Can you look and comment? The infamous 35.0/40.8 combo at play?

[earthlinkjo]

Hello again!

I am having trouble getting good photos of my stone, which is making me feel like something might be wrong? Did I choose unwisely? It’s not returnable at this point. What I have is what I chose and must live with... but I would love others with better knowledge to take a look and educate me on what I have ended up with. I think I missed the mark on getting a top 1% stone, but am I at least okay?

The good: I love when I look at it. I see things that just aren’t how the camera picks it up. The white color is gorgeous (my previous ring of 12 years was an G and this is an E), I can see all the arrows, and it sparkles like crazy! I have never had a Diamond that sparkles this much... sparkle and fire! It gets 1.4 on HCA and a 9.6 score for cut on StoneAlgo. It fits within all the PS suggested parameters, BUT it is GIA certified and has the much discussed 35/40.8 angle… so as the GIA rounds and averages and everything ultimately comes down to actual craftsmanship of the true cuts and visual symmetry… is this a decent stone, a good stone, a great stone or an excellent stone?

What is bothering me?… Basically that it isn‘t photographing easily or well (IMO). My cell phone case is pink, so that is why you may see a lot of pink in the arrows and not black. But, even so, I have always been able to capture clear black arrows really easily in my previous stones that had the 34.5/40.8 angle combo. This stone is really challenging me in the photo department. But, I am a truly a “know nothing” novice when it comes to diamonds (I have only owned two), so I don’t know if this is a true issue or not.

Here is the loupe 360: https://diamondurl.com/Vision360.html?d=L40-44

I am going to post an obnoxious amount of photos, but I want to show you what it is doing at different angles and in different light (although a lot are under leaves outside). Maybe the more you can see, the more I can learn?

That is the short story version. Thank you so much for any input!

As this is my final ring and the stone is not returnable, I am just working to better understand it (and love, appreciate and adore it!) even if it has some flaws that I overlooked during the selection and buying process.

——————————————-

For those who would like a longer story, it certainly has a heck of a one! …

I posted a couple or threads back in March:

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/please-help-with-this-lgd…-blue-nuisance.277042/
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/does-this-look-right-to-you-3-33ct-e-color-hpht.277614/

Originally I had found a 3.45ct. stone that I really liked. DejaWiz and Kim both confirmed it had no Blue Nuisance. Kim did say to be cautious with the 35/40.8 angle as it can be great or can sometimes be an issue. During that discussion thread, the 1.45ct stone became unavailable. I was really sad that it had gotten snatched up, but I moved on to the stone discussed in the second thread. While that 3.33 ct. stone photographed nicely, it had a dark gray dull spot in the middle every time I looked at it, in any light. It really bothered me.

As I had bought it online, I took it to a local jeweler to have it looked at and to get their input, so that I could be “mind clean”. The jeweler saw exactly what I saw. She said it wasn’t set well. She also asked me what I paid, and she said she could get me a better stone at a better price and that they would set it correctly. I was overjoyed! Then she told me she had access to a 3.45ct stone that she thought I might really like. I *INSTANTLY* rambled off the stats of the 3.45ct stone that I had originally wanted, and she confirmed those were the same stats. COULD IT BE THE ACTUAL STONE!? I pulled up my photo of the lab GIA report and we confirmed it was the indeed the same GIA number. She went and called her “person” and it was the same stone. It hadn’t gotten away from me, or been snatched up by a lurker here on PS. What had happened is that I had been price shopping and inquiring about it from so many different sources that one of them put it on hold with the actual lab vendor who had it… it just wasn’t the reseller company that I ended up working with, so on the mass access inventory list, it appeared like it had been sold. In the end, it really hadn’t been.

Anyway, the jeweler said she could buy it, but that there was no return policy. I know now this is a red flag, absolute no-no… but I had already gone over the stone here on PS and had some eyes on it a little and gotten some thumbs up. I know… I know… (and for others reading this and also trying to learn) … steps 2, 3 and 4 are also inspect it in person, get all the IS and ASET images and always be able to return it! I failed in those areas because I really trusted this jeweler and her super high reputation in our area.

