Photographing my pearls

[icy_jade]

I've been curious about pearl photography ever since I read the posts about "glamour shots" vs real life pearls AND saw PP's photography studio from 4RG and NL's video broadcast.

I liked how GemGeek/Blaire from the other forum said so succinctly and accurately on the other forum's photography thread (think links to other forums are not allowed) "...if your photo is for the purpose of selling, you want it to look as close as possible to the real thing so that your customer will not be disappointed and return the item. You want it to look good, but not too good. The very best thing to do in this case is to include multiple photos in different light. You have no control over the light when the customer first opens the box, so having more than one lighting example will prepare them for what they first see ".

Ah, so true. As a buyer, I can totally relate to the disappointment when the pearls DO NOT match up to the glamour shots. If only more retailers take this advice into consideration.

BUT, I do understand the need for consistency and for beautiful photos to sell pearls. Plus as I try to take pictures of my pearls, I understand how challenging it is. Oh, and just using an iPhone too.

So since I had a wee bit of time late this afternoon (5-ish) just before the natural light quality deteriorated too much, I dug up a small light box that I bought ages ago and never used, and a white towel. Along with my trusty iPhone, I took a few photos just to experiment and see how well I can glamourise my pearls. Here's a behind the scene look on my balcony table:





All photographs that follow are taken without flash and with no photoshop done. Actually I don't have any lamps or a flash so I have to use natural light. Luckily Singapore is just 137 km (85 miles) or 1 degree north of the equator so when it isn't pouring we get decent (usually overdose) amount of sunlight.

I hope you like the photos and any photography tips (or requests) are welcome.

On with pics!

 

[icy_jade]

I started with my tahitians cos I really don't have any glamour shots of them since I bought them from a store (Rio Pearl in Hong Kong) and a local jewellery show (Andy Muller/Hinata Trading) respectively. Oh, and from Greenhills in Manila, Philippines (stall name is "Omai Pearl", no. 49).

First, a comparative look at the photos taken without, and with a lightbox.

Without lightbox:


With lightbox:


You see a distinct difference ya? More vibrant colours etc. Quite amazing. I mean it's really just a tent over the pearls with NO additional lighting or fancy equipment. I can only imagine how wonderfully gorgeous my pastel strand will look if they are professionally photographed. Anyway this is my best effort for now, haha:





I actually think I can make them look a tad better if I had taken the photos in the morning or early afternoon when the light was better/stronger. It was getting close to dusk when I started taking pics...

Anyways, on to the next...

[Oops, iPad battery running low so I'll take a short break for now... ]

 

[mrs taylor]

I'm so freaking in love with that strand. MORE PLEASE!

 

[icy_jade]

I'm so freaking in love with that strand. MORE PLEASE!

Thanks! But whoops that's all! I had only a really short time so I only took a few snaps before moving on to other pearls. You can kinda tell the light was fading from the set-up pic ya?

Anyway I couldn't wait till the iPad was fully charged (takes forever and it's like 23% now?) so now I am typing while it's charging. Not the safest way but...

Ok on to the next set. It's another fav - the colour graduated strand from Andy Muller.

I am fairly happy that with the light box the overtones come out much more easily and clearer. But quality of light wasn't the best so it feels kinda subdued to me. Still better than with no light box of course.

On towel:


With props:


And a close-up:


With the tahitian earrings from Rio Pearl in the middle. Bad layout but I didn't have time for retakes. Sort of an impromptu arrangement cos I realized the colours in parts of the necklace come close to that of the earrings:

 

[mrs taylor]

Oh MAN. Just.....wow.

 

[icy_jade]

Ok, on to the tahitian earrings... I only have two so...

Studs:


Dangling:


Together:


Didn't colour correct or anything - also dunno why the colours look a bit different.

 

[LitGeek]

Wow! I can definitely see a difference using the light box. Great photos of your lovely tahitians! This is such an interesting experiment ~ thanks for sharing it with us

 

[mrs taylor]

Hey Icy Jade-can you shop for all of my pearls from here on out?

