eddm1962
Textures of Money
This weeks Macro Mondays theme is Texture.
My original ides was to take a very high magnification photo of one of the new security features of the latest US $100 bill design. The US is one of the most stable countries in the world economy, and therefore the US dollar is one of the most sought after, and trusted, forms of international currency. Current estimates suggest that two thirds of all US $100 bills are owned outside of the United States. Since it is so highly regarded, it is also the most targeted bill to forge.
In an attempt to thwart forgery, new security features have been added to the lager denominations of our paper money. These features are designed to assist in determining authenticity without the need for special tools. The security feature I was going to document is the raised printing on these new bills. If you move your finger up and down Benjamin Franklin’s shoulder on the left side of the new $100 bill, it will feel rough to the touch. This texture is a result of the enhanced intaglio printing process used to create the image. This texture is best felt using your fingernail.
After several attempts at depicting this texture, I found that one of the other security features is slightly more photogenic. The new design incorporates color shifting ink in several places on the new bill. This ink will change in appearance from copper to green in color, depending on the viewing angle. The change in color is the result of multi-layered metallic flakes added to the ink. When the bill is tilted, light reflects off these flakes at different wavelengths and changes colors. This is called color diffraction, which is also responsible for the color variations found on the wings of some butterflies.
This image is of one of the zeros in the 100 in the lower right on the front of the bill. In it, you can see multiple textures. The texture of the paper is very apparent. And most interestingly, the texture of the color shifting ink. Scale is important here. This image was captured at 5x magnification on a full frame sensor. This image has not been cropped. I think that the very fine printing in the background makes the image that much more interesting.
HMM.
Best viewed large.
Textures of Money
This weeks Macro Mondays theme is Texture.
My original ides was to take a very high magnification photo of one of the new security features of the latest US $100 bill design. The US is one of the most stable countries in the world economy, and therefore the US dollar is one of the most sought after, and trusted, forms of international currency. Current estimates suggest that two thirds of all US $100 bills are owned outside of the United States. Since it is so highly regarded, it is also the most targeted bill to forge.
In an attempt to thwart forgery, new security features have been added to the lager denominations of our paper money. These features are designed to assist in determining authenticity without the need for special tools. The security feature I was going to document is the raised printing on these new bills. If you move your finger up and down Benjamin Franklin’s shoulder on the left side of the new $100 bill, it will feel rough to the touch. This texture is a result of the enhanced intaglio printing process used to create the image. This texture is best felt using your fingernail.
After several attempts at depicting this texture, I found that one of the other security features is slightly more photogenic. The new design incorporates color shifting ink in several places on the new bill. This ink will change in appearance from copper to green in color, depending on the viewing angle. The change in color is the result of multi-layered metallic flakes added to the ink. When the bill is tilted, light reflects off these flakes at different wavelengths and changes colors. This is called color diffraction, which is also responsible for the color variations found on the wings of some butterflies.
This image is of one of the zeros in the 100 in the lower right on the front of the bill. In it, you can see multiple textures. The texture of the paper is very apparent. And most interestingly, the texture of the color shifting ink. Scale is important here. This image was captured at 5x magnification on a full frame sensor. This image has not been cropped. I think that the very fine printing in the background makes the image that much more interesting.
HMM.
Best viewed large.