When the stone arrived in I asked the jeweler how it looked to her eyes? She said it was gorgeous and that I would love it. I didn’t get to see the stone myself until it was set, but when I did did, it was gorgeous! I loved it! I loved it leaps and bounds over the previous 3.33 stone I had written about and posted photos of here (oh, I of course retuned that ring).

While I loved the stone, and had zero reservations or issues with it… I had a bunch of problems with the setting. Call it Goldilocks Syndrome but one time it was too low, one time it came back and you could see the soldering, then it came back set too high, and finally it came back positioned well, but the prongs were crooked and even the head was not symmetrical or straight. It was a mess, and disappointing, but the stone still looked gorgeous! Each time it needed to be fixed took time as this jewelry store was sending it out for the work, so it would be gone about 3 weeks each time…. Brining us from March to June.

We walked away from this jeweler and took it to another who does the actual work himself and has his bench right there in his shop. He confirmed the setting was a mess. He started over and had my ring ready in 2 days.

BUT THE PLOT THICKENS…

While working on my ring he informed me that the stone was not true Hearts and Arrows, that 2 of the arrows didn’t line up perfectly. The GIA notes and inscription on the stone says “H&A”, but I understand now that any vendor can inscribe that and without the IS and ASET imagines, it isn’t necessarily true. Fine.

Next, he told me he polished some of the faucets. I didn’t ask why. I trusted him. He knew what I went through with the previous jeweler and he knew I was looking for “perfection” in his setting work.

I also asked this jeweler if he thought this was a good stone? He had just spent two days looking at it closely and setting it. He seemed surprised that I even asked. He looked me dead in the eyes and emphasized that it was a great stone.

But, now that I am home with the ring, I just can’t seem to get good photos of it. I have some photos of it when it was set one of the previous times from April, and those photos look different from how it is showing up in photos now. YES! It’s the same stone. I have looked at the GIA inscription each time I have picked it up from the jeweler. This last time he even showed it to us in his microscope. It’s the same stone. However the setting back in April was really low, the stone was set all the way down in, with no space viable. My current setting is a little higher up, with a tiny fraction of open space left that you can see if you look really hard.

But, I have read over and over on here that the setting really shouldn’t make any difference.

I am wondering if whatever “polishing” he did somehow changed the look of the stone and how it reflects light and acts in the attempted photo taking?

I am not sure?

I also might just be splitting hairs, over analyzing and losing my actual mind.

Maybe it’s just a fantastic cut stone and I am now seeing new things and having a different visual experience than I have had before?

But, it’s time for me to get ”Mind Clean”… learn from you all exactly what you see going on and the truths about this stone (as you see them) and accept it, love it and move on.

Because, yeah, it’s not returnable at this point. This is my darling, so let’s hear about her. Every baby is cute… right?

As alway, so many thanks for all the time taken to look, think, study and comment. It’s always very generous and kind of everyone!

- Jo

 

[earthlinkjo]

Here are 3 photos of the same stone in one of the previous settings that was much lower than the current setting. It was way low for my taste, but the stone seemed to photograph nicely in that setting. Anyway, same stone, just different time of year (more cloudy) and lower setting.

 

[Deleted member 161102]

I think it looks absolutely beautiful in all of those photos. I think that maybe you may be like me, and many others, and just have been looking at all of this for a VERY LONG TIME.

The colors it throws off in those photos are amazing and vibrant. I think you have a real winner.

I also think that it's actually tougher than you would think to get a good photo of these things! When they're this bright and shiny, I think it takes some special camera work.

 

[Jax172]

I think some time off of Pricescope is in order. Your stone is spectacular and you are way overthinking things. Also how you manage to photograph a ring is way less important than what you see with your eyes. I can never get diamonds to photograph like I see them but that doesn’t bother me because I’m looking at it with my eyes on my hand most of the time and not what it looks like in a poorly execute iPhone photo.

 

[earthlinkjo]

I think it looks absolutely beautiful in all of those photos. I think that maybe you may be like me, and many others, and just have been looking at all of this for a VERY LONG TIME.

The colors it throws off in those photos are amazing and vibrant. I think you have a real winner.

I also think that it's actually tougher than you would think to get a good photo of these things! When they're this bright and shiny, I think it takes some special camera work.

