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New Camera Present

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T1Steel's Avatar
Canada
623 Posts
 Posted 03/13/2015  05:31 am Show Profile   Bookmark this topic Add T1Steel to your friends list Get a Link to this Message Number of Subscribers
Hi everyone , I was given an Olympus Stylus SZ-17 as a present and was wondering if this would be a suitable camera for coin photography.

I am new to this, so any pointers on how to get the best out of it would be appreciated.

Thank you.
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SsuperDdave's Avatar
United States
23522 Posts
 Posted 03/13/2015  09:50 am  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add SsuperDdave to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply

Quote:
Hi everyone , I was given an Olympus Stylus SZ-17 as a present and was wondering if this would be a suitable camera for coin photography.


Only one way to find out.

Your camera is a point-and-shoot with limited adjustability, so we have to be most careful with the things we *can* control. Use Super Macro Mode, which allows the camera to focus within 3cm of the subject. That usually means zoomed all the way out, and the more you zoom in the farther away you have to physically place the camera. This is one place you'll need to experiment to find out what your particular camera does best, the idea being to get the largest-possible image still in sharp focus. With this camera, you will probably end up within 4-5" of the coin. It'll make lighting more difficult.

Another priority is getting the coin and camera lens parallel. Macro photography offers very little depth of field, and if the coin is tilted relative to the camera it won't all be in focus. This is most easily done by putting the camera in a tripod or stand pointed straight down at the coin on a flat surface. Use a black or grey background - I use an old t-shirt - as colored backgrounds mess with white balance.

Use your camera's shutter timer so you're not touching the camera when the shutter snaps. 2 seconds is enough.

Best lighting is accomplished with two lamps at roughly 10:00 and 2:00, but use what you have for the moment while we get your shots well-composed and focused. I don't want to be tweaking too much at once.

Get into the habit of always shooting the coin perfectly vertical, just like you'd hold it to read/grade in hand. It is more difficult to evaluate a coin shown sideways. Crop to only the coin for posting. No need for any background, and it forces you to post the coin itself smaller.

Start with this. Let's get the setup right first. Worry only about getting the clearest and largest possible images, and we'll solve any problems with color and lighting later. Don't hesitate to ask any questions that may come up.
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T1Steel's Avatar
Canada
623 Posts
 Posted 03/13/2015  12:15 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add T1Steel to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
Hi Dave, I thank you for your time.
I am new to CCF and have been collecting for a short period of time . I am glad I found this site ,everyone is really helpful.
Back to your post , I will try your suggestions and practice some.
What do suggest , do I post some pictures here for some feed back or in some other thread ?
Love this site, so much info here. Started collecting coins then it peaked my interest when I see the great photos of coins on here now I kind of seem to have gotten addicted to coin photography also.
Thanks for now and hope to pick everyones brains some more in the future.
Rest in Peace
bpoc1's Avatar
United States
4078 Posts
 Posted 03/13/2015  3:34 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add bpoc1 to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
@SsuperDdave, a wealth of information.
I'm still trying to get the better half to agree on a better camera.
Maybe this would help.
T1Steel, thanks for posting this.
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SsuperDdave's Avatar
United States
23522 Posts
 Posted 03/13/2015  5:24 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add SsuperDdave to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
T1Steel, while we're playing with your camera post images right here for photographic evaluation. If you want to post those pics at the same time for grading etc, feel free to start a thread in the appropriate forum as well.
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T1Steel's Avatar
Canada
623 Posts
 Posted 03/13/2015  6:48 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add T1Steel to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
@Dave, I posted these photos this morning was excited to get the "coin" .These are rather large not exactly a smaller coin that most photos will be of .https://goccf.com/t/215047

Also as I was reading more posts in the photography forum I read about someone taking photos through a loupe and I had my camera look at 1 this way and it looked really good but then I tried to look at a full size coin (morgan)and could not get the full coin in the frame.
These are some other photos I posted in another forum with this camera.
https://goccf.com/t/208754
https://goccf.com/t/209914

Again Thanks for your time and patience with me.
Edited by T1Steel
03/13/2015 6:53 pm
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SsuperDdave's Avatar
United States
23522 Posts
 Posted 03/13/2015  7:21 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add SsuperDdave to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
You're farther ahead than I thought.

Job One for you, then, is to experiment with camera distance and zoom to figure out what results in the biggest coin still focused on your sensor.

Job Two is to start considering postprocessing programs to help fix the minor problems with images. You only need a few functions, and there are free programs out there which can do all you need. What's your current level of expertise in this area?
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T1Steel's Avatar
Canada
623 Posts
 Posted 03/13/2015  8:25 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add T1Steel to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
@Dave, in all honesty I have about 4 months in this. Take a few pics of things I build at work but that is about it. I started collecting a couple of years ago. Then my collection started to get a little out of hand, so I thought I would try and sell some on ebay last November. I had an old little Sony Cybershot camera and used it for my pics. Now I just got this camera as a present this week and in a nutshell that is my level of expertise with a camera.
I have great deal to learn about coins and photography .
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T1Steel's Avatar
Canada
623 Posts
 Posted 03/15/2015  2:43 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add T1Steel to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
Posting a couple photos and will try fooling around with the camera like you suggest .

New-Camera-Present

New-Camera-Present
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