Welcome to the third installment in our series of blog articles designed to guide you on how to photograph necklaces to get professional looking images of your jewelry. We’ve previously provided you with the technical know-how to shoot earrings, and how to shoot rings. This time we’re going to focus on giving you the skills you need to photograph necklaces. Once you’ve finished shooting, don’t forget to contact us, and we’ll edit the images and prepare them for the web. We’re cost effective and here to help with your e-commerce needs.
Each style of necklace requires some careful consideration when you set up for photographs. Pendant necklaces will look better if styled in a certain way versus the styling you may use for a shorter necklace. We’ll discuss both types and provide you with the tools you need to photograph both styles of jewelry successfully.
But before you begin shooting, if you need a reminder about how to set up your studio for shooting jewelry then check out our guest post article on how to photograph jewelry on a white background.
Always take the look and feel of your jewelry into consideration when styling your product for e-commerce shots. Your client can’t touch or try on your jewelry so the photographs must effectively communicate the beauty of your product.
If you need a few more tips and a demonstration, then check out this video by Michael Seto about shooting hanging necklaces. He provides some handy tips for photographing pendants. You’ll notice that he’s devised his DIY method of suspending the jewelry.
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Ready to enhance your jewelry photography? Learn more about our Jewelry Photography and Retouching Services
Shooting Necklaces with Pendants
When shooting a necklace with a longer chain or a pendant, it’s best to suspend the necklace in some way. The goal is to create an open and airy feel to the photograph. Pendants look best with a considerable amount of light behind the jewelry. So suspend your necklace from a Matt or an Open Frame. Leave a good amount of space between the jewelry and the background. You want to make sure that you have enough room to position a light to the side and behind your necklace. The background should be slightly overexposed and brighter than the light falling on your necklace. The image will appear cleaner and more appealing if there is light shining through the links on the necklace. Please note we do not recommend shooting this type of necklace on a form. The form will block the light, and the light, airy look that is so appealing for this type of jewelry will be ruined.
Always take the look and feel of your jewelry into consideration when styling your product for e-commerce shots. Your client can’t touch or try on your jewelry so the photographs must effectively communicate the beauty of your product.
If you need a few more tips and a demonstration, then check out this video by Michael Seto about shooting hanging necklaces. He provides some handy tips for photographing pendants. You’ll notice that he’s devised his DIY method of suspending the jewelry.
Shooting Shorter Necklaces
If the necklace you’re shooting is of the shorter variety or perhaps it’s a chunkier style of jewelry then you will need to style the piece accordingly. These types of necklaces look beautiful when placed on a necklace form. They are heavier in nature, and the light doesn’t shine through them in the same way, so it’s better to drape them from a form. The necklace form will create a nice contour for your product. The clasp won’t be visible, but it’s easy to turn the form and shoot a separate image of the clasp. The more angles you capture, the better.f
Shooting a Necklace from a Bird’s Eye View
You can shoot both light and airy necklaces or heavier necklaces from above and create a pleasing view. For this scenario, you will need to have your Plexiglas plate handy. Place the necklace on the plate and arrange the item in a pleasing fashion. You can use a form of some kind to assist you in creating a nice smooth round shape. Cake pans work particularly well for this situation. Take the time to arrange the necklace carefully. Make sure you are happy with the look. It doesn’t hurt to take a few test shots and see if you like how the necklace appears. Images always look different in camera then the scene you view with your naked eye. The nature of the camera blocks out a lot of extraneous details. Once you’ve arranged your necklace to your liking, it’s time to start shooting. Try a completely overhead shot but also consider shooting from a higher angle. The position of your camera will dictate whether you create a reflection in your image. For more details, watch this video about shooting short necklaces. You can watch how he styles his jewelry for a beautiful shot. One you’ve finished photographing your necklaces, send the images to Picsera. We’ll make sure you have a pure white background, enhance diamonds, add shine to metal, and even color replace jewelry from one color to another. See a sample of our wok below:
Ready to enhance your jewelry photography? Learn more about our Jewelry Photography and Retouching Services