 

[icy_jade]

Oh MAN. Just.....wow.

Hey Icy Jade-can you shop for all of my pearls from here on out?

If I get an unlimited budget...
I LOVE to shop. Haha. If you are really serious, we could work something out. But honestly nothing beats picking out your own pearls out from a pile/thousands of pearls!

Wow! I can definitely see a difference using the light box. Great photos of your lovely tahitians! This is such an interesting experiment ~ thanks for sharing it with us

Hope you all bear with my experiments. Am going to try different time of day etc... Maybe I need a white iPhone cover too. The black rectangle is sooooo distracting!

Last series... Wasn't very pleased with how the photos turned out but yeah, it's an experiment anyway. The colours came out really intense. Like too intense? If I am a seller, I'll be very worried about disappointing my buyer!

These are the Kojima kasumi-like strand and earrings...



And without lightbox for comparison:

 

[icy_jade]

Ok, so I haven't done any photoshopping so far. But obviously many vendors use some form of computer magic. I got a free app to try some simple 'magic'. After looking at all the available manual adjustments... Like contrast, brightness, saturation and sharpness... Errr I decided to go for the easy option for now - auto-fixes.

So there are 2 that I experimented with 1. Colour Fix and 2. Hi-Def.

Since Mrs T asked for more of the pastels, I used that for this experiment.

Original with no touch-up:



And I labelled the rest:





Combining both - what do you think? Ready to sell?



The enhancements are subtle for this pic. On another pic, the difference is really obvious.

And I also need to learn how to arrange the pearls more artistically - that's an important aspect as I read from this good ref: http://www.tabletopstudio.com/jewelry_photography.html#pearls

 

[icy_jade]

Oki, I just had to try some 'magic' on the other strand.

This time I first cropped the photo for a more pleasing pic:



Then the same auto correction as the pastel strand...







The difference is more visible, but not quite sure why. Is it cos the strand is more colourful? Hmm... Shall have to try on other uniform strands another time...

Anyway I think I can go further with the photoshop, but that requires more effort (probably cos I am a photoshop novice) so I won't. If anyone has tried before, pls share your tips!

 

[marymm]

OP - thank you for this thread - I find it illuminating and very helpful. Also, I *adore* your Andy Muller strand!

 

[mrs taylor]

we may just have to work something out. I feel like we have very similar tastes given that I would donate a kidney to have any one of your pieces. That Kojima one takes the cake. Oh MY.

You have three of my favorites ANYWHERE.

 

[icy_jade]

OP - thank you for this thread - I find it illuminating and very helpful. Also, I *adore* your Andy Muller strand!

Most welcome. I find it really hard to 'read' vendor pics to assess if I'll like the pearls in real life, so doing this gives me a better idea too. I'll try to post some comparatives of vendor pics vs real life vs my version of enhanced when I have a bit more time.

Re: Andy Muller strand - yes, am soooo glad I bought it! I can be very impulsive but this one really worked out. And becos i love this strand so much, it sorta makes me wonder if walking away from the other pearls that I really liked at the last jewellery show was a mistake. Like the ginormous tahitian pendants.

we may just have to work something out. I feel like we have very similar tastes given that I would donate a kidney to have any one of your pieces. That Kojima one takes the cake. Oh MY.

You have three of my favorites ANYWHERE.

Hehe, let me start posting pics of my lesser pearls and you can decide if you still trust my taste.
My email add is amodularlife AT hotmail.com if you wanna drop me a note. We can work out other faster ways to communicate too.

 

[mrs taylor]

do it!

And I'm finding it fascinating that I far prefer your pearls out of a light box. Is that strange?

And yes. You have the touch with Tahitians, there's no question. I do like my strand, but I LOVE yours. And you earrings. Just amazing.

