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hazelman

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Posts posted by hazelman

  5. Posted

    I am interested to know if anyone has had success at great coin photography using an Iphone. I believe its possible and i'm looking to create a setup that works,that is easily copied by others and is not cost prohibitive.

    I am asking as this may already have been accomplished by someone on the site, in which case i will evaluate their system and if possible make improvements.

    My setup will consist of a copystand, appropriate lighting (could be ring lighting or led lights) a suitable platform to place the coin and of course an iphone.

    Looking forward to your responses. 

  6. Posted

    On 9/23/2016 at 7:21 AM, brg5658 said:

    Lighting is immensely important - I'd say the most important ingredient for taking good coin images.  The type of light bulb (LED, incandescent, fluorescent) you use is less important, but understanding how to use that light source is key.  For example, being able to set a custom white balance in your camera for your particular lights is key to getting realistic colors.  The size of the light source (small bulb vs. large bulb) or the apparent size of the light source (e.g., a small light source diffused acts like a larger light source) is also important for fully lighting the coin's surface.  The angle of the lights changes the appearance of the coin's surfaces a lot -- and your lights should always be placed above your mounted camera lens, if not even higher.  With regard to lighting (in particularly angle), I wrote up a little article on the NGC forums some 3+ years ago, and I think it may be helpful.  Keep your lights at a high angle to the surface on which the coin is placed, and diffuse them enough or use large enough light point surfaces to avoid hot spots on the coin.  See my little schematic below of what my photography rig looks like.

    Lighting_Schematic_zps8afa4412.jpg

    Second to lighting, I would say that mounting your camera on a solid copy stand or tripod is very important.  Images taken with a hand held camera will be a bit "shaky" or lacking in detail.  I have seen hand-held images of coins that get the message across, but the ability to zoom in and see details or inspect surfaces is very limited.  Not only is mounting your camera on a sturdy surface important, but it is also important that your camera is aligned to the flat surface of the coin properly.  By that I mean, the camera's detector (a small rectangular flat surface at the back of the lens where the image is focused) needs to be perfectly parallel with the coin's surface (i.e., in parallel planes).  This is important for focusing reasons.  The easiest way to make sure your camera is mounted parallel with the surface on which the coin is placed is to use a little mirror.  Place the mirror where you would place the coin, and adjust your camera in the x, y, and z planes as needed until the center of your lens' reflection is perfectly centered in the camera's viewfinder.  See the little schematic I created below.

    Centering_the_viewfinder_zpsedabc3fb.jpg

    Lastly, practice, practice, and practice some more.  I have now taken somewhere around 20,000 images of coins over the past 7 years.  I have only been happy with my images for the past 4.5 years.  It takes a while to get up to "happy" quality -- and I'm still improving my images and tweaking things today.  I try to take at least some coin photos 2-3 days of every week.  It just keeps me in the "zone".

    I hope some of these hints help a little.

    Best, Brandon

    Any advise on the best copystand? 

  11. Posted

    4 hours ago, Rob said:

    I've got a couple copies of Freeman available. 1970 1st ed. and 1985 2nd ed., both good clean copies with minimal marks to the dust jackets. £15 & £20 delivered respectively if anyone is interested.

    Rob is the one I want part of this sale?

  12. Posted · Edited by hazelman

    22 minutes ago, PWA 1967 said:

    Richard is right its OBV 3 which is on F13 .

    As a Minnow and never having seen a freeman reference book i stand corrected. When i see freeman 3 I had never stopped to think that could be a reference to an Obverse. So today i learnt that Freeman 3 is the obverse on the F13 coin.I should have realised my error as Richard mentioned the reference for the Gouby obverse first.

    I need to acquire a reference from Gouby Obv/Rev to Freeman Obv/Rev.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  21. Posted

    2 minutes ago, Sword said:

    I don't think this will be an issue once contactless payment becomes the norm for all small amounts. The retailers will then simply factor the transaction fees into the retail prices. (Hopefully, fees will also be lower if there are more contactless transactions assuming the banks don't get too greedy)

    For example, a shop selling suits expect nearly everyone to pay with card, and so the retail prices have already factored in the card fees.

    Agreed.As mine is a small convenience store near a college many of my customers are students often purchasing soft drinks and crisps etc. My products are all price marked perhaps the suppliers will start factoring in this cost when deciding on their prices.

  22. Posted

    On 1/18/2020 at 10:15 AM, Sword said:

    I find low denomination coins from 20p downwards fairly pointless these days. They worth little and have a habit of accumulating in the pocket or jar at home. I like contactless payment for low amounts just to avoid having to carry the weight of loose change. I would rather think it is a good idea to scrap the 5p, 2p, 1p coins. 

    Shopkeepers like myself would disagree. Contactless payments of small amounts hit us directly in the pocket. Banks charge us a  transaction fee for every contactless payment reducing our profits significantly.

  23. Posted

    3 hours ago, JLS said:

    It looks EF or perhaps a tad better. For a coin to be described as "about uncirculated" you really want traces of lustre or at least subdued mint gloss, and really only the most trivial of wear. 

    Regarding the surfaces, they look similar to some 19th century French bronze pieces I have after cleaning with acetone for PVC residue; slightly buffed, but without any real damage associated with the cleaning. You'd have to be pretty fussy to treat it as a problem coin, but whether it affects value depends on how it appears in hand. The effect will probably lessen over the years if it's left alone. 

    JLS,

    thanks for your thorough and clear response. 
     

    regards

    Fred

     

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