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 Replies: 13 / Views: 11,117 |
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New Member
United States
12 Posts |
*** Moved by Staff to a more appropriate forum. ***Hi, my name is Mike, as you could've guessed  . I'm not exactly new to coin collecting, but I'm definitely undereducated considering the amount of years I've been doing it and the size of my collection lol. I just recently got big into coin collecting and I'm also big into computer inventory. So.. I have an excel spreadsheet and ready to put in pictures.. But I have a problem. And I'm guessing I know the answer, but I just want to be sure. How do you take clear detailed pictures of coins? I've attempted myself with a normal digital camera. I'm guessing that's part of the problem. Anytime I get up close (even using Macro mode) the camera just cannot focus. Everything comes out blurry. You can't even tell the date on an uncirculated coin! Much less the imperfections of it. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thank you =)
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4085 Posts |
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Valued Member
India
265 Posts |
just dont use your digital camera for coin photography, first it should have 15-20x zoom to take pictures. Hence if you dont have that type of camera, just drop of the idea of taking pictures by digicam. Hence what I suggest you is buy a computer scanner, scan the coins, it would be of much higher quality.
warm wishes.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1315 Posts |
I've been working on this problem as well.
Try this: put your camera on macro..put it on the highest resolution.....then don't get to close...just far away enough so the camera will focus....be sure the coin is well lit.(very important)....also make sure the camera is held very still....take your photo......then use a photo program, like picasa or another one, to crop the photo... this will enlarge it.
You can crop areas of the coin as well.
Remember..well lit and hold still!
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New Member
 United States
12 Posts |
Ok, I think I'll try the scanning method, considering I have a very nice HP printer/scanner. So, I just put the coin in with the mylar holder or do I have to take it out of the holder?
Edit: P.S. Sorry about the topic placement. Didn't see the forum that was dedicated to coin photography.
Edited by Mike1215
01/31/2011 9:04 pm
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New Member
United States
12 Posts |
Ok, first attempt at scanning coins.. Here's a new problem. The scanner doesn't like the Mylar plastic screen. Without case:  With case:  The second one is obviously much more blurry and the detail just does not stick out... I really don't wanna open and re-enclose all of my coins just to get a picture of them... But I also really want a photo inventory... Any suggestions? |
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Moderator
 United States
23522 Posts |
Welcome, Mike. Have a look here: https://goccf.com/t/29441Much as I hate to say it, you're probably not going to be happy with a lot of what you shoot through the 2x2. Both cameras and scanners have difficulty focusing under those circumstances, although you can usually fool a camera into getting it right. What camera are you using? |
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New Member
United States
12 Posts |
Nikon Coolpix. Very generic. Nothing special.
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
12437 Posts |
Quote:
dont use your digital camera for coin photography, first it should have 15-20x zoom to take pictures Not true at all, you can take great macro photos with a camera that only has a 5x or so optical zoom- you just need to know how to properly operate it. Digital photos are usually superior to scans for one big reason- luster- digital photos show it but scanners cannot. It is not so important on circulated coins with no luster remaining but you cannot properly judge an uncirculated coin if the luster is not depicted, it just looks like it has been cleaned  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1659 Posts |
As big of a pain as it is, taking the coins out of the 2x2's is the best way to go. I used to try to take pics through the 2x2's and trust me, it will frustrate you. I always get far better quality if I just take the extra time to take them out first. Taking a pic through a slab can be even more maddening! LOL!  |
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Valued Member
United States
380 Posts |
I would recommend taking the coins out of the 2x2 and taking the photos... Through the mylar just isn't going to cut it. You'll always be shooting through Mylar, the less crap between your lens and the subject the better.
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Moderator
United States
23522 Posts |
It's not so much the mylar itself which will confound you; more the camera's inability to decide just what you want it to focus on. Depth-of-field is extremely narrow in macro photography, and you're required to take steps to minimize the possibility of missed focus. That means removing anything between the coin and the lens.
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New Member
United States
12 Posts |
Ok. Thanks for the help everyone =). I think I'll gradually take em out over the next year and take pictures lol. I JUST bought over 400 cases and enclosed them. I don't think I'm going to buy another 400 and re-do it all. But thanks everyone, above my expectations for replies =).
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New Member
United States
25 Posts |
I take pictures of coins with an older just regular everyday digital camera. Its a Nikon. What I do to get good pictures is I adjust the settings on the camera to the correct white balance and put it in macro mode. I don't zoom at all. Then I hold the camera far enough away to have the coin in good focus. Then hold still and take the pic. I then throw the photo into Photoshop and crop out the coin and it comes out nice and big and in good focus.
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Replies: 13 / Views: 11,117 |
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to the forum!
Posted 01/31/2011 6:02 pm