 

[Pattye]

Icy Jade,

What a helpful and interesting topic, thanks so much! Taking good photos has always been challenging for me and I don't photoshop at all. Pearls do certainly change as the light shifts; and of course the colored pearls change most of all. LOVE your Tahitians, great examples! I'll be following this thread closely.

 

[bsomlo]

I agree with Mrs. Taylor -- I like the natural shots best. And why bother setting up artificial ways to photograph pearls (not in this case where icy jade is experimenting, but rather regarding vendors in general) when the result is a different look from what we see in real life? I don't get that. If the vendor's picture is an improvement or change over how the pearls truly appear -- the customer will be disappointed, and possibly angry. And in Icy Jade's picture the pearls look a bit different using the light box, but not "better" to my eye.

I think adjustments in photographing should aim at producing pictures which make the pearls appear the way they do to the naked eye.

 

[icy_jade]

do it!

And I'm finding it fascinating that I far prefer your pearls out of a light box. Is that strange?

Hmm... To be honest I like the pearls in the light box better. The overtones come out better. Especially when the sunlight is strong... The strong sunlight tends to wash out the colours.

Anyway the pastel Tahitians look quite different in different lighting but the Andy Muller strand is much more consistent in comparison. So putting the pearls in a light box makes for more consistent pictures overall. Explain what I mean later (with pics).

Icy Jade,

What a helpful and interesting topic, thanks so much! Taking good photos has always been challenging for me and I don't photoshop at all. Pearls do certainly change as the light shifts; and of course the colored pearls change most of all. LOVE your Tahitians, great examples! I'll be following this thread closely.

Thanks for clarifying that you don't photoshop! To digress a bit, I sorta categorize the pearl vendors into 4 categories...

1. The Realists
These vendors tend to take photos that are close to real life, and with minimal photoshopping (or none).

IMHO, if I buy pearls online, these vendors give me greatest confidence that I will be getting something close to what I see on my screen.

So vendors that fall into this category include Pattye, CC, Agustus, most of the Etsy sellers actually. Having bought from Kojima/Sarah, I think her photos come close to the real thing too. For my kasumi-like strand, actually her more muted glamour shot comes closer to what they look like IRL than those I took. Oh, and Le Collier from Rakuten has pretty accurate photos too.

2. The Idealists
These vendors take excellent photos, and their glamour shoots pretty much bring out the best of their pearls. I think that they use both the most ideal equipment (like 5000k lights) and photoshop based on what I see... You know, pure white background, really sharp images (like the Hi-Def enhancements that I played with earlier), etc. most of what tabletopstudio has advised really.

When I buy from these vendors, I definitely discount what I think I will get and to be honest have been disappointed by what I received. Colours less vibrant, flaws much more obvious IRL.

3. The Unrealistic
I have never bought from these vendors before, so I don't know how far off (or close) their pics are from their actual wares, but I am sure you have seen these... Really white background (some are unrelentingly white and super fake looking), pearl colours that look too intense, or too washed out, pearls that look blemish-free (and not matching to their given grading), blurry photos, etc... Lots of bad photoshopping.

I have never bought from these vendors and don't think I will unless I hear positive things from fellow pearl lovers or forum-mates. And to be honest, after hearing positive feedback for some of them, I still don't feel confident to buy based on the pics provided. Sometimes I really wish that they can cut down on the photoshopping. I can accept good ones, but bad ones are... Arghh...

4. The Fantasies
We have all seen those... Gorgeous photos of pearls for ads and catalogues... Perhaps taken against black acrylic for effect, or white acrylic for subtle reflection... Suspended in mid air earrings, all beautifully arranged to inspire (pearl lust). They probably make up the bulk of my Pinterest pearl pics. Think the Cindy Chaos, Tiffany's, Cartier, Harry Winston etc... Again tabletopstudio gave some info on how the photos are achieved, and of course there is photoshop magic at work, but these are very well done.

I can't afford them, so I happily accept the fantasies provided...

