Kaib795 Loc: Maryland, USA

I like your copy rig. Though for me all I need is about half the size copy stand mainly because of my lack of space. If designed to pop the table screen area off, the whole rig could be parked off to a corner of the room. Nice proven plan design. I may do the same. Thank you

RichLacey Loc: Atlanta

Quick comment-be aware that “true” macro lenses are corrected for flatness of field and not “regular lenses with a ‘macro’ setting.” Best bet for images of flat objects, but quite possibly out of your spending limit.

RichLacey Loc: Atlanta

Quick comment-be aware that “true” macro lenses are corrected for flatness of field and not “regular lenses with a ‘macro’ setting.” Best bet for images of flat objects, but quite possibly out of your spending limit.

chasgroh Loc: Buena Park, CA

...it breaks down easily!

Photec

Hi NL, you have posted a few things I might suggest. 1) If the seller on Amazon "lost his contract" that is definately a sign he is NOT someone you want to deal with. 2) If you are a new Artist trying to sell copies of your Art Work, it might be better for you to enlist the services of a Professional Imaging service that can produce digital scans and professional prints for you initially, instead of spending a lot of $$ on new equipment and time learning how to do what they already know how to do. That will do a few things for you; a) test the market for your art; and b) produce income to buy new equipment.

If at some point you want to invest in a camera and lens, they will only get better each and every month, and the current prices for what is out there today will continue to fall. Not knowing what your current knowledge of photographic copy work is, I am going to assume you may have never done it. If not, I can assure you that it is not a simple point and shoot affair. It is a lot of fun, but doing it professionally is work.

The Nikon D850 is a fantastic camera for professionals, but I can not reccomend it as a first time camera. The learning curve for the D850 is very high. I think a Z7 might be easier to work with for your copy work since it is smaller and lighter. Yes, it is more expensive than the 850 now, but the price is sure to drop.

In addition to a camera and lens, there are also several other items you will need to research in order to make quality copies, such as tripods, lighting, copy stands, etc. I am not trying to disway you, only trying to give you an idea of what all is envolved. Good luck in your new business.

cdayton

My wife is an artist and I have had the same issue in copying her work. When I wanted truly high quality pix, I found a professional who had a special setup with a large flat surface, an overhead camera mount and great lighting. In general, he stitched together multiple images to get a very high resolution image. I wouldn’t try to duplicate his setup unless I were doing 100s of images. For routine shots to post on her web site, I so the best I can with my D300 on a tripod and adjust in post.

User ID

Couldn't live without my PLs
... and I NEVER use them to
make Hallmark Blue skies. A
polarized lens combined with
polarized lights is SOP.

.

User ID

`



IIRC my G9 body alone was waaaaay
over budget per the OP :-(

.

chasgroh Loc: Buena Park, CA

...I don't need polarization. Not the way I've set things up. <shrug> If reflections/glare are a problem, maybe so...otherwise why?

prembetsy

Use a flat field lens... they can be had for 4x5, 2 1/4, 35mm

Dennis833 Loc: Australia

I've been copying art for many years and my son is an artist. I would recommend a Sony A6000 camera with a Sigma 60mm E mount lens. But if you can manage a manual lens then you could use any good 50mm legacy lens with a cheap eBay adaptor. You can start out shooting in an open garage, under a deck or only on cloudy days. Always shoot on auto white balance and include a grey card in the corner. In Photoshop open the curves palette and select the centre eye dropper and click on the grey card to balance the colour.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

You can do the super resolution thing with ANY camera, technically no lens is "flat field", Linear polarizers are fine with mirrorless cameras, but not with DSLRs - and a google search will yield many sources for photographic linear polarizers, you don't need in-camera focus stacking, you can get automated stacking with Helicon Focus, DSLR Dashboard, CamRanger and other remote/camera automation software applications, and a 16x20 made from an M4/3 camera is easy to distinguish from a 16x20 made from any larger sensor camera.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

I'd suggest a 36 mp D800, which you can get for around $800. A lens with a flat field is not necessary, as long as it is not a zoom or an ultra wide lens, which can suffer from complex or "Moustache" distortion. A 50mm F1.8 G will provide very little distortion, less than .3 stop difference between center and corner illumination, and very low chromatic aberration, and it costs only $175 new and around $90 used. The key is to find a lens that has good resolution across the field, not just in the center. Barrel distortion, vignetting, etc is usually handled with a lens profile. Shoot raw for maximum detail capture, and use a ColorChecker Passport for absolutely neutral color and white balance.

If you light your subjects with diffused speedlights, you don't need an expensive tripod. Polarized light and camera is a great suggestion, and pretty much anything EL Shapiro recommended. He is the real deal, and his advice is golden.

Bill P

No chance of bad reflection things like specular highlights. Also better and more accurate color. But I guess you don't want to do it right, just close enough.

chasgroh Loc: Buena Park, CA

...well, you're right on the close enough score. If I have to print up a book or something, that's another matter, but I show online and out of a pad or phone to folks and we aren't pixel peeping...so far everything I do needs to be seen in person. It is what it is, and I'll do what's necessary to provide excellent product to the end customer. Bank on that. YMMV.