Photography Equipment Review How to use axial lighting to photograph coins. Dr Dave Axial Lighting Kit review

[arphethean]

Having had a few weeks to try out @DrDave's axial lighting box (ALB) I thought I would share the results here in the form of a photo-rich review so you can see what it does, how easy it is to use, and what the results are like.

What is the axial lighting box?

So firstly, the premise is a simple kit to enable you to photograph coins with axial lighting - that means light that is coming from the same direction as you are shooting from, which means no shadows across the coin and all features evenly lit without reflections. Of course this is impossible with a normal camera as you cannot have a light source where the lens is, but this piece of kit uses a sheet of glass to reflect light from the source down onto the coin and you photograph through the glass.

The advantage of this is that you can photograph the coin straight on so the coin appears round, and not cast a shadow with your camera. Your light source is out of the way at right angles.

 

Out of the box

DrDave put together this simple 3D printed kit for this. It consists of the glass-holding unit with a cut out to put the coin in, and a baffle to prevent the light source shining directly onto the coin, the sheet of glass and a translucent diffuser sheet.

The price was £24.99 posted and this unit was not provided for review purposes by DrDave.

First impressions are good. It's a well designed and executed holder made of 2mm thick plastic which seems sturdy. The glass itself has sharp edges and corners so care must be taken. The glass just rests on the holder at 45°.

Useful to know is that the height of the kit from the coin to the top edge of the glass is 12cm. It is possiblbe to get a phone to around 10cm from the coin as it is a bit smaller in width but that leaves no room to rotate, so 12cm to be safe. Also with DSLR lenses etc. you need to factor in the length of these. I believe minimum lens focus distance is measured to the sensor which is at the back of the DSLR body so to achieve macro focus there is a lot in the way. 

 

Set up

The set up is simple. I used my anglepoise desk lamp fitted with a 10W LED bulb and took photos with my Samsung S10 mobile phone on 2x zoom, so no special kit whatsoever. I propped the ALB on a small box so as to put it more in line with the light source. I also used a black book propped up to the right of the ALB to prevent reflections coming off the top of the glass.

 

Results

So on to the results. I photographed a variety of coins to show how they appear under different lighting conditions and show the differences in the results.

Firstly a large shiny coin - a 1oz silver panda. The coin in the capsule fits into the coin opening with a couple of mm to spare all round. The opening will allow coins up to 47mm diameter so perfect for all 1oz coins but too small for e.g. 2oz silver Lunars.

This is photographed without the ALB with the light off to the left

 

Using the ALB without the diffuser results in a strange reflection of the light source.

 

Using the ALB with the diffuser makes the lighting more even and eliminates the strange reflections. 

Comparing with the image taken without, it is a much more "clean" image without the harsh contrast, however, the milking on the coin does not show, nor does the contrast between frosted and mirrored surfaces or the fine texture on the frosted areas. It may be more suited to a "stock" image as it shows off the design effectively and TBH makes the coin look better than it is!

 

Now a 1oz Matte finish coin - ASE

Without the ALB

Note many areas either have overexposed highlights or no definition. Camera is not straight on to the coin so there is a focus gradient

 

With the ALB, no diffuser

Really makes the image pop. Some surfaces are quite dark however.

 

With the diffuser the whole lighting becomes much more even though loses the "pop" of the previous image

 

 

An 1830 polished gold sovereign

WITHOUT the ALB

Lighting to the left. Note how prominently the scratches perpendicular to the light source show.

 

Light source in line with the coin almost overhead. Camera straight on to preserve focus across the coin (well, in theory - I see the right side is pretty soft). 

Note horizontal scratches now show more. Also note uneven lighting with the top half being overexposed in areas and the bottom half a bit dull.

 

This photo with lighting directly reflecting off the coin, so the camera is not straight on, resulting in out of focus areas at the top and bottom of the coin, also a yellow cast caused by the bright reflection making the camera adjust the white balance.

 

With the ALB. No diffuser

Soft focus notwithstanding (my bad), the coin is evenly lit, the surface shows well (although hairline scratches disappear) and focus is flat across the coin as it's taken straight on.

 

With the diffuser, the light is too even and all contrast disappears. The diffuser is not suited for this scenario.

 

Now a Morgan Dollar

Without the ALB

Lighting off to the left in this shot, there are strong highlights and other areas lacking definition.

 

Reflection directly off the coin in attempt to make lighting more even results again in focus gradient.

 

With the ALB (no diffuser)

A much more professional looking photo that shows off the details really well but does disguise some of the scratches on the cheek shown in photos above.