---

Erm, so yeah, dunno why I typed so much but that's about it.

Pattye: Pls keep continuing with what you are doing. Most buyers prefer realistic photos when online shopping I think, definitely the case for me, Mrs T and bsomlo anyways!

I agree with Mrs. Taylor -- I like the natural shots best. And why bother setting up artificial ways to photograph pearls (not in this case where icy jade is experimenting, but rather regarding vendors in general) when the result is a different look from what we see in real life? I don't get that. If the vendor's picture is an improvement or change over how the pearls truly appear -- the customer will be disappointed, and possibly angry. And in Icy Jade's picture the pearls look a bit different using the light box, but not "better" to my eye.

I think adjustments in photographing should aim at producing pictures which make the pearls appear the way they do to the naked eye.

To sell pearls?

Hey chill... We just have to be a bit more knowledgeable about the glamour shots that we see and more realistic in our expectations I guess. Hopefully my photography experiments are helping other pearl lovers out there.

 

[icy_jade]

And I also need to learn how to arrange the pearls more artistically - that's an important aspect as I read from this good ref: http://www.tabletopstudio.com/jewelry_photography.html#pearls

Here are two other good sites on how to take good jewellery pics:

1. I like the ring photography tips and diagrams on set up:
http://www.mkdigitaldirect.com/tips/jewelry_photography_tips.html

2. I like these practical tips from the 10 Etsy sellers featured (who don't always have professional equipment like most of us):
http://stylecampaign.com/blog/2009/05/10-etsy-sellers-share-jewelry-photography-tips/

 

[icy_jade]

Ok, so I looked at my earlier posts and realized that the photoshopped effects are far less obvious on the compressed pics that get posted vs the original higher def pics. So I created a few stitched photos to show the original vs photoshopped pearls.

Upper left - original, upper right - colour fix, lower right - hi-def and lower left - colour fix and hi-def:


Original on top and enhanced one below:


Still not as clear as on my iPad (just previewed to check), but think the diff is a bit clearer.

 

[icy_jade]

Anyway the pastel Tahitians look quite different in different lighting but the Andy Muller strand is much more consistent in comparison. So putting the pearls in a light box makes for more consistent pictures overall. Explain what I mean later (with pics).

I tried to arrange the strand in the same position for the pics I took today...

Top to bottom:
1. Natural light
2. With light box in natural light
3. In day time fully shaded interior
4. At night, with warm lights (LED)

Can't do a white fluorescent light comparison since I don't have such lights at home.



Looks quite different ya? No photoshopping done.

 

[mrs taylor]

yes, big difference. however in that last grouping I still like the first one best. I would buy based on the second, but I'd be thrilled when it looked like the first in real life.

This was a very cool experiment and compressing the photos definitely made things more obvious.

 

[LitGeek]

I tried to arrange the strand in the same position for the pics I took today...

Top to bottom:
1. Natural light
2. With light box in natural light
3. In day time fully shaded interior
4. At night, with warm lights (LED)

Can't do a white fluorescent light comparison since I don't have such lights at home.

Looks quite different ya? No photoshopping done.

This is such a great example, you can definitely see quite a difference. I prefer the lightbox with natural light in all of the photos I am with you and love all of the fantasy pearl shots too!

 

[icy_jade]

Thanks Mrs T and LitGeek for following my experiments!

Last set for today cos it takes a bit of time to put the pics together. I did a few experiments today and one of them was in the direction of the light...

So which is better? From the side or from the back (ie photographers back is facing the source of the natural light)?



My preference is natural light from the side, and with lightbox... Hubby thinks so too (told him that I am experimenting with pearl photographs so he has been curious to see the pics).

 

[HHPmom]

icy_jade,

Thanks so much for the experiment.

My preference is the natural light approach. IRL we do not see pearls under the light box/dome but more likely natural light, office light and sunlight. It would be nice to have vendors showing the pieces in various lighting conditions like lightbox, natural, indirect indoor and maybe bright sun. But that is very time consuming and cost prohibitive. As you said sunlight tends to wash out the colors, mostly. I've seen some of my metallic pearls glowed intensely in bright sunlight, depending on the colors, of course.

