GoldFinger1969

I was never good at that....I'm basically an Excel beginner. Are you talking about the spreadsheet and Hyperlink function on your phone or PC ?

The great thing is that for the modern coins (which are graded) and the non-modern gradeds, you get great pics. Though I'm not sure if it's the actual coin for a modern or a representative of the coin type.

I had forgotten about this but when I got my 1st smartphone a few years ago and I was fooling around and learning how to use "apps" (didn't even know what they were ! )...I used the barcode scanner thing a few times. I never registered for the registry....I just punched in numbers and/or scanned using the optical barcode reader....but apparently, they were saved on my phone or the site (even though I never created a registry other than my NGC login name). When I went to try it again today after a member here mentioned the App, the old look-ups were still there. Anyway....CB....I might have use to do like you and "keep a digital record of my coin inventory." This would require me to create a registry login, right -- not just my Forum name that I created here ? But I won't have to do the registry points thing ? I just thought it might be nice to have something on my smartphone other than a picture of my Excel Spreadsheet of my coin listings. Wondering about the possibility though of having my barcodes "stolen" and used by counterfeiters, though.

The Coin Purse is your LCS ? For adults, stuff like the Spiderman Coin may be seen as gimmicks....but if it gets youngsters into the hobby like the State Coin program, I'm all for it.

Eagle, I think I read somewhere sometime that bulk grading costs for large submitters was maybe $15-$20 per coin, is that right ? And for most individuals here, $25-$35 is a fair range ?

You've said that luster is light reflecting off thousands of microscopic "ridges" caused by deformations in the metal caused by the pressure of the striking (I remembered ! ). How would the picture look for 2 coins that were essentially the same but one had great luster (not handled at all) but the other was essentially full of luster-breaks from handling ?

You would think some would be up for sale on Ebay or camera auction sites from people selling their equipment or looking to get digital replacements or estates needing to liquidate.

Yeah, I've heard that...hard to believe that a 1960's vinyl record might more accurately represent what The Beatles or The Rolling Stones actually sang 55 years ago than if you could go back in time and bring a digital recorder. .

For a few hundred $$$ today, you can get a fully-computerized scope (4-6") with decent optics that you lock on to 2 or 3 stars...and then can slew to any of thousands of objects pre-programmed. So many people lost interest in astronomy over the decades because they couldn't find anything with their scopes. No longer a problem !

Well, we have some super-savvy experts here so feel free to ask away. I consider myself a beginner-to-intermediate coin collector with a passion for $20 Double Eagles (an expensive passion which limits my buying frequency, unfortunately ), other gold coins, Morgans and silver coins, commemoratives (mostly moderns), and modern coins/bullion. I do lots of reading and compiling of information and little factual tidbits, so if you have questions on those coin types or sectors, feel free to pick my brain.

Thank you for your service !! This can be a rewarding hobby and you can certainly make a living from it. However, to avoid LOSING money by not knowing too much about coins in general or a specific niche....might I suggest going slow and maybe seeking a PT job in a LCS (Local Coin Shop) or helping out someone who displays at local or regional coin shows ? It would be a good opportunity to LEARN about coins...and learn about the business of coins...before committing your time and $$$. Some of us here are dealers who make a living....others have been lucky to buy very cheap and seen nice gains in our collections....BUT MOST OF US probably have collections worth exactly what we paid for them, maybe even less. Even if we made $$$, it is probably less than we could have done in CDs or stocks (we have threads debating this ). We do this because we ENJOY IT and just like you looking for help with anxiety it gives us pleasure from the daily grind and toll of our other life situations. Again, coins are a hobby, not an investment -- that's how we treat them (well, most of us anyway ). So yes, coins are DEFINITELY fun to buy/sell and learn about....and they CAN (occasionally) be lucrative (but don't count on it)....but go slow and please ask questions so we can assist you.

Eli, are you planning on just looking for valuable coins and hoping lightning strikes...or do you intend to learn, educate yourself, spend time reading....and then buy (and maybe sell) certain coins or types of coins?

Is that true, Sandon ? I only ask because I see plenty of coins that sell for UNDER $50 and even if the TPG did the grading at cost (materials for the holderr, grade, time of the graders) it's got to be $15 at the cheapest....and yet, I find coins in holders that sell for as cheap as $25. In fact, I bought one -- a 69 Red Penny -- at FUN 2020 when I just wanted to completely empty my wallet on the final day. I would guess maybe the more active dealers get big discounts or even some comps on holders for less-expensive coins. Considering the materials and time spent on expensive coins is about the same yet with a much more expensive price tag...they can afford it.

And those zoom lenses and wide-angles can cost serious $$$.....I believe anywhere from $300 - $1,000. Not included with the camera !!

It wasn't a bad photo, so don't beat yourself up. You can CLEARLY see it's an eagle. The fact you say you used maximum Zoom explains why the image was a bit blurry and not razor-sharp. Not sure how far away the eagle was, but look at my 3rd photo above of the trees.....it's not as sharp as the No-Zoom photo or even the 4x-Zoom photo. That's from 60 feet away and I'm shooting big branches 3-5 feet long...imagine going after a bird that is maybe 18" long/high. Yes....if you were going to photograph wildlife and need to zoom in 20-50x WITHOUT loosing sharpness, you need professional zoom and optical lenses (like the ones we see on NatGeo or PBS). They are also easier to hold...and mount...than a phone, as some said above.