Note the optical illusion that makes the letters appear incuse rather than relief!

 

With the diffuser, there is no contrast and many features vanish.

 

 

A shiny quarter dollar

Without ALB and lighting off to the left shows off the coin well and with it being a small coin focus is fine.

 

With the ALB, some reflections and dust on the glass start to become a nuisance. Glass must be kept clean, and the rest of the room needs to be dark. A large black surface opposite the light source is a must.

However, the coin is shown off at its best here and hairline scratches are hidden.

 

Don't use the diffuser for anything other than proof mirror-fields....

 

 

Last coin, a very small platinum panda

No ALB

Mirror fields go black as they are reflecting the dark room, and contrast nicely with the frosted surfaces.

 

ALB with no diffuser.

This being a graded coin means there is a plastic surface in front of the coin which reflects the light back at you resulting in the ghost image of the light source. No good.

 

With diffuser, we can now see the coin much better although I am missing the mirror/frosted contrast again. No ALB seems to be the best in this scenario.

 

Conclusions: 

I think this is a good product which in the right situations can make a coin look superb, although often at the expense of total disclosure of the condition. You can understand why dealers and auction houses love using it  

It seems to work especially well with bullion or circulation coins with an even matte texture such as the ASE, but also crowns, Morgan dollars and similar.

Proof coins present difficulties but I find just using a dark background and a bit of zoom to get close to "straight on" work best. The ALB removes the frosted/mirrored contrast which in my opinion is a loss.

For smaller coins this kit is not so useful for me using a mobile as I have to use excessive zoom to fill the frame with the coin. With a proper camera with macro/zoom lens this will likely be less of an issue as the minimum focus distance is anyway larger. The closest I can get my phone to the coin is about 9cm which is perfect for 40mm coins but 20mm coin photos will need to be heavily cropped. A smaller format "phone version" with a ~5cm minimum focus distance would be ideal for my use.

If I would make a suggestion to improve the useability of the product it would be to have the glass slot in to a rail like the diffuser. This would prevent cuts on the glass, and make it easier to store it and move it around without the glass falling off. However, it is a good product for using axial lighting for coins and I found it pretty straightforward to use.

 

Thanks for checking out my review. I'd love to know all your thoughts:

Which scenario do you think the ALB really comes into its own?

Which is my best photo in this thread?

Edited March 29, 2023 by arphethean

[Darr3nG]

Brilliant! I'm pinging @DrDave now, to buy one. Thanks!

[LawrenceChard]

1 hour ago, arphethean said:

Having had a few weeks to try out @DrDave's axial lighting box (ALB) I thought I would share the results here in the form of a photo-rich review so you can see what it does, how easy it is to use, and what the results are like.

What is the axial lighting box?

So firstly, the premise is a simple kit to enable you to photograph coins with axial lighting - that means light that is coming from the same direction as you are shooting from, which means no shadows across the coin and all features evenly lit without reflections. Of course this is impossible with a normal camera as you cannot have a light source where the lens is, but this piece of kit uses a sheet of glass to reflect light from the source down onto the coin and you photograph through the glass.

The advantage of this is that you can photograph the coin straight on so the coin appears round, and not cast a shadow with your camera. Your light source is out of the way at right angles.

 

Out of the box

DrDave put together this simple 3D printed kit for this. It consists of the glass-holding unit with a cut out to put the coin in, and a baffle to prevent the light source shining directly onto the coin, the sheet of glass and a translucent diffuser sheet.

The price was £24.99 posted and this unit was not provided for review purposes by DrDave.

First impressions are good. It's a well designed and executed holder made of 2mm thick plastic which seems sturdy. The glass itself has sharp edges and corners so care must be taken. The glass just rests on the holder at 45°.

 

Set up

The set up is simple. I used my anglepoise desk lamp fitted with a 10W LED bulb and took photos with my Samsung S10 mobile phone on 2x zoom, so no special kit whatsoever. I propped the ALB on a small box so as to put it more in line with the light source. I also used a black book propped up to the right of the ALB to prevent reflections coming off the top of the glass.

 

Results

So on to the results. I photographed a variety of coins to show how they appear under different lighting conditions and show the differences in the results.

Firstly a large shiny coin - a 1oz silver panda. The coin in the capsule fits into the coin opening with a couple of mm to spare all round. The opening will allow coins up to 47mm diameter so perfect for all 1oz coins but too small for e.g. 2oz silver Lunars.

This is photographed without the ALB with the light off to the left

 

Using the ALB without the diffuser results in a strange reflection of the light source.

 

Using the ALB with the diffuser makes the lighting more even and eliminates the strange reflections. 

