Photography of coin varieties can be a tricky thing to master. Here are some tips to assist in Photography of coin varieties.
Photography of coin varieties – Equipment
Look I understand there is a trend/crazy associated with the newer, cheaper (?) microscopes found on a very popular website that begins with an “A”. These are introducing a ton of roll searchers and it is helping the hobby greatly. My ONLY concerns about these type of microscopes are the clarity for photography of coin varieties and whether they have a means to save the photos on an SD card, or save an image and drop it to a PC or tablet.
I prefer a heftier microscope for Photography of coin varieties. My choice of microscope has been AMSCOPE. I currently have two set ups. They are basically the same with minor details. I will supply a link to another post on this website to show a little more what can be done with these ‘scopes and in my opinion, the Photography of varieties appears to be much clearer. The cost you might ask ? I paid about $230.00 USD per microscope.
I then paid less than $300.00 for each microscope camera. I waited for a clearance or Holiday sale in order to purchase the microscope cameras on sale, saving me some money. In my opinion, you DO NOT want to skimp on the megapixels of the microscope cameras. I am using a 16mp microscope camera on the Primary microscope and the Secondary microscope has a 14mp microscope camera. Believe me, I tried a 5mp one and the clarity to take Photography of coin varieties was horrible.
Photography of coin varieties – Types of lighting
Contrary to the old school people who take Photography of coin varieties with just one light, I use up to THREE. The software that comes with the AMSCOPE microscope cameras allows me to adjust so many settings, it makes my head spin. I get to change the lighting level, gain, whether to shoot in color or black and white, plus a lot more.
The first type of lighting I use for Photography of coin varieties is an LED ring from AMSCOPE. The design is made of plastic and the plastic ring needs to carefully be threaded onto the microscope. From there, three screw like pins hold the light in a recessed area on the ring. The LED lighting is variable and offers a wide variety of light for Photography of varieties.
Pro Tip: IF you move the fabric even a touch, it very well may affect the Photography of varieties. Make sure after the fabric has settled that you check the focus before taking the photograph. Check the view in order to make sure the lighting is still as you want it. The atmosphere can change slightly when the fabric moves.
Here is a look at the LED light setup I use for photography of coin varieties:
The second set up is two desk top style lamps. One on the left side of the microscope and the other is on the right. I drape some sheer cloth over the top of the microscope. This offers a nice “glow” – a uniform light on the coin and it reflects on the quality of the Photography of coin varieties. One note on the fabric I drape over the microscope.
That tent if you will, I modify by adding some other type fabric over each other. The thickest I have created is one that is 6 layers of semi sheer fabric that has been sewn together. I use this for Proof, Proof-Like, Deep Mirror Proof Like coins as well as in situations which merit a lower lighting scenario to create some awesome Photography of varieties. I am no Jason C. over at the CONECA website, but I am getting there. Here is the look of the second set up:
Photography of coin varieties – A Barrow lens
Barrow lenses allow me to raise the bar on the magnification. BUT, this ability comes with a price – the area of focus is extremely small. So, I try to adjust the Photography of coin varieties to as clear as a photo as I can get. The Barrow lens offers a x2 multiplier. The Barrow lens is not made to work with the LED light, even though I am able to mount it on the Barrow lens.
The problem here is, you have to drop the microscope head down to the lowest area of the microscope shaft in order to get in focus. At times, with the LED light on the Barrow lens, there is very little room for a finger to manipulate the coin on the microscope to take Photography of coin varieties. That’s where creativity, ingenuity and pure luck come into play to get a decent Photography of varieties.
Photography of coin varieties – Focus is everything
I cannot stress the Photography of coin varieties requires a good well focused photo. When the attributors zoom in on a photo they NEED clarity and the ability to see what YOU see. If the photo is fuzzy, blurry or, IF some one takes a photo of a monitor screen, these type of photos may be close to worthless for people trying to help. In a few short paragraphs, I will show you the decent clarity I can achieve with a lot of patience, know the software I use and the proper set up for me.
The first Photography of varieties is taken with the smallest setting on the microscope (x2).
Pro Tip: The lighting of both desk lamps has been adjusted so it highlights the split serifs of the RPM as well as the other side of the mint mark. You want to keep the lighting at a minimum to medium level. It keeps everything uniform. You also have to think about YOUR Monitor’s brightness and contrast and the people on the other side as well. Keeping the monitor as close to default as you can may provide a photography of varieties that is appealing to both.
Here is a photo of the higher setting on the microscope (x4):
And here is the higher setting (x4) with a Barrow lens (x2). Effectively the photo below is close to 80x magnification. I use this for educational purposes and for marketing as well. It shows the mint mark close up and solidifies that the coin I am photographing is a variety. As I mentioned above, the photo below may be a tad out of focus but, that is the nature of the beast when the Photography of coin varieties is magnified at higher levels.
The other post I did a few years ago which show my setup for taking photography of coin varieties is listed below:
My educational Series also offers some helpful tips on varieties and mint errors:
https://minterrors.org/index.php/category/educational-series
The choices are all up to you. Please do so wisely and at your own risk. My setup is no longer available, it appears.
A similar setup is available on Amscope here, subject to availability:
Microscope:
20X-30X-40X-60X Trinocular Stereo Microscope with Top & Bottom Lights – AmScope
Microscope Camera:
16MP USB3.0 Real-Time Live Video Microscope Digital Camera – AmScope