If it was IN Chicago, security would be a no-brainer. Isn't Rosemont like Chicago suburbs ?

Here's 3 photos I just took outside my terrace door. It's probably 60 feet to the trees across the parking lot (I'm on the 2nd floor about 15 feet above the ground). I took these 3 shots with no zoom, 4x zoom, and 8x zoom.

On my Galaxy S9, I just use the basic PHOTO feature (not SINGLE TAKE, SPORT, ACTION, etc.). The auto-focus should work if you are shooting an eagle from 5 feet away or 50 feet away. Tap the screen object to let the camera know that's what you want to focus on (if there are objects in the foreground AND background, it doesn't know which object to focus on -- you have to let it know). Sometimes a Yellow Dot or circle will appear when you have locked in on the item...or the camera locks in on something else (tap what you want to focus on to switch). Take some photos of trees equal to the distance of that eagle and see if they are razor-sharp and you can also zoom in on the photo or object without losing too much clarity. You should be able to do that. If I could, I'd post a video of my dog Teddy, where I zoom in...you can see it loses A BIT of sharpness but not too much.

You're probably right, Karen.......but we have some super-knowledgeable folks here so I thought I would pick their brains on PQ and stuff like that. I have some smart guys in my astronomy club but I'm just into viewing, not imaging and photographs.

I also have a mini-glass table (maybe 15" diamter) that I can do the same thing...the key is just have something that you place the phone against so it can't move and is already close to the coin so you need minimal zooming for the whole slab and just a bit more to zoom in on the coin and enlarge it to the max size. Mini-tripod I've had for 20+ years was also a worthwhile investment.

That "dynamic range" must be what old films have and those 35 mm photos/slides my father took when I was growing up. I wasn't aware of NASA doing special cameras, I'll ask NASA folks next time they come to NEAF. We've been taught that digital is "better" than analog (4K > Blu-Ray > DVD > S-VHS > VHS > OTA TV).

Why is FILM more "accurate" to the naked eye than a digital reproduction ? BTW...I have a photo my father took when our house was being built in 1966....he probably used a Konica 35 mm....yet, the resolution is 3328x2216. I would have thought it was at most 1/3rd that level of pixels/resolution. I was watching TCM years ago and they said something like old film -- B&W or color -- had lots of "data" or information or bits contained that you really don't lose anything when you do a HD transfer. I suspect my old Instamatic camera or one of those throw-awys probably had film with much less resolution than my dad's 1960's 35mm.

You need a fixed point to shoot from. Use a mini-tripod....OR...take them manually but have the coins on a box or something where you push the phone flush against the box so it's in the same location each time. The angle of the phone or whether you raise/lower it can change but that's easier to prevent than shaking the camera which won't happen when pressed. Here's my setup. I put the coin up against the back of the La-Z-Boy chair....black velvet prevents it hitting the box if it slides....I put the bottom of the phone up against the front of the box....the yellow BEST SHOT indicator will turn on when I have optimized the shot (I have a Galaxy S9)....depending on the coin's glare, I will angle the phone a bit different or slide it up/down but for the most part pushing it forward against the box means shaking/jitter/motion is practically eliminated....I use the (optical) zoom up to about 2.2x for most coins, small ones I can zoom up to 4x if I want a full close-up and maximize the size of the coin. Right above the chair...coming down right on the box....I have an overhead lamp with an LED light which is probably a bit high on brightness but works. I can angle it around if I'm having a glare problem with very reflective coins (i.e, Morgan Silver Dollars). I think it's 1100 lumens, probably can better utilize 500-750.

One of the reasons I've been active on the photo and camera threads and posts the last few days is I just took pictures of ALL my coins so I have a record for my own knowledge (while at a show or LCS)...for insurance purposes....and to catalog how they look. As it turned out, it also lets you go back and see if the coin has changed. And unfortunately, one of mine has.......it's an 1898 Morgan Silver Dollar MS64 PL. If you look closely, you can see the dark/black blotch at 9 PM. It could be toning, but if it is it's monochromatic only and black. I'm a bit teed off since I figured a coin that didn't tone or show other blemishes for 120 years was probably safe. I guess not. I can't believe I bought it like this but I have to check and see if I took pics of the coin years ago on an older smartphone.

Ditto with me, Hog. But the pics should be razor-sharp on the basic PHOTO default setting (don't use SINGLE TAKE or one of the other settings like SPORT, etc.). If they aren't, do check the lens to make sure it's not dirty (probably isn't). Clean out your cache and maybe re-start the phone. If that doesn't fix it, just shake the phone for 2-4 seconds and take a pic. Keep doing it until it sharpens. The camera actually took sharp pics of my coins or anything up-close to focus on...but not anything normal or far-away distance. It was clearly something with the auto-focus getting "stuck." There's a few photos or links out there if you search for "Samsung camera, blurry, shake solution."