Comparing with the image taken without, it is a much more "clean" image without the harsh contrast, however, the milking on the coin does not show, nor does the contrast between frosted and mirrored surfaces or the fine texture on the frosted areas. It may be more suited to a "stock" image as it shows off the design effectively and TBH makes the coin look better than it is!

 

Now a 1oz Matte finish coin - ASE

Without the ALB

Note many areas either have overexposed highlights or no definition. Camera is not straight on to the coin so there is a focus gradient

 

With the ALB, no diffuser

Really makes the image pop. Some surfaces are quite dark however.

 

With the diffuser the whole lighting becomes much more even though loses the "pop" of the previous image

 

 

An 1830 polished gold sovereign

WITHOUT the ALB

Lighting to the left. Note how prominently the scratches perpendicular to the light source show.

 

Light source in line with the coin almost overhead. Camera straight on to preserve focus across the coin (well, in theory - I see the right side is pretty soft). 

Note horizontal scratches now show more. Also note uneven lighting with the top half being overexposed in areas and the bottom half a bit dull.

 

This photo with lighting directly reflecting off the coin, so the camera is not straight on, resulting in out of focus areas at the top and bottom of the coin, also a yellow cast caused by the bright reflection making the camera adjust the white balance.

 

With the ALB. No diffuser

Soft focus notwithstanding (my bad), the coin is evenly lit, the surface shows well (although hairline scratches disappear) and focus is flat across the coin as it's taken straight on.

 

With the diffuser, the light is too even and all contrast disappears. The diffuser is not suited for this scenario.

 

Now a Morgan Dollar

Without the ALB

Lighting off to the left in this shot, there are strong highlights and other areas lacking definition.

 

Reflection directly off the coin in attempt to make lighting more even results again in focus gradient.

 

With the ALB (no diffuser)

A much more professional looking photo that shows off the details really well but does disguise some of the scratches on the cheek shown in photos above.

Note the optical illusion that makes the letters appear incuse rather than relief!

 

With the diffuser, there is no contrast and many features vanish.

 

 

A shiny quarter dollar

Without ALB and lighting off to the left shows off the coin well and with it being a small coin focus is fine.

 

With the ALB, some reflections and dust on the glass start to become a nuisance. Glass must be kept clean, and the rest of the room needs to be dark. A large black surface opposite the light source is a must.

However, the coin is shown off at its best here and hairline scratches are hidden.

 

Don't use the diffuser for anything other than proof mirror-fields....

 

 

Last coin, a very small platinum panda

No ALB

Mirror fields go black as they are reflecting the dark room, and contrast nicely with the frosted surfaces.

 

ALB with no diffuser.

This being a graded coin means there is a plastic surface in front of the coin which reflects the light back at you resulting in the ghost image of the light source. No good.

 

With diffuser, we can now see the coin much better although I am missing the mirror/frosted contrast again. No ALB seems to be the best in this scenario.

 

Conclusions: 

I think this is a good product which in the right situations can make a coin look superb, although often at the expense of total disclosure of the condition. You can understand why dealers and auction houses love using it  

It seems to work especially well with bullion or circulation coins with an even matte texture such as the ASE, but also crowns, Morgan dollars and similar.

Proof coins present difficulties but I find just using a dark background and a bit of zoom to get close to "straight on" work best. The ALB removes the frosted/mirrored contrast which in my opinion is a loss.

For smaller coins this kit is not so useful for me using a mobile as I have to use excessive zoom to fill the frame with the coin. With a proper camera with macro/zoom lens this will likely be less of an issue as the minimum focus distance is anyway larger. The closest I can get my phone to the coin is about 9cm which is perfect for 40mm coins but 20mm coin photos will need to be heavily cropped. A smaller format "phone version" with a ~5cm minimum focus distance would be ideal for my use.

If I would make a suggestion to improve the useability of the product it would be to have the glass slot in to a rail like the diffuser. This would prevent cuts on the glass, and make it easier to store it and move it around without the glass falling off. However, it is a good product for using axial lighting for coins and I found it pretty straightforward to use.

 

Thanks for checking out my review. I'd love to know all your thoughts:

Which scenario do you think the ALB really comes into its own?

Which is my best photo in this thread?

 

1 hour ago, Darr3nG said:

Brilliant! I'm pinging @DrDave now, to buy one. Thanks!

Not to detract from your results or @DrDave Axial Lighting Stand, don't forget where his inspiration came from @SemolinaPilchard, who also wrote a guide to using it, which he published on TSF somewhere, and we also published it here https://www.chards.co.uk/guides/coin-photography-kit-taking-photos-the-chards-way/1046.

