Coin Photo Setup

Luckily Bausch & Lomb did the engineering long ago for the MZ7 mount and it is superbly rigid and flexible. Here's my MZ7 setup sans lighting. Tucsen 3MP is C-mounted. The specialized mounting bracket B&L designed for the MZ7 has a mounting hole for Nicholaus illuminator as well so you have an immediate, optimized lighting configuration available. SuperDave, I have several of these setups that I've picked up over time if you are interested in putting something like this together.

That is a stronger-looking mount than I expected. Makes great sense to "dangle" the lens. I'm still left wondering whether the added 20oz of a dSLR, plus whatever t-mount hardware is necessary, would find whatever flex is available in the mount.

A multipurpose mount seems like a fairly easy task. The bellows/rack would be a permanent component - MZ7 not needing a bellows - and with the use of high-leverage wingnuts, a truly "quick-change" system could be had.

Here are some pics taken with the latest setup, 80mm EL-Nikkor on Novoflex Bellows and MZ7 Stand. The 80mm is a very nice lens. These are stopped-down to f/8. The two pictures essentially prove that the setup has the adjustment range to image full-sensor shots of Dollar and Cent. It can actually go a bit beyond on either side smaller and larger...

I got that clock in an antique mall in Reno for (ironically) $20.

I put my basic setups back together, and took the opportunity to incorporate all my lighting upgrades. Here are the two setups, on the shelf where they belong to keep my desk free for projects and to keep the cables (mostly) around the back of the cabinets:



You might notice the odd reflector on the MZ7. I wanted to have a more directional light than a ring light, but even closer to axial than most ringlights provide. But when I took the reflector concept and applied it to the MZ7, I got too much flare. MZ7's are prone to flare anyway, so you have to be careful. So I cut the tip off a yarn cone and glued it to the reflector. now I can point the light any way I like and it does not cause the MZ7 problems. Here's a view from below:



This setup does reasonably well for high mags. Here is a magnification sequence showing a 1956-D RPM #1. Coin is in a holder, so clarity is not as good as it could be. Also, these are single images, no stacking, and are done with the Tucsen camera, which does pretty well but is not the greatest. Note I've installed a 1.5X C-mount Multiplier on the MZ7. It helps in maintaining parfocality. Also note the Tucsen sensor is quite small (I don't actually know the dimensions) so adds even more apparent magnification. First image is at 10.5X (7X on body, 1.5X multiplier); second is at 4.5X (3X on body), third is at 1.5X (1X on body). Finally, you'll see some flare in the first image. There seem to be some reflections floating around in the MZ7 at highest mag. I may need to add some flocking inside the camera mount. All caveats aside, here are the images:







The sweet spot for the MZ7 is around the 5X range. It actually does OK at higher mags but the DOF suffers and you need to stack. I'm actually amazed it does as well as it does at 5X, but what's really going on is the effective aperture is fairly small so DOF is good. It's major benefit is the super long working distance, allowing most any lighting setup you prefer to use. And since it is parfocal, the working distance does not change with magnification. With the 1X objective mounted, WD is about 3-1/4" even at 10.5X.

Finally, here are some images of my reference 1957-D Toned Lincoln Cent with two lighting styles. The earlier picture of my two setups shows my full-size imaging setup with two RSD Directors and a Cone Reflector (third light). The pics below show the '57-D Cent first without the third light, and then with it. I'm curious which pic people like best. I'm not happy yet with the relative brightness of the 3rd light and may try moving it farther away to cut down on the highlighting it causes on the shoulder and chin. But here it is for comments.

Pavel...I much prefer to build each setup as custom for the application. I have built a few "stock" setups and sold them to folks but I'm always a bit hesitant to do this since I'm always unsure if they will meet their full needs.

For your application, the most basic setup to get the job done would be:

- Modified Bausch & Lomb A-Stand
- Modified Vivitar T-Mount Bellows
- 75mm f3.5 Spiratone Flat Field Macro Lens (for full coin shots)
- 35mm f3.5 Spiratone Macrotar Lens (for varieties)
- Pair of Jansjo Gooseneck LED Lights

There are options for stands, bellows, and lenses depending on other applications. For instance, would you ever want to mount your camera directly to the stand? Would you ever want to mount a stereo microscope to the stand? Is approx 5X magnification enough for your variety photos? Etc. In the end, budget vs quality and functionality are the tradeoffs we can discuss if you are interested in proceeding...Ray

Thanks Kamorka! It's been fun getting to this point. I've learned as I went and have tried to document it all along the way so others can benefit.

For the stand modifications, you basically do the following:
- Remove the hoop mount where the microscope pod mounts
- cut a piece of aluminum bar stock to the appropriate length to use for the bellows mount
- Drill and tap 4 holes to mount the bar stock where the hoop mount used to be
- Drill a hole for the 1/4" bolt to mount the bellows
- Reassemble the stand with the bellows mount

The bellows modification is just removal (hack saw or band saw) of the lower 1/4" mounting tab. With this tab removed, you can mount either the front or rear bellows "standard" directly to the bellows mount. You'll need to install a small spacer (I use sticky felt pads) to keep the movable standard from rubbing and interfering on the mount.

I haven't taken pictures of the process, so the description will have to do. You can make out a lot of the details in various pictures within this post...Ray

Gary...I'm still building setups for folks. I build each setup to the user's requirements, so we'd need to discuss your needs and I can give you a few options to fulfill them. FYI, my recommended camera right now is the Canon T2i, as I've been getting excellent results from it after replacing my Nikon D7000. You can pick one up for <$500 these days...Ray