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 Replies: 17 / Views: 3,629 |
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Bedrock of the Community
 United States
12477 Posts |
My wife recently got me a Canon EOS Rebel T3 with coin photography in mind.  My phone has a good camera which I've been using for coin pics, but I know it doesn't compare to a decent DSLR even with a lower resolution because of the image processor among other things. I played around this evening and ended up making this comparison of an SMS nickel on the left captured with my phone (13MP) a while back and a pocket-change nickel captured with the T3 (12.2MP) tonight on the right. I feel like I can work with this to create some pretty good images. As a side note, the phone pic was with intentional lighting and the T3 pic is slapdash with overhead lighting from a ceiling fan.  It came with a kit lens (18-55mm f/3.5-5.6, I think). I downloaded the entire Canon software pack which included EOS Utility 2.0 and the ability to control the camera through the computer (that was my first time doing it, and it was pretty cool  ). I plan on making a sort of copy stand. I have a vintage geared Slik tripod that I may be able to convert, but I need to think about it more. I have one Jansjo and will probably be getting another soon. I suppose my question is if there are any tricks for EOS Utility and what budget macro lens would you suggest for this purpose? Or, is a macro lens the way to go? Can another budget setup produce better results? Any advice on making a copy stand would be appreciated, as well.  In Memory of Crazyb0 12-26-1951 to 7-27-2020
In Memory of Tootallious 3-31-1964 to 4-15-2020
In Memory of T-BOP 10-12-1949 to 1-19-2024
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4593 Posts |
There are 3 or 4 wonderful macro lenses in the 90-110mm range - all available in the Canon mount. https://www.dpreview.com/products/lensesI have the Canon and love it - since I don't plan to shoot except on the copy stand, I opted to save a few $ and get the unstabilized version. -----Burton 50+ year / Life / Emeritus ANA member (joined 12/1/1973) Life member: Numismatics International, CONECA Member: TNA, FtWCC, NETCC, EveryCountry (online) coin club Owned by three cats and a wife of 40+ years (joined 1983) Author: 3rd Edition of the Sample Slabs book, https://www.sampleslabs.info/ |
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
9164 Posts |
I have a Canon Rebel and love it, it is also permanently setup that's all it does. Once you get used to the soft ware you will end up with great pics.  You can ask Ray for a stand style I got mine from I'm. edit, I now have 3 lights. Edited by mcshilling
02/13/2018 10:03 am
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3327 Posts |
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You can ask Ray for a stand style I got mine from McShilling, that is exactly the type of stand I've been trying to locate. I don't know who Ray is, but please provide details about the stand, including what it is called so I can do an online search. And let us know if you need to order special hardware to mount the camera. Thanks! "Nummi rari mira sunt, si sumptus ferre potes." - Christophorus filius Scotiae
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1375 Posts |
spruett001, You got the right hand picture of the nickel with just normal ceiling lighting, a regular 50mm camera lens and no copy stand? I'm very impressed  Can't wait to see what you can do with a dedicated setup I'm sure Ray will chime in, but you can see his setups on his website |
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
9164 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3327 Posts |
Thanks, McShilling. I have a Canon DSLR that I just purchased in December. I know camera, light, lens. I know nothing else about setting anything up. Don't know what bellows are, what a macro lens is, nothing about stacking. I don't even know how to use the Canon software to shoot directly to the computer (but that should be easy to figure out). I have been discouraged by the quality of my photos until now. If I can use indirect sunlight I get pretty good results, but it has been cloudy here every Saturday (the day I can mess around with the camera). If you don't mind, I will PM you to pick your brain a little.
"Nummi rari mira sunt, si sumptus ferre potes." - Christophorus filius Scotiae
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
9164 Posts |
I don't use a bellows and do not stack, not yet anyway. It was a big learning curve for me, been working on it for 3 years now and have pics I'm happy with most of the time. I do nothing fancy with my setup.
