Win $40 to spend at Nina Designs by offering a jewelry photography tip.
Jewelry Photography can be challenging. There are many things to consider so much so that when I began photographing my jewelry I felt overwhelmed. To gain some control over my runaway emotions, I narrowed my focus to the basics: buy a digital camera with a good macro- setting to get amazing close up shots, shoot in natural light, and use consistent backgrounds to lend my shop a cohesive look.
As Emily points out in Jewelry Display Tips beginning with a clear vision of your customers helps you develop the look of your shop – everything from packaging, display, and photography. My customer appreciates vintage finds, so I chose to use an old metal table in front of a window with great natural light as my background.
In the beginning, my photos were BORING! They were a snooze. I wasn’t sure what to do, so I did the only thing I could. I kept trying. By the time I shot hundreds of photos, I began to tweak my approach to jewelry photography in a way that made all the difference. This sounds counter-intuitive, but the more I thought of my jewelry as sculpture and not as jewelry at all, the more interesting my photos became. Once I freed my mind of the constraints of what jewelry should look like, I was able to position my jewelry into unique perspectives, and format my photos in eye-catching and unusual ways.
Win $40 to spend at Nina Designs! What tips have you learned that you can pass along? Offer your tip for a chance to win $40 to spend on jewelry findings. Earn an extra entry by sending a photo to go along with your tip. Leave your tip here as a blog comment and send photos to juanita(at)ninadesigns.com. My goal is to write a follow-up blog with everyone’s contributions. This way we can have a convenient and useful reference when we need it.
Earrings or Sculpture?
Using the macro setting (looks like a little flower symbol) will help you get close in to your jewelry without ending up blurry. Your background should complement your jewelry but not compete with it. I have found that scrapbook paper in striking colors can be a great resource for backgrounds and paper photographs well. Show different angles of the jewelry and get super close on some shots to show a special detail, but also include ones that show the overall piece if you can so it is not confusing as to what the item is.
Comment by Shannon — August 30, 2011 @ 4:30 pm
When I shoot my necklaces, I almost always shoot them on an angle and try to get some real perspective. I also arrange the necklace in different ways than you would see it on a neck; curled back into itself or wiggling off to one side. I find this makes the necklace look much more interesting than shooting straight on.
Comment by Carol Lipworth — August 30, 2011 @ 5:07 pm
I always photograph in natural defused lighting (over cast NEVER direct sunlight.
I like to use basic backgrounds as I do not want to distract from my jewelry. These background have some texture to add visual interest, example are slate, rocks, and wood.
Depending the the theme of my design I will stage it with a simple flower, shell, rocks, pine cones, hearts, snowflakes..you get the point.
I have photographed my necklaces and bracelets hanging from tree branches and my earrings hanging from flowers.
Photographing from several angles will add interest and allow the customer to get a better idea of size, thickness etc. of the pieces. I shoot straight on, from the side, from base of piece to top and vice versa.
I have just started photographing my pieces on a mannequin and have a hand holding the piece so customer gets an idea of the piece size.
I go to Sundance Magazine Jewelry to getting staging ideas..love this site and their designers!
Using some white paper or a white light box is great for pieces that will reflect images, large shiny silver pieces.
You don’t have to spend a lot on a camera, I love my FujiFilm FinePix S700 which comes with Super Macro and 7.1 Mega Pixels. There is now a new version with better pixels..;)
Finally, I touch all my photos up in Adobe Photoshop Elements 8.0 which also has come out with a updated version.
I have been told that Picnik is a great FREE photo editing site (http://www.picnik.com/)
And there you have it…my tips for photographing jewelry, I hope this helps and I hope to learn from others!
Comment by Lisa Michele — August 30, 2011 @ 5:34 pm
I always try to photograph my pieces in natural light outside on a white plate or on an interesting simple print, like vintage french perfume labels. The natural light sets off the colors beautifully. A partially cloudy day is best or in the shade. If there is too much grey in the background after you take the shot you can correct this with the photo software. Proper lighting is extremely important!
