Just Fred Loc: Darwin's Waiting Room

To those who have suggested using a phone camera: Yes, that was my original thought, too. However, I have literally thousands of photos on my phone already, and the transfer from HEIC (which is the format of the current iPhone) to JPEG, the export and potentially the storage need has steered me toward my Nikon. I don't know how many images I will need to take -- it could be a few, it could be thousands -- and my feeling is that I have a fresh SD card I can use and then hand over to the requesting party. No muss, no fuss.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

Fred, there's a simple setting in iOS that lets you save JPEGs at the phone, so you don't have the frustration of HEIC conversions. Go to Settings > Camera > Formats > and be sure Most Compatible is checked.

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Macro lens ?!? Balanced lighting?!?!?!?
Typical UHH. Read the opening post. None of that is needed. That is proper advice for some other job but does not apply to this one. No doubt it could greatly pretty up the result, but would also burden the user and slow down the work. The priority is fast, easy, quick and dirty, but legible. Aesthetics are not a concern.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

You never know... The formal way might come in handy. I have two methods: the copy stand with macro lens and lights, and the iPhone. Both have their advantages.

Of course, the Minox is a quaint memory, but not really a sensible option any longer. An iPhone or Android replaces that and two million other tools...

k2edm Loc: FN32AD

meybe you are thinking about it the wrong way.....instead of photographing, why not scan the documents? My printer/scanner does a super job of creating jpgs..... Ed

Chadp Loc: Virginia Beach

👍

Everyone is peddling hard to try to beat a job that a cell phone handles easily and with better quality control.

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What’s this “you never know” BS ? The OP laid it out clearly enuf. Read it and you *do* know. Anything beyond a phone is a waste of time. If the OP foolishly insists on using his SLR thaz already slowing things down. No need to make it even worse than that :-(

Emergency preparedness would be one small LED panel on a pocket sized tripod. Having been in the microfilm biz I would also warn that many document storage rooms are reeeeeally filthy. It’s not clear yet what the work environment will be.

pminyard Loc: Bartlett, Tennessee

Eezy Peezy. Use your iPhone or android with the PDF app.

copladocus

If this is legal research and you have a lot of envelopes, for me a major consideration is clarity of text and rapid throughput. Yes, the scanner would be waaaayyy too slow for that. Can you do two or three envelopes in one photo? When I have multiple documents I try to fit as many in a photo as is reasonable and still give appropriate detail for the subject. The lens for what you are doing is already in your possession, go with the fastest lens, especially if you must hand hold. An assistant to set the envelopes and take them away will go a long way to speeding up the operation.

stan0301 Loc: Colorado

To do what you have contracted to do you really should go to eBay and get a macro lens - either the 55 or the 105 - probably the 55

richardsaccount

[quote=Just Fred]I have offered to assist in a legal research project, photographing documents (envelopes). The only requirement that I am aware of is that the address is legible.
I have several lenses for my Nikon D7500. My all-around go-to lens is a 18-140mm 3.5-5.6 zoom, and my brief tests suggest I can get a legible image from about six inches away from the subject. I also have a 35mm 1.8 prime lens and an 18-55mm 3.5-5.6 zoom.

What I don't know is what the lighting will be like. I'm inclined to use the prime lens, as it's faster in low-light situations. But the 18-55mm should provide more flexibility if I'm not able to get close enough to the subject.

Has anyone done work like this before? I should also note that it's unlikely I can set up a tripod, flash and other gear, so my offer is to give a step up from using a phone camera. (For 12 years I worked for a large historical society
doing mostly repro work. Most was done with a 4x5 camera. For 35mm slides, we used an SLR with a macro lens.
I adapted a Rodenstock F9:0 copy camera lens to a Polaroid shutter. Main main goal was flatness of field and corner
sharpness. If you are copying addresses in the middle of an envelope, corner sharpness shouldn't be a concern. I would use a prime lens though on your DSLR. Non glare glass it be a great help. Light set a a 45 degree angle is
I think essential. You could rent a macro lens. The Hoggers that previously replied to you have a plethora of good suggestions.

M1911 Loc: DFW Metromess

In my keep it simple view:
Think of a way that you can do a production line. Mark out a space so that you only have to slide one envelope out and another in. A simple "L" frame will work if all the envelopes are the same size. Tape a carpenter's square to a table, line up the camera, slide an envelope in, frame it focus on it shoot and insert the next on. A white board would also work for a jury rigged horizontal copy stand, using the marker tray as the base of thee L frame.

If you can do this in B&W you wouldn't have to worry about color balance.


As to which lens, test both for focus on a regular envelope. See how close and also how far you need to be to get the whole envelope.

For this I would shoot in jpg so I wouldn't have any PP to do.

BigOldArt Loc: Seminole, FL

Why use a camera instead of the scanner that is on many home level and office level printers (copiers)?

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The camera lacks IBIS. His fastest lens is the wrong choice for dim lighting.

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Likewise why bother with reading an OP’s rather clearly written postings when you can always just spin useless ideas out of thin air ?