Me literally over analyzing my stone for hours on end (hahahahha . Thank you for the reply! The voices of others is really helpful here. I appreciate it. - J

 

[earthlinkjo]

I think some time off of Pricescope is in order. Your stone is spectacular and you are way overthinking things. Also how you manage to photograph a ring is way less important than what you see with your eyes. I can never get diamonds to photograph like I see them but that doesn’t bother me because I’m looking at it with my eyes on my hand most of the time and not what it looks like in a poorly execute iPhone photo.

Have you been conspiring with my husband?…. Hahahahaha. He wants me off PS stat also ... hahahaha. I am still open to hearing and learning and feedback however… then I will take a well deserved time out/off… promise. Thanks so much Jax172, very helpful feedback! Appreciate it! - J

 

[Deleted member 161102]

Me literally over analyzing my stone for hours on end (hahahahha . Thank you for the reply! The voices of others is really helpful here. I appreciate it. - J

Lol. I only know because I’ve been the same way. I think the past few days I might resemble Smeegle from lords of the rings in my office starting at this thing under the aset.

 

[HGar]

Sometimes I think buyers remorse kicks in, even when there is no reason and so we as humans try to find a flaw or error to try to mitigate this feeling.

The ring and stone are stunning - as a relative newbie, if I was to see you in person I think I would look at your hand and fall in love every time I saw you pass by.

 

[Garry H (Cut Nut)]

I think the sone is a little hazy.
But don't have time to read and examine all the pics - just from the 360 video

 

[Lisa Loves Shiny]

In your photos the diamond looks beautiful. I am confused as you as to why your jeweler polished some facets of the diamond. Did he accidently chip it and then polish the chip out?

 

[earthlinkjo]

In your photos the diamond looks beautiful. I am confused as you as to why your jeweler polished some facets of the diamond. Did he accidently chip it and then polish the chip out?

I am confused about it also… and haven’t reached back out to inquire (but I can). The only reason it came up at all is that when we picked it up from him I noted how extra shiny it looked and he just said that he polished a couple of the facets... but he said it in a proud way, as in he was just shining it up to ensure it was the most perfect it could be. But yes, maybe there is more to what he saw. Thanks for your input and asking. I don’t think he damaged or chipped it, but maybe he saw what Garry saw and was trying to improve something? But, I am just of course speculating. Won’t know unless I do reach back out and ask.

 

[earthlinkjo]

Sometimes I think buyers remorse kicks in, even when there is no reason and so we as humans try to find a flaw or error to try to mitigate this feeling.

The ring and stone are stunning - as a relative newbie, if I was to see you in person I think I would look at your hand and fall in love every time I saw you pass by.

Thank you. That’s so nice. Thank you for saying that and the nice visual. You may be absolutely right, but right now it feels a bit more like fear… that I didn’t slow down enough to really investigate the 35/40.8 information before committing to the stone. I was just so excited at the time. I have read multiple threads on here now where others were in the same situation questioning their 35/40.8 stones and some of the more experienced PS’s were able to take a look at the specs/videos/photos and either point out some weak spots or put them at total ease that their stone was okay and did not have or show any problems/issues. Hopefully info in this thread will be helpful to future readers/researchers also.

 

[earthlinkjo]

I think the sone is a little hazy.
But don't have time to read and examine all the pics - just from the 360 video

Thank you Garry. I appreciate you taking the time and letting me know that.

 

[earthlinkjo]

I think the sone is a little hazy.
But don't have time to read and examine all the pics - just from the 360 video

Garry, if you find the time, can you explain how or why GIA would have given this stone a VVS1 rating (it has a small feather) if it is hazy? I was under the idea that the VVS1 rating would rule things like haze out? Thank you.

 

[earthlinkjo]

@DejaWiz… do you mind looking and giving your assessment? I recall when we first chatted about this stone back in March you had positive things to say about it. I asked if you thought it was a good stone (I always value your opinions and comments here, thank you!), and you replied that you didn’t think it was a good stone, you thought it was a GREAT stone. Still great?… or can you see light leakage, pavilion twist, haze?

