Physics-fan3.14's Prooflike Photo Contest

[messydesk]

This was my prediction some time ago, but I can't find it. The technical skills have improved to the point where these contests aren't about judging skills anymore. Instead, they're about artistic interpretation, which is far more subjective.

There is a little bit of that sure...but I think very little. After I viewed the photos I saw some that were sharper than others, some that had bits of over-exposure and some that had bits of under-exposure and a couple that I thought had white balance issues. Once you eliminated the photos that had those "technical issues" then you got to the artistic interpretation / subjective parts which only left you with 3 or 4 sets of images in my view. There is still plenty of ground to cover in the technical realm.

...

Perhaps I exaggerate. There is certainly skill that needs to be judged, but as you said, you were able to take a group of 12 photos and narrow it down to 4 sets to choose from. This isn't how it used to be. Compare this with contests of 5-8 years ago, where you'd need 20 or 30 sets to get that many. Assuming that additional contestants would produce similar quality photos, a 30-contestant contest, aside from taking the better part of a year, would give you 8-10 sets of technically highly competent photos that would have to be judged based on artistic preference.

[Hard Times]

One reason some of them may be out of focus is that they are tilting the coin toward the light to bring out the colors in the toning. I would say that is the case for at least two of them. Unless they have some type of mechanism (such as a t/s lens) to bring everything into focus at the same time, you won't have a crisp image but one rich in color.

 

Best, HT

[robec1347]

One reason some of them may be out of focus is that they are tilting the coin toward the light to bring out the colors in the toning. I would say that is the case for at least two of them. Unless they have some type of mechanism (such as a t/s lens) to bring everything into focus at the same time, you won't have a crisp image but one rich in color.

 

Best, HT

 

Another reason some look out of focus is the way Photobucket handles JPG's.

In many cases they soften photos in both focus and color. That is the primary reason I don't use PB any longer.

 

I am in complete agreement with the way the voting is going. There are some fabulous results among the top 6 or 7.

[physics-fan3.14]

One reason some of them may be out of focus is that they are tilting the coin toward the light to bring out the colors in the toning. I would say that is the case for at least two of them. Unless they have some type of mechanism (such as a t/s lens) to bring everything into focus at the same time, you won't have a crisp image but one rich in color.

 

Best, HT

 

Another reason some look out of focus is the way Photobucket handles JPG's.

In many cases they soften photos in both focus and color. That is the primary reason I don't use PB any longer.

 

I am in complete agreement with the way the voting is going. There are some fabulous results among the top 6 or 7.

 

That shouldn't make a huge difference since all of the photos are being hosted by photobucket. If some were pb and some weren't, I might be inclined to agree with you.

[robec1347]

One reason some of them may be out of focus is that they are tilting the coin toward the light to bring out the colors in the toning. I would say that is the case for at least two of them. Unless they have some type of mechanism (such as a t/s lens) to bring everything into focus at the same time, you won't have a crisp image but one rich in color.

 

Best, HT

 

Another reason some look out of focus is the way Photobucket handles JPG's.

In many cases they soften photos in both focus and color. That is the primary reason I don't use PB any longer.

 

I am in complete agreement with the way the voting is going. There are some fabulous results among the top 6 or 7.

 

That shouldn't make a huge difference since all of the photos are being hosted by photobucket. If some were pb and some weren't, I might be inclined to agree with you.

 

It won't and shouldn't make a difference in voting, but I can see the difference. I don't have an answer why some are effected and others aren't.

[Deerefan8420]

Thank you, Jason, for allowing myself and all of the other great photographers to participate in this contest. It is amazing to see how each photographer captured the coin in their images. I'm proud to have been a part of this contest with this excellent group of people. I am looking forward to the next challenge!

[mikew148]

Ok, I guess I get to be the unpopular contestant this time.

 

The fields of this coin show much more color than any of the front runners chose to exhibit. Jason said in his original post that someone "almost caught the coin, but not quite".

This lead me to believe that we were going to try to represent this coin at it's best angle of light.

 

I took more than 150 images of this coin and I can say with 100% certainty - none of the images here do this coin justice. NONE OF THEM.

 

This coin has an extraordinary eye appeal and unfortunately it appears that a conservative approach to imaging this beauty is going to be the winner.

 

Future contests might want to have only members that have seen the coin be eligible to cast a vote.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Deerefan8420]

 

I took more than 150 images of this coin and I can say with 100% certainty - none of the images here do this coin justice. NONE OF THEM.

 

I would have to disagree with you. I've got around 200 images of each side of the coin myself. It was quite difficult to choose which images I wanted to use for the contest that best represented the coin as a whole. The coin was tough to image because it had a lot going for it, and it was quite difficult to bring all those qualities together in one shot.

