Spinel Pear *Warning ~ Tons 'O Pics.....

[ooo~Shiney!]

So, my Spinel arrived all the way from Africa (Swala-Land)
and it was LLLLLLOOOOOVVVVVEEEEE at first sight....

I have taken dozens and dozens of pictures...

The stone is like Marilyn Monroe, always supremely photogenic
Always changing... it LOVES the camera
I couldn't be happier with it

First, I will show you my high tech set up for taking photos !!!
Here come lots of photos, so stay tuned....

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

You can see that I spent a lot of time amassing this interesting collection of gear....

First, a few sheets of colored paper with a rectangle of acrylic
to go over the top.
This is so I can burn my retinas out when I put a gem on it
and then stare at it
through the camera lens....
I have this little piece of computer paper that I can use as a shield,
but it doesn't work very well when it's windy....

Next, a piece of cardboard with a peep hole cut in it.
I can put my camera lens in the hole, but then I can't really see
the stone too well
But it protects my retinas

If I need a diffuser and don't want to just use my hand
I can use this handy cross-stitch hoop with a piece of dishtowel stretched in it....

This is the chair I put my stuff on, then I sit on the concrete...

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

I wanted to take pictures of the Spinel in ALL lighting, indoors and out.
All times of day.

I don't know what this Spinel is, because it changes too much depending
on the lighting, time of day, and the position it is sitting in.
It changes depending on the background.
It can look hot pink, red, orange, purple, whatever.
I have no issues with this stone, I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT !!!!!!!!!!

*ahem*

OK, y'all have been warned, here they come.....

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

These pictures I took this morning in my back yard.
I may or may not have used any of the equipment shown.
What I HAVE NOT done, is edit any of the photos I am uploading
for sharpness or color.
Perhaps for size, I can't remember...
I don't use photoshop because I don't know how.....

Here is my Swala Spinel in Morning light today...

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

I put the stone on my hand.
In one picture I held my hand under the chair (my eyes were hurting)
and in the other two, my hand was in sun...

 

[marcy]

Very pretty spinel.

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

Yesterday wasn't the sunniest day
(probably a good thing, since they were running the Ironman here)
but I went out around noon or 1:00 and took a few snaps.
The sun was in and out of clouds.
Still around 91 degrees though....

 

[T L]

Very pretty spinel Shiney. What are the specs on it?

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

A funny thing happened....

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

I totally thought of TL when she mentioned that she wouldn't take pics
outside balanced on a leaf.... etc etc
The naughty pear jumped off onto the grass, then
was
IMPOSSIBLE
to find for about 10 minutes....
I was praying, let me tell you.
If I would have had to rip out every blade of grass in my front yard,
I would have done it....
It's amazing how thick my grass is.........

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

Here are a few afternoon shots....
These are on my front porch....
That's the West facing side of my house...
This is where I use the stone porch....
I put sometimes put a small square of white paper
or I will put a leaf or I won't put anything.
Sometimes I shield the stone with my hand,
or my cross stitch hoop, or just close my eyes to protect my retinas.....

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

Well, if y'all made it this far, I am going to share some pretty pictures
(I think)
that I took just for fun...
Again, whatever color this Spinel is, is A-OK with me...
Ahem
Welll....
Is it as red as a berry?

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

Barnes and Noble is selling these cups right now
(not an endorsement *but I love mine* )

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

Some kind of shoe.....

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

Reveal Lighting
and my favorite...
Black Light....

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

A pic of my Swala oval ring and the Swala pear....

Oh, and here are the Specs on the Spinel pear.
2.2 ct 9 x 7 mm.....
The camera, of course, is the TL Coolpix.

Well, thats it for this month......
Thank you for indulging me

 

[T L]

Great photos!! Beautiful gem, and I'm so jealous as your photography has way surpassed mine, and WE HAVE THE SAME CAMERA !

What are your plans for it?

How did you get the fluor photo? I still can't get proper ones.

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

TL Honestly, if I could capture a stone's sparkle like you did with your awesomely gorgeous Tsavorite !!!!!!
I can't do that, no matter what ( and I've tried, oh yes I've tried..... )

By fluor do you mean the black light one or the fuzzy one....?
Oh and as far as plans for the stone...
I will be saving up forever to put it in a JBEG or WF halo, I think....
So that's gonna be awhile

 

[y2kitty]

I love it Shiney and thank you for all the pictures.