Comment by lisa marino — September 1, 2011 @ 2:41 pm
I find the trick to making your pieces look great is the background. I use photographs from books and lay the pieces and it will make your pieces stand out. An example would be I took a picture from a photography book that featured a rock. I laid the bracelet across and snapped the picture. It loked like I had the actual rock with the bracelet on top and shot the photo. It was so life-like. I can share pictures if interested.
Comment by Sabrina — September 1, 2011 @ 2:51 pm
When I photograph my jewelry, I use slate or ceramic tiles. I find that when I use a flash the light doesn’t bounce off the stone and add unpleasant light to the photograph. And the stones add visual interest to the picture but do not detract from the jewelry.
Comment by Karen Taylor — September 1, 2011 @ 3:29 pm
I like to photograph my necklaces on bright overcast days (not dark, cloudy ones) and I try to get out around noon when any shadows will be minimal. My aim is usually to photograph the pieces as you would see them being worn, so the focal point is obvious and all the beads can clearly be seen. I don’t use props or anything in the photo that can distract from my beads. Sometimes I place the pieces on a frosted glass neckform that I was lucky enough to find and just photograph the front side, or I lay the full necklace on specialty photo papers that go from dark to light and come in a variety of colors. I use the more neutral tones as I don’t want the background to be noticed before the necklace. Those paper sheets need to be weighted down on the edges as they are curly from being shipped in a roll. They are available in photo shops or online.
For my website pictures, I often use my scanner. Although the images are not the same quality as using a camera and good lighting, I use my scanner to record my work as I go. Something I find helpful is to scan the image of a necklace I’m working several times while it is in varying stages. I lay the piece on the scanner bed, then cover it with white paper. I scan at 150% which on my computer screen looks like actual size. I then step back and view it on the computer screen. I often see any glaring problems right away. I also end up with recorded images of each stage so I know which beads go where in case of one of those awful studio accidents when a unfinished necklace flies off the table. I learned to step back from my work when I used to paint years ago. As you work on something close up, you can’t always get the “big picture”, but seeing it from a distance is very eye opening. When I feel the necklace is complete, I lay it on the scanner again and take images in both high and low resolutions so I can use them either to print, email or on my websites. I also take detail shots by moving the scan borders where I want them. I wouldn’t recommend these images for professional juries, but the images, while flatter in tones than good camera shots, are decent. Scanners aren’t substitutes for cameras, but they are easier to use than camera setups for me since I don’t have a dedicated place to photograph. Each scanner is different and there is a learning curve to discover the best way to use one for your needs. Hope you find some of my tips helpful!
Comment by Myra — September 1, 2011 @ 6:06 pm
I have found the outdoors being the best light. I use a covered area (indirect light) and only shoot early in the morning. I rarely use my flash and brighten up with Photoshop if needed. A nice dull/non reflective surface is ideal. I use a Cannon Rebel and have had to learn about aperture a little-the amount of time the shutter is open. If you really have a hard time due to a blurry image then a tripod is a must.
Also, try to get some drama in the shot. Come in at different angles making the image jump out at the customer.
Hope this helps!
Comment by Kristene Peterson — September 1, 2011 @ 7:05 pm
I try to photograph my jewelry outside on an overcast day (but bright) between 11:00 and 2:00. I have been placing the pieces on a wooden bench on my deck…the texture of the wood which is a soft neutral gray is great (better than a stark white background).
When I am forced to photograph indoors I use a lightbox and two small spotlights. I always turn off the lights in the room and keep the light box away from the sunlight coming in the window. That way the only light on the jewelry piece is the defused light coming from the spotlights through the sides of the lightbox. That way I get no shiny spots overpowering the picture.
Comment by Joan Sebastian — September 2, 2011 @ 5:42 pm