There are a few updates and improvements we could and will make to our guide when we have time.

The Chard branded Axial Lighting kit we use is slightly bigger than DrDaves, and we will be charging slightly more for them, probably around £50 including VAT.

I don't think many other dealers or auction houses have started using them yet.

As you discovered, it still requires some trial and error to get the best results, and a DSLR will produce better photos more easily than any mobile phone camera.

😎

[Gordy]

2 hours ago, arphethean said:

If I would make a suggestion to improve the useability of the product it would be to have the glass slot in to a rail like the diffuser. This would prevent cuts on the glass, and make it easier to store it and move it around without the glass falling off. However, it is a good product for using axial lighting for coins and I found it pretty straightforward to use.

 

good review, regarding your sharp bit experiences, glass in itself, is as we all know, sharp as hell and hard and brittle but also very easily blunted with a piece of fine sandpaper or an emery board nail file, just hold the file at a 45 degree angle to the edge and slightly rub it along the glass, no pressure needed, the sharpness disapears in an instant, the corners, the same... good idea for the slot for the glass too as it does fall off easily if knocked and potentially break

[arphethean]

8 hours ago, LawrenceChard said:

 

Not to detract from your results or @DrDave Axial Lighting Stand, don't forget where his inspiration came from @SemolinaPilchard, who also wrote a guide to using it, which he published on TSF somewhere, and we also published it here https://www.chards.co.uk/guides/coin-photography-kit-taking-photos-the-chards-way/1046.

There are a few updates and improvements we could and will make to our guide when we have time.

The Chard branded Axial Lighting kit we use is slightly bigger than DrDaves, and we will be charging slightly more for them, probably around £50 including VAT.

I don't think many other dealers or auction houses have started using them yet.

As you discovered, it still requires some trial and error to get the best results, and a DSLR will produce better photos more easily than any mobile phone camera.

😎

Good to know Lawrence. Looking forward to seeing your one. 

If I might make a suggestion if there's still time for that. Have a shroud all around the glass to prevent external reflections to prevent need to prop up a black book. 

As much as this is for "proper" coin photography with a DSLR, the reality is that the majority of people for the majority of purposes will likely be using mobile phones which are much more convenient and rapidly closing the quality gap with DSLRs so please do consider making a smaller mobile friendly version with a little platform to rest the phone on flat and parallel with the coin and allow around 5 to 6cm minimum focus distance 😀 

I am sure you would sell more if them than a larger version

Edited February 1, 2023 by arphethean

[LawrenceChard]

2 hours ago, arphethean said:

Good to know Lawrence. Looking forward to seeing your one. 

If I might make a suggestion if there's still time for that. Have a shroud all around the glass to prevent external reflections to prevent need to prop up a black book. 

As much as this is for "proper" coin photography with a DSLR, the reality is that the majority of people for the majority of purposes will likely be using mobile phones which are much more convenient and rapidly closing the quality gap with DSLRs so please do consider making a smaller mobile friendly version with a little platform to rest the phone on flat and parallel with the coin and allow around 5 to 6cm minimum focus distance 😀 

I am sure you would sell more if them than a larger version

Doug @SemolinaPilchard did make our first one himself, and also supplied them, without glass, to a number of people, but then his machine broke, and he moved house. Meanwhile he moved on to a different "toy", and has not got room for his old machine.

To make our recent batch, he subcontracted the cutting, and we also got some shipping packaging made. While Doug used to be able to make them in singles or small batches, and could supply orders in a short time span, this has taken longer. I have not yet seen our final product because I keep forgeting to ask exactly where they are when I am in the showroom.

This highlights a point that, for what we make on them, it is not really a commercially viable project for us, as it distracts us from our main job, which is buying and selling numismatic and bullion products efficiently.

Doug may be able to comment on the shroud or stray light problem.

As for mobiles:

If you look, even for DSLRs, we don't provide a tripod or copy stand, nor any of the various lighting set-ups which might be needed, so to provide some sort of device to hold a mobile goes beyond the original design aim. I would also guess that because there are many different sizes, shapes, and layouts of mobiles, we might need to provide a different device for every model, or a highly adaptable one. This would complicate design and production, and would increase the cost and price. If mobile phone cameras ever get to be as good as a DSLR, then I might reconsider.

Most Android users would possibly prefer to make their own adaptions rather than pay more for a mobile phone axial lighting stand than for our DSLR version. Of course, if we charged enough, then Apple users would probably flock to buy, but then we would need to design in some built in obsolescence so that they could upgrade to the latest model every few years.

