Working With What I Got - Coin Community Forum

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Author	Replies: 5 / Views: 1,967
Turbolag Valued Member United States 127 Posts	Posted 11/06/2015 12:46 pm So I'm new to coin collecting, but not to photography. I have a nice slr and some lenses and strobes that have just been collecting dust. I was going to sell it but now that I need to shoot photos of coins I have a use again for it! Anyways the first attempts I've made involve my slr with a 100mm macro lens on a tripod tited 90 degrees down toward the floor with the coin anywhere from 6-10 inches away from the lens. I have a little table I just covered with some grey background paper. I used a shoe mount flash with a diffuser and it seems to light up the coin fine, but theres not enough distance for it to work properly. So what I'm trying to figure out is out I can use what I have to get a good set up to shoot groups of coins every few weeks for the purposes of posting on here and keeping a record of my collection. I know the flash needs to be relocated somehow, I have a cable and maybe even a wireless thing for it (gotta check) so it can come off the shoe. And as far as the tripod, I'm fine with being able to align it, I'm pretty competent in that area. I want to maybe get a grey microfiber lens cloth to use as a background, unless black or white is better. Report this Post to the Staff

rmpsrpms Pillar of the Community United States 4037 Posts	Posted 11/06/2015 1:49 pm You may just need to improve the diffuser. Do a search for "diffuser", "director", "smile", "smilie", etc and you can see some of the things folks are doing. Most use Jansjo LEDs for continuous lighting but flash can also work. Contact me for photographic equipment or visit my home page at: http://macrocoins.com Report this Post to the Staff
Dave M Valued Member United States 67 Posts	Posted 11/06/2015 4:23 pm For the background, I personally don't like to see coin images sitting on a cloth. To me it looks very odd. Make the coin's background the same color you expect to crop to (many use white or black) and use paper or something else flat. For lighting I suspect you will determine that you need two light sources, not just one. But play around with it and see what you can get from the flash. Report this Post to the Staff
rmpsrpms Pillar of the Community United States 4037 Posts	Posted 11/06/2015 6:16 pm You can always set up a diffuser that can work with a single light source. I often take pics with a single Jansjo but single flash would also work. Contact me for photographic equipment or visit my home page at: http://macrocoins.com Report this Post to the Staff
welder Pillar of the Community United States 1037 Posts	Posted 11/11/2015 11:32 pm Your camera and lens sound sufficient for coin photography, though you will have to invest a little in some lighting. As mentioned in the above posts, the Jansjo lights will help you out a lot and they are cheap from Ikea. I picked up 2 table top lamps for $9.99 a piece. Used in combination with your flash, you'll take some awesome pictures. I also rest my coin on a silicone plug when shooting. This way the back ground is out of focus and the coins is in focus. My last recommendation would be to invest in a copy stand. These are much more stable than a tripod. There are many threads in this section that discuss copy stands. Check them out, they're very informative. Good luck and don't forget to post some pictures. Report this Post to the Staff
Alan Pillar of the Community Canada 1463 Posts	Posted 11/22/2015 01:15 am That's a nice picture, I wish most could get it that well on ebay and other sites mate Report this Post to the Staff
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