 

[Lisa Loves Shiny]

I'm so interested in the expert's comments regarding your beautiful diamond. I would think a CVD diamond would be more at risk for looking hazy than you HPHT diamond. Yes? And honestly- your diamond looks amazing. Seriously- it's beautiful. I'm still also interested in your jeweler polishing some of the facets. I would imagine that takes specific equipment and specific skills to do so and hope to find out if he actually did this and why.

 

[yssie]

I’m not Deja obvi, hopefully he’ll see this soon My 2c - well, 3c - in the meantime.

1. Your stone is not a “true H&A”. You can see that in both the photos and original video - the arrows and arrow shafts don’t line up exactly across the visual axis of symmetry (so, even account for stone tilt).

2. Despite your stone not being a “true H&A”, it is a *beautiful* specimen. From your photos I completely believe that it’s bright and colourful IRL, and I don’t think you have anything to worry about. You definitely didn’t get a dud or anything!

3. You have every right to learn what retouching was done and why. In fact, you should ask for details. Repolishing has consequences - potential weight loss, potential angular changes - depending on what was done your stone might even need a new report. I admit I’m pretty taken aback that someone would just do that, randomly, without asking your permission explicitly!

 

[DejaWiz]

@DejaWiz… do you mind looking and giving your assessment? I recall when we first chatted about this stone back in March you had positive things to say about it. I asked if you thought it was a good stone (I always value your opinions and comments here, thank you!), and you replied that you didn’t think it was a good stone, you thought it was a GREAT stone. Still great?… or can you see light leakage, pavilion twist, haze?

Hello, ELJ!
I still stand by my opinion that it is a great diamond.

No indicators of twist or bothersome leakages...tilt/angled viewing leakage can be normal (and expected).

You can assess for haze: does your diamond's optics appear slightly subdued, cloudy, blurry, or hazy under certain lighting conditions...like the light return is being inhibited at all?

I think grading labs will usually assess clarity based on the presence, types, and the sizes of inclusions based on their own standardized list of what they are looking for applicable to NGD and LGD, alike (to remain impartial, consistent, and trustworthy in the eyes of their customers)...they may not necessarily judge or take into consideration the overall quality of the LGD material that the finished diamond was cut and polished from since there are so many variables that determines what comes out of the growing equipment. E.G., they'll look for inclusions such as pinpoints/clouding, growth remnants, crystals, needles, feathers, twinning wisps, cavities, etc but not consider the entire state of the entire material that is solely a byproduct of growing the material. An example that comes to my mind is blue nuance (Type IIb) which can usually be easily detected even at colorless D-F grades but not mentioned at all on the grading report until G or lower color grades, depending on the lab.
Hopefully that makes sense and rings true.

 

[earthlinkjo]

I'm so interested in the expert's comments regarding your beautiful diamond. I would think a CVD diamond would be more at risk for looking hazy than you HPHT diamond. Yes? And honestly- your diamond looks amazing. Seriously- it's beautiful. I'm still also interested in your jeweler polishing some of the facets. I would imagine that takes specific equipment and specific skills to do so and hope to find out if he actually did this and why.

Thank you. Yes, I have now been reading all up on “haze” as that wasn’t even anywhere on my radar. Agreed, seems to be potentially more an issue with CVD and diamonds with lower clarity ratings (under VS1) and certain types in inclusions. However, I also read that if a HPHT is heated (like under fire) that oxidation can occur and cause haze. I did just read what DejaWiz added that as LGD’s are made from different materials, levels of haze could potentially be present and that GIA might not comment. But, I also read that haze and cloudiness affect the light return and the sparkle. That isn’t an issue at all, the ring sparkles.

My husband and I had a long talk about it last night and he does not think that the jeweler actually polished any facets. He things something was lost in translation by him saying that, and that maybe he used the word polish to us, but rather meant he cleaned and buffed (as with a soft cloth) the stone well before setting it.

But, until I ask him, I am still just speculating.

I need to have a ring resized, so we will be going back down to his shop in the next week or so. I am going to ask him to look at the stone with me and to go over and teach and tell me everything he sees. Then I can better report back on if he sees any haze and if he just cleaned the stone or if for some reason he did ”polish” something in the sense that that word is used around here.

 

[earthlinkjo]

I’m not Deja obvi, hopefully he’ll see this soon My 2c - well, 3c - in the meantime.