All photography requires an amount of trial, error, and adaptation. Even with our axial lighting stand, different metals, sizes, and finishes of coins etc., may require some individual adjustment.

@DrDave might be happy to design, make, and supply an adapted mobile version, but I suspect he might get bored because I guess he likes a challenge and doing something new.

Don't forget, to optimise your photos, you are going to need Photoshop or some other photo processing software.

For me / us it is not about more sales or profit, although it might be different if we could sell a few million per annum. It was originally to meet the small demand from people who wanted to produce better coin photos. Our "branded" version appeals to my sense of humour, as I would love to see our branded product in use by many of our competitors and suppliers.

I would be happy to supply a free sample to some selected mints, including our very own Royal Mint, especially if it then appeared in any of their promotional material, with our name clearly on show!

😎

[arphethean]

3 minutes ago, LawrenceChard said:

Doug @SemolinaPilchard did make our first one himself, and also supplied them, without glass, to a number of people, but then his machine broke, and he moved house. Meanwhile he moved on to a different "toy", and has not got room for his old machine.

To make our recent batch, he subcontracted the cutting, and we also got some shipping packaging made. While Doug used to be able to make them in singles or small batches, and could supply orders in a short time span, this has taken longer. I have not yet seen our final product because I keep forgeting to ask exactly where they are when I am in the showroom.

This highlights a point that, for what we make on them, it is not really a commercially viable project for us, as it distracts us from our main job, which is buying and selling numismatic and bullion products efficiently.

Doug may be able to comment on the shroud or stray light problem.

As for mobiles:

If you look, even for DSLRs, we don't provide a tripod or copy stand, nor any of the various lighting set-ups which might be needed, so to provide some sort of device to hold a mobile goes beyond the original design aim. I would also guess that because there are many different sizes, shapes, and layouts of mobiles, we might need to provide a different device for every model, or a highly adaptable one. This would complicate design and production, and would increase the cost and price. If mobile phone cameras ever get to be as good as a DSLR, then I might reconsider.

Most Android users would possibly prefer to make their own adaptions rather than pay more for a mobile phone axial lighting stand than for our DSLR version. Of course, if we charged enough, then Apple users would probably flock to buy, but then we would need to design in some built in obsolescence so that they could upgrade to the latest model every few years.

All photography requires an amount of trial, error, and adaptation. Even with our axial lighting stand, different metals, sizes, and finishes of coins etc., may require some individual adjustment.

@DrDave might be happy to design, make, and supply an adapted mobile version, but I suspect he might get bored because I guess he likes a challenge and doing something new.

Don't forget, to optimise your photos, you are going to need Photoshop or some other photo processing software.

For me / us it is not about more sales or profit, although it might be different if we could sell a few million per annum. It was originally to meet the small demand from people who wanted to produce better coin photos. Our "branded" version appeals to my sense of humour, as I would love to see our branded product in use by many of our competitors and suppliers.

I would be happy to supply a free sample to some selected mints, including our very own Royal Mint, especially if it then appeared in any of their promotional material, with our name clearly on show!

😎

Indeed.

I have deliberately left my photos exactly as they were taken with no post-processing or even cropping. Not purely out of laziness! I just wanted to show the results using axial lighting with no doctoring.

As it is, DrDave has not been online in a couple of weeks so might not be fulfilling new orders.

As for mobiles, there would be no need for adaptations for different models. They would just rest on a flat platform with a hole for the lens to peep through. Doubles as a light shroud to prevent any stray light. Very simple and very effective as it frees up the users hand to tap the screen to focus, or  adjust the glass angle etc.

Shame you are not going all in on it but totally see why not. 

[LawrenceChard]

1 hour ago, arphethean said:

Indeed.

I have deliberately left my photos exactly as they were taken with no post-processing or even cropping. Not purely out of laziness! I just wanted to show the results using axial lighting with no doctoring.

As it is, DrDave has not been online in a couple of weeks so might not be fulfilling new orders.

As for mobiles, there would be no need for adaptations for different models. They would just rest on a flat platform with a hole for the lens to peep through. Doubles as a light shroud to prevent any stray light. Very simple and very effective as it frees up the users hand to tap the screen to focus, or  adjust the glass angle etc.

Shame you are not going all in on it but totally see why not. 

I assumed that you had left the photos as ex-camera for that reason.

I said DrDave might get bored!

Doug will probably look at this topic later, hopefully.

😎

[SilverPlatinum]

@arphethean

Thank you very much for this info and the efforts you made to post all those photos. 👍

[arphethean]

Added some info with regard to minimum focus