Magnified Pandas - Microscope shots / Macro

Howdy All

I just got a new toy for myself. I have had a 10 x Microscope and went to the guy that I bought it from to get the USB adapter, well didn't have one. So I went to HN to look for something else and came across a Belkin USB with stand so thought OK get it. Keep me occupied until the other one arrives.

So remembering from what I can tell from discussions that NGC use 10 x Mag these are approx another 1.5 times again. So this is more for a look and discussion on the techniques. I have focused on the outer plastic, then pushed past this for focus so it should be pretty close to the coin surface, there will be some reflection from the lights and the cheap plastic surround (Edit "Read instructions" Note - Remove Protective cover before using... need I say more). Overall a 7/10 (updated to a 7.5/10 due to the improved picture quality) needs a much, much better stand. The software is easy to use and has a handy tool that allows measurements to be added and then saved, so that is what I have done.

I hope to add others and I will look at the slabbed coins as well for comparison on results etc. Comments questions welcomed.

 

Ok here is a shot of the Temple @ 25 x Mag. This is a 2005 NGC MS69 I must say impressive

 

Too much fun sorry for spamming... did a quick mod to the base and sticky taped it to some black craft foam board that works well.

Shots of the steps, leading up the temple. This is an area where the fakes and genuine ones really stand out, that is what I believe ? and I can see why, look at the detail in there.

 

Good ,indepth (excuse the pun) knowledge for all ,thanks!

 

Thanks mate, LOL

Here is another nick in the field of the coin. You can see it near the 10 Yuan amount. I must say I am keen to see a few MS70's under this and if they are free of such minor imperfections. I will do a PM Kook to have a look at the comparison. In saying that these are pretty good for a bullion coin.

30 x Magnification -

 

Off topic ,but forgive my intrusion
I have sent a couple of items to NGC ,via another stacker ,recently. It is difficult for us in Aus to do that,due to the costs involved with postage and grading/conserving.
To that end ,I was having a discussion recently with Thucydides79 about the possibility of some one starting their own coin grading service here ..
Just needs a dedicated numi company with some dealership cred or,perhaps an enthusiast like yourself to step up ..
Big oaks from little acorns grow ..

Just sayin'

 

Hehe, you are not spamming, you are enriching !!

Great shots, and dimensions given put some things into perspective too.

Most coins have miniscule gems on them.

Coin grading is another interesting topic -, with hi res microscopes, accessible database of all graded coins and their images, transparent systems, inexpensive work ie. $3-$10 per coin and maybe something could eventuate,.

 

Wow! Those are really amazing pics! I'm going to look out for a USB microscope too now!

 

Thanks Boyou and Thucy

A couple more observations. The first shot of the 1/10 Gold is a little misleading. I have identified that those striations across the fields are in fact on the package, so that means it is not a blank linishing or polishing mark .

Ok so now I took the most valuable coin I have (So far :0 ) the 2000 SM 1oz Silver Panda. Looking at the shots from before I have tried to show a reference difference in some areas, namely the temple and the stairs. I have also included a shot of the Face of the Panda and you can see that it is a lot rougher in texture to the newer Pandas. Looking over at this magnification did not show any signs like on the 2005 so that is a positive. My only concern is the very weak strike of the Panda's nose as you can see. So if anyone else can confirm if these are normally so weak ?

Comments welcome and if you want to see any particular part of a coin let me know and I will see what I can do.

 

This is the one I got, very similar to the ones on Ebay but must say the software is great, plus I use external lighting and not the LED lights in the unit. I am still working on modding the unit and focus is a bihutch that is also another weak point. I am going to try mod a small drill press or something for fine adjustments.

http://www.kaiserbaas.com/kaiser-baas-product-page/converters/digital-microscope

 

wow great work

 

Awesome work!

The only critique that I can give is maybe to get some further external lighting going.

Reading about your first photo, this was taken with the coin in the capsule? If so, you would never be able to tell.

You make me want to spend more money ...I think that I "need" oe of these now

These are really amazing shots, well done. They are actually better detail than Peter Anthony's bible!

 

I've been searching for one that is not too pricey and can be used on Mac OS.

 

This does come with Mac software and there is a patch on the site check first to see if it will work ?

 

Thanks mate, very nice of you. I agree about lighting it is very difficult. I have been trying to diffuse the light as best I can but it is hard. I may look to make a mini softbox and see how this goes. I have modded the stand now and the unit sits in my microscope stand. This has given excellent control over focus now. I set the magnification and the use the fine control to move into focus. I am pretty happy with the results the one thing I wanted was a real quick way to reference fine detail. I can do this now all within about a minute of starting up and have a photo with measurements if needed.

 

You are right about the light box. I used to do a lot of macro jewelry photography and the only way to get the proper exposure and crispness is proper lighting so you can keep the ISO settings low to avoid the grainy exposure. I actually made a makeshift one from one of those foldable wire laundry baskets and covered it with thin white paper... until I got a proper light box. both worked pretty well.

Regarding the weak nose of the panda, could it be a very shallow depth of field? I noticed that the outer edges of that photo was also blurred and suspected that the focus was clearest near the eyes and since the nose is a bit more elevated might be out of focus already. maybe you can try fidling with the focus or changing the aperture settings if you have one.

 

Very impressive work ausstacker, thanks for sharing... lovin that first obverse shot of the temple.

 

Thanks, yes the light and DOF really are hard to handle here, when you can focus the thickness of a piece of plastic. It is definitely going to have edges being soft so I am not sure, regardless however I looked at it I couldn't get a lot of detail into the nose area. Thanks again for the comments.

I agree I was amazed at some of the detail that has come out from these.

 

I bought a portable lightbox thing from Amazon to take coin photos. Geeky? Maybe

 

I think the lightbox is a good idea. What lights are you using through the box ?

This is not for my coin photos so to speak I have another setup this was more for fun and quick reference but if I can get consistency then that is what I am after.