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
4038 Posts |
There are quite a few tricks you can use to get the most from EOS utility. I wrote out a basic workflow on another forum (I may have copied it here as well) that you can find here: http://www.Lincolncentforum.com/for...ght=workflowPost any questions...Ray Contact me for photographic equipment or visit my home page at: http://macrocoins.comEdited by rmpsrpms
02/13/2018 5:58 pm
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Rest in Peace
10197 Posts |
Ohhhh, You stepped in it this time...   BTW, this cannon was used to shoot drugs over the border, was seized by CBP Edited by Crazyb0
02/13/2018 6:41 pm
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Valued Member
United States
359 Posts |
It sounds like the OP may be looking for a setup similar to the $400 setup. Please take a read of this thread. http://goccf.com/t/158182 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3327 Posts |
As a Canon user, I really appreciate the referenced workflow info. It doesn't compute for me yet, but I'm sure it will start making sense when I begin using the EOS program. Thanks Ray. And thanks spruett for letting me hijack your post!  "Nummi rari mira sunt, si sumptus ferre potes." - Christophorus filius Scotiae
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Bedrock of the Community
 United States
12477 Posts |
Thanks for the suggestions and many thanks Ray for the workflow. I now have it bookmarked and will test it out when I get to play around with the software. Quote:You got the right hand picture of the nickel with just normal ceiling lighting, a regular 50mm camera lens and no copy stand? I'm very impressed Here's the full pic:  I did do some post-editing to it. You may also notice that the top and bottom of the coin are slightly out of focus. That's because it is propped up nearly vertically and the camera was sitting on a tabletop for the pic. So, it's not a straight shot; the coin is leaning away from the camera and the camera was pointed slightly downward. The focus box was placed in the center for that shot. I was curious to see how much of a difference there would be between trying my hardest with my phone and not really trying with a real camera. I am very satisfied! For camera mounting/stand, I can't justify buying anything complete that will work. Keeping in mind that the camera angle needs to be as perfect as possible, I will be able to make something. I do think that another good light source is a must, if not two. I have tested the Jansjo with the half-ping pong ball diffuser I read about here. I'm also pretty sure that a decent dedicated macro lens will be an improvement. For image quality, I always understood that prime lenses are better that zoom lenses in that regard. Quote:And thanks spruett for letting me hijack your post! No problem! We're all here yo learn. I have been using DSLRs for about 10 years now off and on. They were primarily Nikon and older models: D50, D70, D70s, D1h. Canon's layout is unfamiliar, but I did download the full manual for the T3. I have one question: I tethered it with a USB cable but also got an adapter to be able to connect it to the computer through HDMI. Can you use the HDMI connection for camera control or is just for playback or something? I did notice and "HDMI Control" setting on the camera. If you can, what's the advantage, if any? In Memory of Crazyb0 12-26-1951 to 7-27-2020
In Memory of Tootallious 3-31-1964 to 4-15-2020
In Memory of T-BOP 10-12-1949 to 1-19-2024
Edited by spru
02/14/2018 12:32 am
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1375 Posts |
spruett, Here's what I use for a "cheap" copy stand  it's just 4 boards screwed together, a couple of spring clamps to clamp it to an old desk, a couple of quick clamps to clamp the "L" camera support to the "inverted T" support and a 1/4 20 wing screw to attach the camera. I just use a bubble level on the camera to get it vertical and in plane to the coin. The system is fully adjustable in x-y-z and gives you all 6 degrees of freedom needed. You can't get much cheaper than this and it might work for you as well. I've found that I really only use 3 heights for the camera - the closest focus height (1 ft for the camera and lens I'm using), a height that lets me take a photo of a full slab (about 14 inches) and a height for a photo of a proof set (about 19 inches). I've just drawn lines on the vertical 2x4 support for these and it lets me adjust the setup very quickly. Of course the clamp system lets you adjust the height to any height you need and if you need something taller then just make the vertical portion of the "inverted T" support longer. One thing I would recommend you get (if you don't already have it) is an AC power adapter for your camera. It's much easier than using a battery! |
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
9164 Posts |
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One thing I would recommend you get (if you don't already have it) is an AC power adapter for your camera. Make sure you get an original Canon adapter not a knock off. They are a bit more in cost but there has been story's on CCF about the cheaper ones doing damage of some sort. |
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Valued Member
United States
359 Posts |
I can't seem to find a genuine canon ack-e8 ac adapter for my T2i anywhere. Let me know if you have any leads...
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Replies: 17 / Views: 3,629 |
Posted 02/13/2018 10:02 am