1. Your stone is not a “true H&A”. You can see that in both the photos and original video - the arrows and arrow shafts don’t line up exactly across the visual axis of symmetry (so, even account for stone tilt).

2. Despite your stone not being a “true H&A”, it is a *beautiful* specimen. From your photos I completely believe that it’s bright and colourful IRL, and I don’t think you have anything to worry about. You definitely didn’t get a dud or anything!

3. You have every right to learn what retouching was done and why. In fact, you should ask for details. Repolishing has consequences - potential weight loss, potential angular changes - depending on what was done your stone might even need a new report. I admit I’m pretty taken aback that someone would just do that, randomly, without asking your permission explicitly!

Hi yssie. So happy you chimed in with all your cents! Yup… 1) true, 1) true and 3) true. I just replied this, but will repeat it in case you don’t see the other reply, but my husband and I were talking about when the jewelry said he “polished” and we are now wondering if maybe something was lost in translation, and what he maybe meant was that he just just cleaned and buffed (like with a soft cloth) a couple of areas? But, I am just speculating. I do need to go back and ask him. I have a ring that needs resizing so we will be taking that into him and then I am going to have him look at the stone with me and teach me all about it and to show me everything. I will find out what he meant or did by “polish” and I will ask his opinion on if he sees any haze, now that that concept has been added to the conversation. I’ll get to the bottom of it… but it still helps me leaps and bounds to hear from everyone here that it looks good and is certainly not a dud or anything to be so worried about. That helps put me back at much ease. Thank you.

 

[earthlinkjo]

Hello, ELJ!
I still stand by my opinion that it is a great diamond.

No indicators of twist or bothersome leakages...tilt/angled viewing leakage can be normal (and expected).

You can assess for haze: does your diamond's optics appear slightly subdued, cloudy, blurry, or hazy under certain lighting conditions...like the light return is being inhibited at all?

I think grading labs will usually assess clarity based on the presence, types, and the sizes of inclusions based on their own standardized list of what they are looking for applicable to NGD and LGD, alike (to remain impartial, consistent, and trustworthy in the eyes of their customers)...they may not necessarily judge or take into consideration the overall quality of the LGD material that the finished diamond was cut and polished from since there are so many variables that determines what comes out of the growing equipment. E.G., they'll look for inclusions such as pinpoints/clouding, growth remnants, crystals, needles, feathers, twinning wisps, cavities, etc but not consider the entire state of the entire material that is solely a byproduct of growing the material. An example that comes to my mind is blue nuance (Type IIb) which can usually be easily detected even at colorless D-F grades but not mentioned at all on the grading report until G or lower color grades, depending on the lab.
Hopefully that makes sense and rings true.

Hello DejaWiz!!!

Thank you for answering the my Bat Signal cry out for help!

I love this part from you and will now sleep better at night having read it:

No indicators of twist or bothersome leakages...tilt/angled viewing leakage can be normal (and expected).

Yeah, not sure about the haze or not. I don’t really see it, but doesn’t mean it isn’t lightly there or in one area that when on my hand or in movement is simply covered in so much flash and sparkle that I can’t see it. For now, it looks good in all lighting. It flashes and sparkles so much that my husband has threatened to put black wiring tape over it so that we can watch TV together in peace… ha.

At first I was disappointed when the jeweler told me it wasn’t H&A, but I got over that pretty quickly. It wasn’t until I started to try to photograph it and the coveted dark arrow lines weren’t jumping out to show themselves that I started to feel uneasy and out of my comfort zone as my previous two stones always displayed those easily and pretty clearly.

So, then I went back and reviewed the old threads and saw Kim’s comment about the 35/40.8 combo, and went reading down that fun rabbit hole on here… and worried if that was affect the stone in any way.

Then I just decided it was probably best to make this post and ask all of you for your thoughts, rather than be alone in my own head wondering, and worse, worrying.

I am more than happy that this is a great stone that looks good and performs well. And knowing what her makeup is and flaws are (as seen when compared to a super ideal), then I can just understand better.

Thanks again for answering the call for help!