[Crazy Mtn Coins]

I want to thank Jason also for going to the trouble of putting on this contest. I enjoyed the challenge but did not do worth a darn. But I took on the challenge just to learn and see how others would picture the same coin as me. I have no idea how many photos I took, but a lot. My two handicaps are inexperience and my old eyes. I had lens implants in both eyes a few years ago and my dominant eye (right) does not see very clearly close up. After this contest, I may try some experiments with focus. When I viewed the coin under bright light, I could see many colors. So I attempted to capture those and still have a clear image. Unfortunately it did not turn out. I finally said that is the best I can do for now. But if there is another contest, I will probably try again.

[Coindude]

I voted for three of the top vote getters on the obverse. interestingly enough I did not vote for the same reverses save one. I don't think anyone totally captured the coin but there are some very good representations. From past experience I already know who a couple of the photographers are but there are a few who are a mystery. Well done on hosting the contest and photography. After seeing my image compared with the others I will have to say that my screen needs color calibration!

[bsshog40]

Ok, I guess I get to be the unpopular contestant this time.

 

The fields of this coin show much more color than any of the front runners chose to exhibit. Jason said in his original post that someone "almost caught the coin, but not quite".

This lead me to believe that we were going to try to represent this coin at it's best angle of light.

 

I took more than 150 images of this coin and I can say with 100% certainty - none of the images here do this coin justice. NONE OF THEM.

 

This coin has an extraordinary eye appeal and unfortunately it appears that a conservative approach to imaging this beauty is going to be the winner.

 

Future contests might want to have only members that have seen the coin be eligible to cast a vote.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have to say that everyone looks at a coin differently. I took pictures myself of how I wanted to perceive the coin. The objective of this contest was to test your own perception of the coin and to photograph it to the best of your abilities. Having this coin in-hand myself, certain perceptions were very challenging. I think the pictures up for vote are pretty dang good considering shooting thru a slab and trying to get the picture to represent what you can see. What I consider also is that some may have elaborate setups compared to some that merely have a camera in hand and using this contest to challenge themselves. Regardless of what perception and preference that the voters choose, I like to look at this contest as a measure of my abilities to do the best I can to bring out what I wanted to make the coin look like. I feel I did the best I could. I also see others that did better than me and I commend them because I know what challenges they faced. I'm sure, that when all is said and done, that Jason will also have his input when the contest is over. I also hope that all contestants names will be revealed with their photos. (thumbs u

[mikew148]

 

I took more than 150 images of this coin and I can say with 100% certainty - none of the images here do this coin justice. NONE OF THEM.

 

I would have to disagree with you. I've got around 200 images of each side of the coin myself. It was quite difficult to choose which images I wanted to use for the contest that best represented the coin as a whole. The coin was tough to image because it had a lot going for it, and it was quite difficult to bring all those qualities together in one shot.

 

Sounds like you're disagreeing with me in the first sentence and then agreeing with me in the last sentence.

 

There's no doubt that this is a very difficult, if not impossible, coin to fully capture.

 

The images are of nice quality but came up short of showing all that is going on with this coin, and yes, it has a lot going on!

 

Remember that I'm speaking of my images also -

I guess I was prepared to be blown away and it didn't happen.

 

Let me try this from a different, more positive angle.

If I had purchased this coin based on these images alone, I would have been thrilled once I got her in hand. The details of the coin are very well represented. However the color of the toning and the reflective surfaces, particularly in the fields, are not emphasized at much as I was hoping.

 

 

Had this been a paying job of imaging this coin, I would have sent a dozen or more images to the owner and let him choose which one to use. Makes me think of one of the images in Mark Goodman's book in which he states that he liked image x but the owner just loved image y. Both were great images, one happened to emphasize color while the other was more about contrast.

 

I tried for hours myself and never got an image that I was completely happy with. Now that my choice has been posted, I'm wondering why I chose that one

[Deerefan8420]

 

I took more than 150 images of this coin and I can say with 100% certainty - none of the images here do this coin justice. NONE OF THEM.

 

I would have to disagree with you. I've got around 200 images of each side of the coin myself. It was quite difficult to choose which images I wanted to use for the contest that best represented the coin as a whole. The coin was tough to image because it had a lot going for it, and it was quite difficult to bring all those qualities together in one shot.

 

Sounds like you're disagreeing with me in the first sentence and then agreeing with me in the last sentence.

 

There's no doubt that this is a very difficult, if not impossible, coin to fully capture.

 

The images are of nice quality but came up short of showing all that is going on with this coin, and yes, it has a lot going on!

 

Remember that I'm speaking of my images also -

I guess I was prepared to be blown away and it didn't happen.

 

Let me try this from a different, more positive angle.

If I had purchased this coin based on these images alone, I would have been thrilled once I got her in hand. The details of the coin are very well represented. However the color of the toning and the reflective surfaces, particularly in the fields, are not emphasized at much as I was hoping.

 

 

Had this been a paying job of imaging this coin, I would have sent a dozen or more images to the owner and let him choose which one to use. Makes me think of one of the images in Mark Goodman's book in which he states that he liked image x but the owner just loved image y. Both were great images, one happened to emphasize color while the other was more about contrast.

