Can ugly diamonds be photogenic?

[nala]

Can ugly diamonds look good in photos? And can pretty diamonds look bad in photos?

I'm not referring to bad lighting or photo skills. I am just wondering if any of you believe your diamond is gorgeous but it NEVER photographs as beautiful as it really is or if the opposite happens--your below average (if there are any on PS) always looks better in photos?

 

[arkieb1]

I think both, you can see many enhanced pictures/photos on ebay where vendors/sellers make ugly diamonds look appealing so people will buy them.

I have an OEC that for the first month or two looked like a dog in every pic I took until I worked out how to take a decent pic of it - I did this by attaching a loupe to my Iphone and then taking pics.... I have compared it to other old cuts and to well cut RBs and shown it to other people and no-one things it looks anything but great in real life, so if you have no to limited skills like I do then you can make anything look bad. I also think some diamonds are more difficult to photograph without the proper equipment than others. I can make all of my diamonds look bad in pics without a lot of effort but yes some of them are much more difficult to get a good photo of than others.

 

[the_mother_thing]

Yes, my champagne OMC that I bought from Kelpie a couple months ago is really gorgeous in person, but looked (gosh I hate saying this) quite "non-pretty" in pictures. It's not a "perfect" diamond, and has some minor inclusions, but it just does NOT photograph well at all. In person though, it is super sparkly, and just a beautiful color! It's off being set now and I am so excited for it to be finished.

 

[missy]

Definitely. My OEC is like me in a way. We are both old souls at heart and not at all photogenic but stunners IRL.
(jk about me but not the OEC because she is a stunner IRL)

Seriously though it is very difficult for me to get good photos of my OEC where it shows her true beauty. She is much more gorgeous in person. But that might have to do with the fault of the photo taker (me) and what is being used to take the photos (phone).

JoCoJenn, I am excited for you to receive your beautiful new piece and looking forward to seeing it!

Nala, I think the reverse might be true as well. As arkieb wrote sellers have tricks to make the diamonds look even better in pics than RL and can alter pictures as well.

 

[valmanin]

I had an OEC that looked great in pictures but was underwhelming IRL! In fact, it was so photogenic that I think my dear PS friends thought I was just a bit nuts that I didn't love it. My current OEC photographs as beautiful as it looks IRL.

Missy, I have seen pics of you and you are beautiful!!!

 

[Circe]

I think it's much harder with colored stones, since color can be so tough to capture. So any diamond settings with colored stones can be tricky! The one may look good while the other is off: getting "true" shots of my deco pieces with CS is more of a challenge than just shooting a flattering shot of my solitaire.

 

[HappyNewLife]

yes. My GF's 1.7 ct with excellent light return/cut looks like poo in my iPhone pics. I need to take some pics with a real camera methinks.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

All diamonds are hard to photograph in my opinion. I was lucky on the picture in my avatar...just the right lighting! But certainly the diamond does not glow like that in real life all the time! I don't think ugly diamonds will look good in photos unless there is alteration of the photos or maybe the photos are not clear enough to show the flaws.

 

[yssie]

I think it depends on what makes the diamond ugly!

I think odd faceting can be very forgiving in photos - the right angling, lighting, and background can definitely sometimes transform "huh?" into "oh, charming" I've got a couple of examples of lopsided Wonk Rock that make no sense IRL, but that photograph spectacularly (and that I love despite their - well, let's call them shortcomings)

Inclusions, though, I think a stone that's ugly because of pervasive inclusions is pretty much doomed! There aren't IMO too many options for de-uglification... you could photograph from so far away that you can't see the inclusions, but that'd usually mean you can't see the faceting clearly either, or perhaps find something particularly interesting about said inclusion(s) - shape? Type? Pattern? - and highlight it, which still doesn't de-uglify so much as distract...

 

[kenny]

All diamonds are hard to photograph in my opinion.

+1

 

[Andelain]

Kenny, your pics could make the diamond dust left on the floor look good!

 

[kenny]