 

[yssie]

@earthlinkjo

Re. The photos, all cameras are kind of stupid. Smart cameras (like in phones) are both cleverer and stupider than non-smart cameras -the actual cameras are stupider (because their lenses are too small to manage light as effectively as larger lenses) but they’ve got a ton of software to try and prettify the pictures. And the results can be... Confusing.


So the first thing I'm seeing is that the stone just looks cleaner in the photos in post#2 than in post#1. Nothing like a clean diamond for better photos!


The second thing I'm seeing is that the photos in post#1 seem to have been taken on a less sunny day than the pics in post#2. This matters because all cameras are baseline stupid. Specifically, all camera autofocus software is baseline stupid. Autofocus software likes to focus on high contrast areas first and foremost. And the way all camera lenses work, from tiny lenses in phones to giant lenses in SLRs, focus is depth-driven. Depth meaning "how far away is this point from the camera eye". On a sunny day, if you're wearing your ring, and if your ring finger is partly in the sun and partly in the shade, that's a very high-contrast #thing for your camera's stupid autofocus to glom onto. And the result (as long as you keep your camera far enough away) is crystal clear diamond arrow photos because the facets that create the arrowshafts are on the bottom of the diamond, allllmost as far away from the camera eye as the dark/light areas of your finger. Without that sunlight creating that high-contrast #thing to focus on, your camera will pick random things to focus on (random depths to focus at).

You can see this in your photos.

The photos where the arrows show up most crisp - your finger is partially in sunlight in both:

Take a close look at this photo for comparison. See how the diamond's prongs are a wee bit blurry? The top of your diamond wasn't in focus. Neither was the bottom of your diamond. Your camera didn't know what to focus on - so it seems to have picked the skin folds of your knuckle. Those are crisp and clear. Or maybe that leaf between your fingers. Both are a good bit deeper than your diamond (further away from the camera eye than the diamond) - and the effect is exponentially exaggerated when you put the camera right up close to whatever you're photographing. Check out the prongs at blue arrow, also further away from the camera - crisp and clear.

On top of that - when you use a phone, the phone software is going to prettify your pictures in an unknown way. Might be designed to recognize skin and make skin more crisp digitally. Who knows. Whatever it does, it's not representative of reality or of what the teeny tiny phone camera lens actually captured.



So... The differences in your photos, that's the photography, not your diamond. I promise. The diamond is perfectly fine. When you're trying to take closeup pics you'll have a harder time catching crisp arrows in a stone that's set higher in a mount because the bottom of the stone is further away from your finger. Keep the camera further away and it's more forgiving. And you can play some fun games - try printing out a pic of a chessboard and holding it at exaaaactly the depth that you want your camera to focus.

Only way to avoid completely is to use a non-phone camera with manual focus. Here's an example - more extreme than your pictures but same idea. I made my camera focus at different depths of this diamond - table, then somewhere in the middle of the stone, then pavilion.

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/sold-a-very-ugly-diamond.212385/

 

[earthlinkjo]

@earthlinkjo

Re. The photos, all cameras are kind of stupid. Smart cameras (like in phones) are both cleverer and stupider than non-smart cameras -the actual cameras are stupider (because their lenses are too small to manage light as effectively as larger lenses) but they’ve got a ton of software to try and prettify the pictures. And the results can be... Confusing.


So the first thing I'm seeing is that the stone just looks cleaner in the photos in post#2 than in post#1. Nothing like a clean diamond for better photos!


The second thing I'm seeing is that the photos in post#1 seem to have been taken on a less sunny day than the pics in post#2. This matters because all cameras are baseline stupid. Specifically, all camera autofocus software is baseline stupid. Autofocus software likes to focus on high contrast areas first and foremost. And the way all camera lenses work, from tiny lenses in phones to giant lenses in SLRs, focus is depth-driven. Depth meaning "how far away is this point from the camera eye". On a sunny day, if you're wearing your ring, and if your ring finger is partly in the sun and partly in the shade, that's a very high-contrast #thing for your camera's stupid autofocus to glom onto. And the result (as long as you keep your camera far enough away) is crystal clear diamond arrow photos because the facets that create the arrowshafts are on the bottom of the diamond, allllmost as far away from the camera eye as the dark/light areas of your finger. Without that sunlight creating that high-contrast #thing to focus on, your camera will pick random things to focus on (random depths to focus at).

