1982 Penny DDO (Help Identifying If It Is?)

Lots of glare but check for markers against this: http://coppercoins.com/lincoln/dies...ie_state=mds

I'm thinking it's a normal cent for the year, but the glare is distracting. The gap between the I and B is a good indicator as are the reduced donut holes in the B. How do those look to you in hand compared to the Coppercoins pictures?

No worries - learning the difference comes with time spent here. And even then, sometimes it's tricky. Have a look at the thread I started on my 1971 LMC. There is MD on my coin, but that top bar on the 7 has me scratching my head. I need to work through that process as you will here. You will get to a comfortable position before keeping/ejecting a coin.

I took a stab at toning down the glare. Less zoom on LIBERTY would help. Get the full word in a picture. Use a grocery bag to diffuse the lighting (but be careful of fire). Here's the pic I tried to rework.

With two lights it over enhances the coin. (makes it look larger than it really is)

The large date copper coins tend to look like doubled die, when they are just normal for that year.

Here is a normal coin image and the 1982P-1DO-002 LIBERTY side by side.

For a shot like LIBERTY, you can do pretty well with a camera phone. Essentially, you rest the phone on the can tripod (filled with quarters for mass) at an optimal focal length. Zoom in but not to the point you get pixelated. Take a clear shot and edit on your computer. Lighting is important but normally you want to diffuse it and be as close to the zenith as you can be without causing a shadow. With time and practice, your mastery will develop.

OK, thanks. I will give that a try. I've been using a piece of leftover window blind felt to squeeze between the LEDs of my microscope and the subject coin. Works reasonably well but the LEDs are still quite bright.

is this better? I put a plastic piece over the scope

Nice greenprint. That clears it up. Unfortunately, a normal 1982 LD cent.

Coop - I was thinking cone too. The LEDs are cool, but there are 10 tucked up under the hood (no adjustment). I really need to spend some quality time working on the lighting. I've gotten it to a 'good enough' level, but I'd like to take some respectable pictures. I'll work on the 1971 pictures tomorrow. That top bar doesn't look like MD in hand; thinking DDO still. Better pictures might bear this out. Here's my setup with/without the felt-