Tips for Taking Great Photos of Jewelry

Here at Beadaholique we have a talented professional photographer, Alex Dash, who takes most of our project and product photos. However, since most jewelry artisans are not also professional photographers, I wanted to write this blog to help my fellow jewelry makers.  Here are some tips on taking professional looking and visually appealing photos of your work.  

Before you take any pictures of your own, check out pictures from other jewelry artists and see what you like (and don't like) about their photos. A great way to do this is to go on Etsy and start looking around. See what draws you to look at some pictures and not others. Are their pictures cluttered or do they have white backgrounds? Are they taking close up or far away photos? How bright are their colors? Make a physical list of everything you do and do not like. When finished you will have some idea of what aesthetic you are aiming for.

Here are some examples from my own work, of both good and not-so-good photography: 
 

Older photo of my work: too dark, too far away, and prop is too distracting

Recent photo of my work: bright, white background, minimal props, and in focus

Now that you are ready to start taking photos, here are some guidelines to help you along the way:  

1. Get a decent digital camera with macro ability (usually represented by a little flower icon) which lets you get up close to objects and still keep them in focus. I personally use a 3 or 4 year old Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZR1. I purchased it at Costco for under $200. I am sure you can get much better ones now for less, but it just goes to show, even older cameras can still be perfectly adequate.  

2. Shooting outdoors in natural light is usually a good option, especially if it is a cloudy, overcast day. If not, try shooting in the shade, or under a white bed sheet or similar item to soften the glare of the sun, and the shadows it causes. Also, using a white piece of paper to reflect some light from above can brighten up shadows, and improve the look of metallic pieces. 

3. Try to have just one light source. Shooting indoors is usually a bad choice because you have conflicting light sources from various rooms and lamps, which can all cast different colors of light and shadow. However, you can shoot indoors when close to a window. Use a reflective white paper to reflect more light onto the shadowy side of your piece. 

4. If your camera has the option, set the white balance. Look in your manual for this, it is a huge help! If you are taking photos in the direct sun, set the white balance to that, if shade, then set it to that, etc. You might even have the choice to customize it and actually have the camera "read" what is white in the light you are working and set it to that preference. This option is one of the most important settings on your camera, so read up.  

5. For your background, avoid busy patterns and excess clutter. You don't want to see your purse strap or drinking glass in the background of your necklace. I used to enjoy using a lot of props but I realized they actually took away from my jewelry. I now prefer to use a simple prop like a post card and then have some white space around it so the eye can rest and really focus on the jewelry.  

6. Take a combination of close up and far away shots. You want people to see the detail and quality of your piece but you also want them to see the entire piece as well. This is especially important with necklaces. 

7. Make sure your photos are sharp and in focus. Blurry photos make it impossible to really see all your hard work and design. People viewing your pictures will most likely just skip right over the blurry ones. So first make sure you have that macro setting turned on.   If you still find blurriness to be an issue, you can purchase a tripod to steady your camera. If you still find that your photos are blurry, try using the tripod in combination with the self-timer option on your camera.  

8. You want your photos to be bright so that you can see all the detail in your design. Bright photos are also more appealing to those viewing them. If you are making a Steampunk or Gothic piece and want to create a moody dark photo, this can work, just be careful that it is not too dark to the point where you can't see what's happening and it all just blends together.  

9. Finally, find a simple photo editing software. You do not need to purchase an expensive and complicated program like Photoshop. There are lots of free programs online to use, you basically just want to be able to crop and adjust the brightness and contrast of your pictures. At the end of the day, you want the colors and appearance of your jewelry in the photo to match that of it in person.  

I hope this helps everyone!
Julie Bean