, not bothered to change if I could, stop shaking when depressing shutter.
[attachment=3044]
Surprised with this outcome and room for improvement.
Hard to capture colour, maybe silver harder ??
[attachment=3045]
This is just my learning opinion, thought I would share and love to hear yours.
The coin is one of my better finds to date amongst a tip run with some other's a past student collection I would suggest, no treasure chest but a good find to kick start my collection.
George
To me, image #2 is the best, but both 3 & 4 show a fingerprint that neither 1 or 2 show. Might be something to remember for later on. :winkextra:
Quote from: '6eor6e6' pid='63116' dateline='1417321400'This is just my learning opinion, thought I would share and love to hear yours.
Before you go any further, Change Picture Size setting in camera.
Your current setting is set at 640X480, which is the
Worstyou can pick.
Set to largest Image Size via menu.
(http://i679.photobucket.com/albums/vv160/ford_prefect/ACF%20Odd%20Stuff/A460ImageSize_zps9a0b5c39.jpg)
Thanks Fordprefect, had deliberately set at small, thinking it would be enough and thought i would lose quality when resizing. Would of been the last thing I think of.
I had a 58 Ford Prefect in mid 70's with 1600 cortina motor & running gear, nippy. Might have photo somewere if so will post.
Great thanks again George
Mrs. Robster took a pic of the enlarger stand and attached camera.
(http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o787/robster836/20150803_185832_zpsiiojwjvd.jpg)
Very neat Robster!!! Top job!
wow, now that's some set up Robster, very nice I am impressed mate :drooling:
and really love the mouse, what a pearla :winkextra:
Nice setup Robster.
Lucky you. I have been looking for one of those stands (second hand at a reasonable price) for yonks.
I use a similar set up to Robster.
The stands can be purchased rather cheaply if you ask the right questions of the seller to see how the enlargers get mounted you can re-purpose one rather easily. I purchased my old enlarger stand for $20 then ordered a tripod head online for about $30 I was lucky enough that the stand had a common cameras thread in it but I know others that have done a little DIY to make it work.
Something like this would probably work if you took the enlarger unit off it and checked the screw thread just under neath that sticks out the front. Hope you can work or what I mean lol
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Enlarger-LPL-3301D-/151663494846?hash=item234fd946be
others around if you search film enlarger , darkroom enlarger etc other local auction sites might be even cheaper
Quote from: 'Robster' pid='76960' dateline='1438595580'Mrs. Robster took a pic of the enlarger stand and attached camera.
(http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o787/robster836/20150803_185832_zpsiiojwjvd.jpg)
Antiques Roadshow on TV? :winkextra:
Gotta love the old stuff.!
I am just trying out new way of taking pictures .
(http://i68.tinypic.com/2m6q4jc.jpg)
(http://i66.tinypic.com/e8reww.jpg)
(http://i65.tinypic.com/169nq55.jpg)
(http://i68.tinypic.com/1zouk3n.jpg)
(http://i64.tinypic.com/5pph5d.jpg)
(http://i67.tinypic.com/2elxtlu.jpg)
(http://i66.tinypic.com/104hzkn.jpg)
wow!! well done Kel
Nice pics Kel.! :ok:
That's a huge improvement Kel :yahoo:
What are you using to take these images with ??
Quote from: 'robbiegal' pid='82785' dateline='1450172583'wow!! well done Kel
:i_agree: Well done Kel!
Great work Kel, especially since they're in slabs.
thank you all for your comments ,
I used my Lumix Leica 16 mega pixels instamatic camera , out on my back patio in good light , sat further back from the coin and used my zoom , then cropped the pic on my p/c then used tiny pic .
I tried sitting up closer ,but i kept getting reflections .
I am still trying to take good pictures of my coins just as you people do , but no luck so far .
does anybody have the same camera as I do so I can find out how to adjust all the settings please ?
my camera details are ;; Panasonic DMC -FH8 stamped on the top of the camera .
colour silver , lumix 16 mega pixels on the top right corner ,
on the outer ring it reads , mega o.i.s. / 24 mm wide ,
on the inner ring it reads ; leica ,dc vario -summarit 1 .2.5-6 4/4.3-215 ASPH
on the right hand side down the bottom is a large silver l in a gold square
if anybody knows the true settings on this camera ,
could you please pass them on to me thanks .