The high-def and color fix do not seem real to me, especially the high-def photos. I like to ogle the fantasy vendor pics with earrings hanging in mid-air just for fun. I realize that pearls don't look like that at all and would not ever purchase based on those types of pictures. I would rather have the colors being downplay a little rather than being disappointed when receiving the actual product.

I do like Pattye's and Sarah at Kojimapearl dot com's pictures. They look very close to the actual products. I don't have experience with Catherine Cardinelli (had to spell out full name as I don't like to refer to her as "CC" because in my mind I've associated CC to Coco Chanel) so I can't comment. Her pictures look kind of dreamy to me, like a filter was used.

 

[bsomlo]

Wait, did you, my IF, just tell me to chill...?!

 

[icy_jade]

Wait, did you, my IF, just tell me to chill...?!

Yes... You know, my original reaction to your post was to ask you to ask the vendors on the other forum why... But after taking a few moments I think just... Relax lor... First so that we don't get blacklisted (or ostracized...) online and second their job/livelihood is really to SELL pearls to potential customers.

That said, I absolutely know the anger/disappointment/angst (like the ones expressed by PS-ers here: [URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/has-anyone-else-felt-disappointment.192184/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/has-anyone-else-felt-disappointment.192184/[/URL]) and yeah, I prefer true to life pics but probably glamourised photos sell more pearls (just like women's mags and their extensive photoshopping).

Well, I react by doing my photography experiments. First to teach myself how to read those glamour pics and second so that more ppl are aware of the photography techniques used... (and maybe I am really a geek...)

And perhaps some of those vendors who lurk on PS may read this thread and realize that not all customers like glamourised pics...

icy_jade,

Thanks so much for the experiment.

The high-def and color fix do not seem real to me, especially the high-def photos. I like to ogle the fantasy vendor pics with earrings hanging in mid-air just for fun. I realize that pearls don't look like that at all and would not ever purchase based on those types of pictures. I would rather have the colors being downplay a little rather than being disappointed when receiving the actual product.

I do like Pattye's and Sarah at Kojimapearl dot com's pictures. They look very close to the actual products. I don't have experience with Catherine Cardinelli (had to spell out full name as I don't like to refer to her as "CC" because in my mind I've associated CC to Coco Chanel) so I can't comment. Her pictures look kind of dreamy to me, like a filter was used.

Most welcome!

Most vendors increase the sharpness, contrast and/or brightness... Now that I've tried photoshop, I start to see the signs of such photo manipulation better. And I am with you on the colours but in reality many vendors... Yup, you know what I mean.

As for errr... CC, I think I will misspell her name if I try to type in full and I am just lazy, hahaha. I haven't gotten anything from her but based on customer feedback her photos seem ok?

 

[icy_jade]

Ok, did some examples of horrid photoshop just for fun.

For these I increased their sharpness, contrast AND brightness. If you have been shopping online, maybe you'll know which vendors are guilty of such photo manipulation. But I don't plan to name and shame, so please don't either. I am probably stepping on enough (giant) toes...





Gosh, I am looking at the preview and wondering the vendors even think that consumers would like such obviously photoshopped images?? Ughhh.

 

[alice87]

I do like comparison photos, and daylight pic is the best probably to represent "the real" color of the strand.

 

[Fly Girl]

Thank you so much for this thread and the wonderful comparison photos, icy_jade. I think I see a Photo Dome of some kind in my future. The dome allows the pearls to reflect back a neutral white color, rather than whatever happens to be in the background, thus eliminating what you can see here, my "red sweater" problem. The pearls here are sitting on the window sill using reflected natural light.

However, sometimes it is fun to look at the scenery reflected in a pearl. But then, I'm not trying to sell them or my backyard.