POTW #6: Lincoln Portrait
Posted by Brian.
click image to view larger
shutter: 1/20, focal length: 36mm, aperture: f/2.7, distance: 3mm
Sorry the subject matter is not more interesting. I was just trying a quick shot at work that would make good use of my new tripod. This was lit with a halogen desk lamp tipped down to desk level and using the camera’s self timer with a 1 second delay to avoid motion during the exposure. It’s a monochrome image of mostly just the red channel, with a little of the green.
September 12th, 2007 at 2:23 pm Using
I’m impressed at just how chewed up the coin is. It would be really cool to have a comparison picture with a brand new penny. There are things like the scratches under Lincoln’s eye. Are those part of the design or the result of a hard hit at some point?
September 12th, 2007 at 2:55 pm Using
The really amazing thing is that to look at the coin from 10 inches away with your eye, you wouldn’t say it was that chewed up other than the corrosion above his forehead.
The subocular scratches are not present on a 1999 penny sitting here on my desk, but maybe they changed the die.
September 12th, 2007 at 4:49 pm Using
Well, lighting the coin from a low angle is going to do the best job of highlighting all the scratches too. It’s the perfect way to make them really stand out.
It’s how you look for craters on the moon too… you look right near the terminator because that’s where the light is the most grazing.