1855 $3 Gold For Grading-More Pictures - Page 2

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Author	Replies: 17 / Views: 1,644	Page: of 2

jecz79 Pillar of the Community Portugal 655 Posts	Posted 04/18/2023 8:23 pm Yes gold coins may be damaged more easily. But I agree it is lighting that makes these coins hard to grade by photos. It is very easy with gold coins for bumps and scratches to seem much worse in a photo than they really are. Because even a small disturbance in the surface exposes very shinny metal. If disturbed at all that metal will shine and show on photos but for each scratch only with light from a certain direction. The normal surface of a not proof gold coin is uneven, with microscopic roughness.It disperses light. Circulated coins that are worn evenly also look dull when seen live because light is dispersed many ways by the many micro-scratches. But with directional light some scratches become more visible, others almost invisible, and the coin looks in a photo worse shape than it looks in hard. I have been attempting to photograph a double eagle today and noticed this directional effect now on just the few bumps it has. I can have a great looking photo or a bad looking one depending on the direction of the light. Looking at the photos of the worn coin here I see the same. The photos highlight the scratches and bumps that are perpendicular to the light even if they are shallow. Report this Post to the Staff
panzaldi Bedrock of the Community United States 18673 Posts	Posted 04/19/2023 10:59 am Quote: I can have a great looking photo or a bad looking one depending on the direction of the light. Jekz79 got it with his statement. you can never rely on photos. its very easy to manipulate the surfaces by moving the lighting, slightly tilting the coin or adjusting in post a photo editing App. this makes grading any coin by photo not a science. we take our best shot at assessing coins via photo as its our only choice. the more coins you look at the easier it is to see through what someone has done to attempt to hide defects. sometimes we see them, sometimes we cant. sometimes in the case of this coin, the light and blowups enhanced the surfaces to see more flaws and less luster than what may be there. we do our best based on what we have and on top of that TPG grading is not 100% accurate either. we have seen this over and over Report this Post to the Staff
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