 

[T L]

TL Honestly, if I could capture a stone's sparkle like you did with your awesomely gorgeous Tsavorite !!!!!!
I can't do that, no matter what ( and I've tried, oh yes I've tried..... )

By fluor do you mean the black light one or the fuzzy one....?
Oh and as far as plans for the stone...
I will be saving up forever to put it in a JBEG or WF halo, I think....
So that's gonna be awhile

Black Light.

Looking forward to this project of yours!

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

Thank you, Marcy and herekittykitty
I have lots of pictures, it is fun to share but impossible
to choose.... I'm glad you liked these
They appear much less vibrant on PriceScope than I see on my home monitor....

TL I bought a Black-light bulb at WalMart and put it in a little
office light I have. The camera is really s..l..o..w when you press the shutter.
So I think you have to hold it really steady...
It has to let in all available light I guess (which there isn't much)
I held my hand right under the light.
And I made sure the room was pretty dark but not pitch black though.

Here's an example of what happens if you don't hold still

 

[bright ice]

How beautiful!

I had seen this one was on hold on their website, congratulations.

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

Thank you, bright ice
I know you will find your Spinel too !
I will help if I can !

 

[minousbijoux]

Ooo-Shiney, your stone is stunning and your pictures are great. I am impressed with the thought you have given your photos and how you have set things up - including the needlework holder doing double duty as a light diffuser...resourceful, my friend!

I would definitely put that spinel in the high quality gems category and would be good as an investment stone. I know that's not your intention, but I'm noticing the varying levels of quality we get from the various vendors and trying to learn from it.

By the way, did you ever get to see that spinel from Gemrite that I returned? I'd be curious to know what you thought of those sparkles and flashes...

 

[Lovinggems]

Beautiful stone, Swala has really beautiful gems. Love your photos.

 

[talamasca]

your stone is soooo pretty and I LOVE the colour and your artsy pics with fruit, shoes and cup

I tried a few myself with some flowers, but they all turned out naff

 

[Gempassion]

Your spinel pear is gorgeous! Awesome pictures too. Congratulations.

 

[tzelin]

Oh my goodness!!!

It is so beautiful!!

I especially love the outdoor pictures! Luckily, you found it when it fell!

 

[ooo~Shiney!]

Thanks Gempassion and Lovinggems ! I am happy you like my photos ! I love a lot of my stones,
but I am really in love with this stone, it's hard to put it down....
I have been very happy with my Swala stones thus far
I usually tell Eric what I am looking for and he suggests a few things....then we try to work around my budget...

Talamasca, awwww thanks about the pictures. Everything you see is what I learned by
hanging around here ~ we have some very artsy folks and some great photographers
on this forum..... I am still trying to sort out the pear-on-the-lime shots a'la Kenny
I would love to see your flower shots, that gorgeous Spinel of yours would look fantastic shot amongst flowers !!!!

Thank you tzelin ! I am happy you like the pictures, Boy, I was sure sweating looking
for it once it fell in the grass, and NOT just because it was a really hot day !!!
It was amazing how it fell, I actually had to dig it out of the dirt where it had
lodged itself, hence the dirt-on-hands view

MB, my friend, thank you for the kind words !!!!
I really NEED to wear this stone, so at some point *when I have the money* I am going to have
it made into a ring. Until then, PS'ers are going to have to suffer through an endless parade of
photos of it popping up randomly on this forum.... You've been warned....

Oh and the purple Spinel ? Twinkle ?? It is everything you said and more, and I LOVE IT
i will post a thread
featuring it, once I get some pictures that I like....
Unlike Marilyn, this one doesn't show off for the
camera as well, so I have to keep trying. It's going to be difficult to capture the sparks...
Here is a relatively dull picture of it that I took the other day on my bathroom window sill....
Really flashy stone IRL !!!!!
( hmmmm I would probably be able to set more of my stones if
I would JUST STOP BUYING MORE....... Aaaaaaaaaaaaaa)

 

[purplemelody]

GORGEOYS EYE CANDY!
I love the berries photo,itreally shows ff how intensed red/hot pink this gem is!