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 Replies: 14 / Views: 1,418 |
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CCF Advertiser
 United States
1306 Posts |
Just a thought. Quite a few persons say when they get a coin, "Better in Hand" compared to the photos I posted. And I often say that when I am photographing. Boy it looks better in hand and I just can't capture that somehow etc. Now however I think this is more psychology. I round off letters mentally if I know a coin well and in fact I believe I am often seeing the optimal coin with the neural network of my brain finishing off the fine details. So sadly this might just be a mental trick we are playing on ourselves.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7066 Posts |
Perhaps a "mental trick," as you say, Joe. But also a perceptual trick, I think, based on the limits of our vision. A camera gets in close and enlarges surface irregularities, scratches, encrustations, etc., whereas small flaws may not be visible to the naked eye. I think this must account for some coins looking "better in hand."
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Moderator
United States
34413 Posts |
I agree 100%. @bob. I had no idea how crappy most of my coins were until I started photographing them.
"If you climb a good tree, you get a push."
-----Ghanaian proverb
"The danger we all now face is distinguishing between what is authentic and what is performed."
-----King Adz
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
94367 Posts |
The shimmer of an uncirculated coin's surfaces when tilted toward light is something that is difficult to capture in photos.
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Moderator
United States
23731 Posts |
Lighting has a lot to do with how a picture looks. It's true that most cameras show more detail than the naked eye, but if the lighting is bad the image is off and most likely the coin would look better in hand.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
3733 Posts |
yes our high definition camera's show every little imperfection, that we can't see under normal conditions.. I buy raw coins and say wow , it's a beauty ready to be certified, then I photo it, and examine the photo, and I totally rethink, the submission thoughts..
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
7942 Posts |
I think it is a matter of physics/optics as mentioned already by other posters, and not psychology. I am both a buyer and seller on ebay, and make these observations. If scanned, I think many coins look better in hand compared to a scan. In photographing modern alloy coins (CuNi, AlBr, etc.) I find I need to be extremely careful, or many imperfections invisible to the naked eye are shown in a digital photo. Also true of silver and gold coins with highly reflective surfaces. So, it most definitely is NOT an advertising "come on," but is a reflection (pun intended) of the photographer's skill compared to what the naked eye sees. Edited by tdziemia
06/05/2019 9:11 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
900 Posts |
I echo other's sentiments. High res photos reveal so many imperfections that you don't see with the naked eye.
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
12477 Posts |
Quote:
It's true that most cameras show more detail than the naked eye Quote:
our high definition camera's show every little imperfection, that we can't see under normal conditions. Quote:
High res photos reveal so many imperfections that you don't see with the naked eye. This is all partly true and partly false. The human eye, ideally, is estimated to perceive the world at approximately 576 megapixels. I don't think many of us are using cameras capable of that or even stacking photos to get that resolution. The difference is that a digital image can be examined more closely through zoom, while we don't have "zoom vision." Optics are our zoom, so zooming in on a digital photo is like taking a loupe to the coin we just viewed with the naked eye. Much more detail is exposed then. Mentally, our brains are definitely wired to "fill in" missing components that are expected. So, it would not surprise me that our brains actually do make some coins look better in-hand than they really are, especially if it's a new purchase and one already has high expectations of it. We simply cannot capture with cameras exactly what we see with our eyes, and it's not even close in many cases. Like Coinfrog suggested, we will see a beautiful, lustrous coin with maybe a hint of toning, but a photo taken under the same circumstances will just show an overblown white roundish thing. 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
06/06/2019 01:21 am
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1120 Posts |
I'd like to add that the euphoria of actually holding the coin adds to the "Better in Hand" phenomena. Many of us have anticipated adding a particular coin to our collection and the excitement that it's finally here adds to the charm.
Also, you are using another sense; "touch" which enhances its appeal. Our other sense "sight" is amplified because we are now looking at something in 3D.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7942 Posts |
I agree that "excited buyer bias" might play a role.
But I also have the experience as a seller of photographing a coin and thinking the photos look worse than the actual coin when viewed with the naked eye.
I suppose there could be an argument about "seller bias," (thinking your coin is nicer than it really is), but I don't think so, because it only happens some of the time.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
6130 Posts |
Ever tried to photograph a mint state, glossy black AE coin?  No matter how hard you try, you just can't capture the "in hand" look in a photo! |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3441 Posts |
I think I might argue that but only to a point
The primary cause is actually economics at work
When I do a "shoot" I generally try to do smaller sized groups of 10-15 coins
If I am liking the coins I am admiring as I "we" do the shoot
"You look gorgeous today my darling"
I am apt to take 3 or 4 both Obv & Rv.
Trying to get her best angle of course
If I add up the time it takes to shoot crop edit (ie adjust the contrast color saturation and tones)
It adds up to more than an hour ......
Sometimes a couple of hours
Most big sellers of coins don't have the time
Some don't have the inclination ......
Assembly line mass production
Light box fixed mount mug shots
No time to ask "say cheese !"
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7942 Posts |
Quote:
Ever tried to photograph a mint state, glossy black AE coin? I agree this is a good case in point. I don't have any equipment other than a basic digital camera, and steady elbows. So this colors my views on this topic (i.e. I often make photos that are less attractive than my subject ... just don;t tell my wife I said that  ). Edited by tdziemia
06/07/2019 08:24 am
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CCF Advertiser
 United States
1306 Posts |
Here are the exceptions to "Better in Hand" come to think about it. Tetartemorion Silver Lion Fractions:  |
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Replies: 14 / Views: 1,418 |
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Posted 06/05/2019 7:54 pm
