Here is something that I heard about on one of the coin forums and couldn't believe I didn't think of it myself.

Like a lot of collectors, I have a digital camera and a loupe. I found that I can take reasonably good closeups by putting the loupe in front of the camera and taking pictures through the digital viewfinder. It takes a fairly steady hand and some trial and error but here are some example pictures:

I tried this too and got some very nice results

for the steady hand: I happen to have one of these:



and that holds the loupe for me and my camera is on a little stand too:

Most of the RPM pics I posted in the Error/Variety section I did with the loupe trick. I may try some sort of holder too, cuz it took way too many shots to hold it on my own.

If I am not too juiced on caffeine or too strung out from a lack of caffeine, I have a fairly steady hand.

This is a setup that I use and I am pretty happy with it. It was the least expensive unit I could find and works ok for an amateur like me. The stand could definitely be sturdier, but a copystand makes things a lot easier. The daylight bulbs they have work well too. Have not used the tent though.

http://store.tabletopstudio-store.com/ezprost.html

Interesting!, We learn every day!

At 12 cups a day I definately need a stand! Why didn't I read this thread before!

12" is a little small for a copystand for me. Does anyone know a good place to get/browse copystands? 24"-36" up would work better for me.

I've tried the loop in front of the lense thing but haven't had much luck. I don't have much luck with the loop alone, I guess I need a steadier hand.

[img]http://i27.photobucket.c

More practice for me but good info thanks for sharing.

You may want to also check out web sites like bhphotvideo.com. B&H are one of the largest suppliers of camera equipment around. There are also other alternatives in the lower price ranges. For example check to see if you camera has a threaded filter ring in the front of the lens. If so check camera web sites for supplies or go to a camera store and look into enlarging filters. Vivitar makes a +1, +2, +3 set in numerous mm sizes for cameras. These added to your front lenses will also give you an enlargement. Also, if you check out magnifying web sites you'll find some with a builtin light and a small area that magnifies about 8X and the main one is about 3X. If your camera is not a thing of beauty why not just tape a magnifier to the front of the camera. One more thing you may want to do is check out on the internet if there are any camera shows in your area. Here in Illinois there is at least one a month. At such shows you can usually acquire a decent digital camera for a really cheap price. I have 5 of them and the cost was less than if I bought just one in a store. Also, at such shows you will meet manyh professional photographers that really know what they are talking about.