Numismatic Photography Equipment

[coinman_23885]

Several months have passed since this topic was brought up, so I would very much appreciate an update from those of you who specialize in numismatic photography.

 

(1) What is the best type of camera to use (i.e. what makes and models do you recommend)?

 

(2) What lighting equipment and setup do you recommend? (For this part, I realize that there are multiple type of lighting that may be desirable depending on the circumstances, but what general equipment would you purchase?)

 

(3) What other equipment (stands, etc.), do you think are useful to have?

 

Any help would be appreciated.

[rmpsrpms]

1) Canon DSLR. At least XS, or preferably T2i.

2) Jansjo gooseneck LED from IKEA. Get 2.

3) Decent copy stand with fine adjustment capability.

You will also need a lens for the camera, but that's a whole separate discussion.

[Bruceswar]

Here is a pretty good read..

 

So You Wanna Photo Coins!

[cpm9ball]

Just an added FWIW regarding the copy stand:

 

Don't buy a copy stand just because the price is low. The cheaper models are just that.....CHEAP! They are not as steady, the adjustments can be loose and the clamps can break easily. I know because I made that mistake once!

 

Chris

 

 

[coinman_23885]

Here is a pretty good read..

 

So You Wanna Photo Coins!

 

I found your thread to be very interesting. In terms of models and brands, what would your recommendations be?

[rmpsrpms]

Don't buy a copy stand just because the price is low. The cheaper models are just that.....CHEAP! They are not as steady, the adjustments can be loose and the clamps can break easily. I know because I made that mistake once!

 

Very true. Vibration and lack of fine adjustability for height/focus are problems with the cheaper stands. Here are some pics of numismatic photography setups using very rigid microscope stands.

 

[newprepper]

what kind of lights are those? Pros, cons?

[CyberspaceVoid]

what kind of lights are those? Pros, cons?

 

Jansjo gooseneck LEDs from IKEA - very inexpensive

[newprepper]

how do they affect the color of the coin?

[rmpsrpms]

They are 3000K, very close to the 3200K "tungsten" white balance setting for most DSLRs, so you can usually just set the WB to tungsten and the color comes out very accurate.

 

The disadvantage they have is the LED source is very small, and can create extreme local contrast on shiny (luster) areas of the coin. This leads to the "red and blue sparklies" effect as the sensor is locally overloaded. It's easy to remedy this by using a little diffusion, such as a simple piece of tissue over the light, to spread the light out and make it look "bigger". The LEDs run cooler than an incandescent (but they do still get fairly warm) so you can play all sorts of games with them for diffusion, etc.

[bsshog40]

I still think my shop light with camera mount is steady also. I had no need to buy an expensive copy stand. My camera mounts tight and if you use a timer, as I do, to take the pic, there is no shaking at all.

 

[Bruceswar]

Here is a pretty good read..

 

So You Wanna Photo Coins!

 

I found your thread to be very interesting. In terms of models and brands, what would your recommendations be?

 

I use OTT lights.

 

I use a Canon DSLR. My camera doubles over for sports use so it is a high end camera, but cheaper DSLR's will work.

 

I use my stock lens or another short lens. I do not use a Macro lens though I likely should.

[bsshog40]

Here is a pretty good read..

 

So You Wanna Photo Coins!

 

I found your thread to be very interesting. In terms of models and brands, what would your recommendations be?

 

I use OTT lights.

 

I use a Canon DSLR. My camera doubles over for sports use so it is a high end camera, but cheaper DSLR's will work.

 

I use my stock lens or another short lens. I do not use a Macro lens though I likely should.

Agree, OTT lights are great. I also want to get a new dslr camera one day but my canon does great without the need for macro lenses right now.

[TomB]

You can acquire quality shots with a bewildering array of camera, light, and lens combinations. The trick might be to find that combination that meets your current and future needs rather than to find something that works for someone else's style. I use several pieces that might be considered obsolete yet my set-up works well for me. Regardless of what you choose, I would expect you would need hundreds, if not thousands, of shots to develop a reproducible style that you might be quite satisfied with over the long haul.

 

 

 

[rmpsrpms]

One of the most important questions I ask folks who want a Numismatic Photography setup is "what are the smallest and largest coins you want to photograph, and do you want to photograph details such as die markers". Photographing full coin shots takes different equipment than does photographing variety markers. Same camera will work, but lenses for higher magnifications are more specialized and vibration in the setup becomes a problem. I've found, for instance, that Nikon cameras don't work well for magnifications above 1:1 due to "shutter shake". Newer Canon cameras don't have that problem because of their EFSC functionality. Don't take me wrong, I am not bashing Nikon (most of my equipment is Nikon, including two camera bodies) but Canon just simply works better for higher mags, and marginally better even for lower mags. No matter how rigid your copy stand is, if the camera itself vibrates, you are going to have problems...Ray

[TomB]

Ray brings up an excellent point about the size of the intended subject matter. This can influence copy stand, lens and lighting. Shutter shake (or mirror shake) can be an enormous problem if not dealt with properly.

[ldhair]

I'm using a Canon with a 150 macro lens. The camera has a feature that allows you to lock the mirror. It seems to help with macro work.

 

With the right software and cable you can take the shots from the PC using the mouse. This also helps with vibration problems.

 

After a lot of practice and more practice and more practice, I'm getting nice images most of the time. I still need to practice more.

[rmpsrpms]

Canon's EFSC (Electronic First Shutter Curtain) works only when the camera is in Live View mode. It can either be tethered to a PC and thus providing live update on the video monitor, or un-tethered and providing live update on the camera LCD screen, but it must be in live view for EFSC to work. Basically, EFSC quenches the photosites on the sensor electronically (rather than closing the shutter to quench them), then exposes the sensor for the required time, finally closing the shutter at end of the exposure. This eliminates all vibration until after the end of the exposure. It's an extremely nice feature that gets very little press but is primarily responsible for Canon's better IQ at higher magnifications where even the tiniest vibration causes problems...Ray

[Hard Times]

Each time a thread on imaging comes up, I say the same thing. Buy the book:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Numismatic-Photography-2nd-Mark-Goodman/dp/193399004X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1354277254&sr=8-1&keywords=mark+goodman+coins

 

I have two copies and continue to refer back to them all of the time. Everything to get someone started and progress is in there. Best investment in photography you will make if you want images like those show above.

 

Best, HT

 

 

 

[Coindude]

I have to agree with Mr Hard Times on that.

[coinsandmedals]

Given how quickly technology changes and the fact this post has not been updated since 2012, are there any new recommendations as far as cameras to use? For those of you have seen the pictures I post it is clear my iPhone and desk lamp are just not doing the trick.