You can see this in your photos.

The photos where the arrows show up most crisp - your finger is partially in sunlight in both:

Take a close look at this photo for comparison. See how the diamond's prongs are a wee bit blurry? The top of your diamond wasn't in focus. Neither was the bottom of your diamond. Your camera didn't know what to focus on - so it seems to have picked the skin folds of your knuckle. Those are crisp and clear. Or maybe that leaf between your fingers. Both are a good bit deeper than your diamond (further away from the camera eye than the diamond) - and the effect is exponentially exaggerated when you put the camera right up close to whatever you're photographing. Check out the prongs at blue arrow, also further away from the camera - crisp and clear.

On top of that - when you use a phone, the phone software is going to prettify your pictures in an unknown way. Might be designed to recognize skin and make skin more crisp digitally. Who knows. Whatever it does, it's not representative of reality or of what the teeny tiny phone camera lens actually captured.



So... The differences in your photos, that's the photography, not your diamond. I promise. The diamond is perfectly fine. When you're trying to take closeup pics you'll have a harder time catching crisp arrows in a stone that's set higher in a mount because the bottom of the stone is further away from your finger. Keep the camera further away and it's more forgiving. And you can play some fun games - try printing out a pic of a chessboard and holding it at exaaaactly the depth that you want your camera to focus.

Only way to avoid completely is to use a non-phone camera with manual focus. Here's an example - more extreme than your pictures but same idea. I made my camera focus at different depths of this diamond - table, then somewhere in the middle of the stone, then pavilion.

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/sold-a-very-ugly-diamond.212385/

Whoa Yssie! I am at a loss for words! This is amazing!! Thank you beyond words (because I am now lacking them… hahaha) for taking all the time and effort to put this together and explain everything with so much detail and so well! I could just hug you right through this iPad! Really insightful, helpful and such a great teachable moment! I am sure so many people are going to benefit from your effort in being so generous to do this for me. <3

 

[earthlinkjo]

I'm so interested in the expert's comments regarding your beautiful diamond. I would think a CVD diamond would be more at risk for looking hazy than you HPHT diamond. Yes? And honestly- your diamond looks amazing. Seriously- it's beautiful. I'm still also interested in your jeweler polishing some of the facets. I would imagine that takes specific equipment and specific skills to do so and hope to find out if he actually did this and why.

Okay, I reached out to the jeweler via text for now, but he welcomed me come down anytime and said he’d be happy to show me all the ins and outs of my stone. He did not polish the stone or any facets. He said as a jeweler he cannot polish diamonds. Phew, that’s good! Again, when he said he polished some things up, I think he really meant he just did a detailed cleaning. He also said that he did not see any haze in the stone. He said the only thing he saw was that the star shape on the table did not align with the six prongs. He ended with saying that other than that, for a lab stone, it looked beautiful to him.

 

[Lisa Loves Shiny]

Okay, I reached out to the jeweler via text for now, but he welcomed me come down anytime and said he’d be happy to show me all the ins and outs of my stone. He did not polish the stone or any facets. He said as a jeweler he cannot polish diamonds. Phew, that’s good! Again, when he said he polished some things up, I think he really meant he just did a detailed cleaning. He also said that he did not see any haze in the stone. He said the only thing he saw was that the star shape on the table did not align with the six prongs. He ended with saying that other than that, for a lab stone, it looked beautiful to him.

Wonderful! So all in all it's a beautiful diamond just like your photos suggest.

 

[earthlinkjo]

 

[DejaWiz]

Fair enough...back to the Batcave I go!

 

[Lisa Loves Shiny]

Fair enough...back to the Batcave I go!

Don’t get too comfortable in the cave. We need you out here.

 

[earthlinkjo]

Fair enough...back to the Batcave I go!

 

[Garry H (Cut Nut)]

Garry, if you find the time, can you explain how or why GIA would have given this stone a VVS1 rating (it has a small feather) if it is hazy? I was under the idea that the VVS1 rating would rule things like haze out? Thank you.

Google GIA milky whitish hazy graining in diamonds for an old detailed explanation of why and how GIA are not always your friend