 

I tried for hours myself and never got an image that I was completely happy with. Now that my choice has been posted, I'm wondering why I chose that one

 

I'm sorry for the confusion. Haha! I don't know what happened to the last sentence that I wrote and it's not there. I concluded my statement with "But with that said, I think there are several images that accurately represent the coin as it is viewed in hand."

 

At any rate, I do think it's all about interpretation and how each photographer chose to represent the coin.

 

 

[mikew148]

So, I have this 1858 half dime. Its a prooflike coin, of course. The problem is, getting good photographs of it is next to impossible. The tiny little bugger has reflective fields, toning, and its beautiful in hand - but I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say this will be one of the toughest photo contests we've had yet! I've had a couple of people try, and while they are good, they don't *quite* capture the coin. So, I'm opening it up to a photo contest.

 

This is how Jason introduced this contest.

 

The way I read it is - Jason was hoping that someone could capture all of this - "The tiny little bugger has reflective fields, toning, and its beautiful in hand". I thought this was the scope of the challenge.

 

I understand the comments about personal interpretation. The problem I'm having with the images submitted is - most of them don't capture what Jason was asking for.

 

 

 

[Deerefan8420]

So, I have this 1858 half dime. Its a prooflike coin, of course. The problem is, getting good photographs of it is next to impossible. The tiny little bugger has reflective fields, toning, and its beautiful in hand - but I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say this will be one of the toughest photo contests we've had yet! I've had a couple of people try, and while they are good, they don't *quite* capture the coin. So, I'm opening it up to a photo contest.

 

This is how Jason introduced this contest.

 

The way I read it is - Jason was hoping that someone could capture all of this - "The tiny little bugger has reflective fields, toning, and its beautiful in hand". I thought this was the scope of the challenge.

 

I understand the comments about personal interpretation. The problem I'm having with the images submitted is - most of them don't capture what Jason was asking for.

 

I understand where you're coming from. His opening post could be read that way. I guess that's another part of the interpretation. But I never read it as he was asking for all of the details to be captured in the images. And I think that is where the difficulty lies. In order to capture the toning along with the reflectivity of the fields, plus capturing the cameo contrast that the coin exhibits would have resulted in images that, in my opinion, would not have been of the greatest quality.

 

At least, that was my experience when trying to image the coin. Seeing how I am not as experienced as most of the other photographers who participated, my opinions may or may not apply to their images or their abilities. Either way, I think it was very fun and very challenging. And I think everyone did a good job in producing their images, whether they may or may not have captured every detail of the coin.

[physics-fan3.14]

I was hoping someone would be able to capture everything, yes. But nobody really could, and nobody really can. I don't actually think it is possible to capture everything going on with this coin - and that's part of the challenge of this contest (as it is with every coin photo). You have to decide what you like best, and show that interpretation of the coin. Not even Mark Goodman can show every highlight and every quality from every angle of lighting all at the same time in a single image. Its just not possible.

[mikew148]

I was hoping someone would be able to capture everything, yes. But nobody really could, and nobody really can. I don't actually think it is possible to capture everything going on with this coin - and that's part of the challenge of this contest (as it is with every coin photo). You have to decide what you like best, and show that interpretation of the coin. Not even Mark Goodman can show every highlight and every quality from every angle of lighting all at the same time in a single image. Its just not possible.

 

It was clear to me that you were hoping for images that captured the many things this coin has to offer. You listed them specifically.

 

Had I known that the pics being submitted were not going to show the colors of the toning I would have submitted different images I had several that compare to the front runners but didn't think that's what this contest was about.

 

I thought there would be several images using the axial method to capture the toning and PL fields.I also thought there were going to be layered images to show the overall look.

 

Seems like we have two different competitions within one.

 

It was a fun challenge trying to capture the look of this beauty, This kind of fun

 

 

 

 

 

 

[physics-fan3.14]

Contestant #5 has removed himself from this competition. I guess that will make it a bit easier to pick a winner from the remaining pictures? Maybe?

[rmpsrpms]

Well, since the photogs are "talking"...

 

Having seen the coin in-hand, and having attempted to "capture it all", I agree with the various comments that none of the images do the coin full justice. In my view the biggest issue was showing the reflective mirrors. I tried normal proof techniques, including both axial and pseudo-axial, but the level of post-processing required to eliminate the glare and reduced contrast that axial creates on slabbed coins gave this coin an unnatural look IMO. Ultimately, this is how the coin is viewed in-hand (most any coin), ie with a single light reflecting off the coin. Under these conditions the coin exhibits its PL surfaces with bright fields, and you overlook the glare as you turn the coin this way and that. But not one of the contestants was able to capture that in-hand look! I actually implemented an entirely new lighting technique to image this coin (!!) to get the closest possible representation of the one-light in-hand look, with further emphasis on color, shadow detail around the devices, and other aesthetic aspects of the coin such as getting a natural look to Liberty's face. It was a definite challenge, and now I have a new technique in my toolkit for lighting that I've employed many times since, so although I don't expect to win I am glad I played.