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Why does my diamond do this? Dark in sunlight.

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skphotoimages

skphotoimages

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Dec 1, 2005
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191
Hi, I saw this touched on ever so briefly earlier this month, but I was wondering is anyone could explain why my diamond does this. It is beautiful in all lights except direct sunlight. It goes dark. For the mostpart it''s the whole diamond. The photos on the left are in shade, the ones on the right are in sunlight. I think Rhino mentioned in a post that ideal cut diamonds can do this. Why? Do others of you have this in your diamonds?

darkrings.jpg
 
Mine does that too - annoying, isn''t it?
 
Mine does it. However, I may be in the minority by saying that I love it. Once it goes dark, the fire show begins. it''s like the fourth of july. Since I adore fire in my diamond, it''s not a bad thing for me. It reminds me of when the lights go down in the theater to begin a movie you''ve really wanted to see. You know the best stuff is coming. (fire)

shay
 
I do find it annoying. Shay, you're lucky....my diamond has fire indoors, but not in this direct sunlight. I found a post were Garry H. mentioned he noticed Deana's (?) ring doing that, but no further comment on it. For those of you who do experience this, how good of a cut is your diamond? Mine ranked 1.2 on the HCA, but is a 60:60 stone. It has good crown and pavillion angles though.
 
All of mine do it (go "dead") - my grandmother''s OEC, my 60/60, and my ideal cut (60%/55%/34.4/40.8/HCA = 1.1).

No fire (i.e. color) from mine in direct sun - but in diffused (like through a tree in the breeze), then yes - tons.
 
The round brilliant I bought my girlfriend glows bluish and throws off colored light...perhaps due to very strong flourescence?
Under flourescent tube light, it's white sparkles and under regular bulbs it's a rainbow effect. I take a photo of it outside, but I ain't seen the sunshine, since I don't know when....

Oh, that's whole lotta diamond on your finger...love it! alot

Kevin
 
Date: 12/16/2005 3:24:38 PM
Author: skphotoimages
I do find it annoying. Shay, you''re lucky....my diamond has fire indoors, but not in this direct sunlight. I found a post were Garry H. mentioned he noticed Deana''s (?) ring doing that, but no further comment on it. For those of you who do experience this, how good of a cut is your diamond? Mine ranked 1.2 on the HCA, but is a 60:60 stone. It has good crown and pavillion angles though.
Click to expand...
My diamond is an ACA, so cut to superideal H&A. The pic in my avatar was taken in direct sunlight.

shay
 
Date: 12/16/2005 3:19:40 PM
Author: Shay37
Once it goes dark, the fire show begins. it''s like the fourth of july.
Click to expand...
That''s what mine does too. It really is like a fireworks show out in direct sunlight. However, I also like the fire it has in forest-filtered sunlight, and I have an ACA.
 
Hmm... I am considering a ACA and never heard this complaint before. It doesn''t sound like anyone regrets?

Can you please share the details of your setting? I love it and am still searching? I like the symmetry of your 2 bands! Total width?
 
My stone looks different wherever I go. In two other threads, the quetion of being able to judge color in a mounted stone is brought up.

Lighting under which the appraisal is done has been mentioned as a factor, especially in a mounted stone. Since we do not take our own lighting or test equipment with us, I wonder how one can tell how the color will show in different circumstances and buy accordingly.

If you are wearing your ring in an area of the country where you have a lot of bright sunshine, you would probably prefer a stone that looks great in sunshine. If you are wearing it in an office you would want a stone that looks great under artificial light. I am led to believe that most stones do not do well in all lighting conditions

There would be no point, for example, in buying an Ideal cut D,E. or F color that does not show up well in the environment you are in the most if a lower color would look as good or better and you can get far more for your money.

I am really confused by all these complicated tests that tell you tiny nuances about your stone that will make little or no differences to you in reality when all you really want to know is how it will look to you where you are most likely to be wearing it. This may also be a matter of personal choice so these subtle tests will not be meaningful to everyone.
 
In the lesser light images, the lighting looks more diffused and that creates a degree of intensity, contrast, in the diamond image. In the strong lighting situation, one might ask "where is the sun relative to the diamond?" If the answer is "overhead" then your camera or your head is blocking out a lot of the sunlight causing the stone to look darker. This could be part of what''s going on.
 
Date: 12/16/2005 4:00:01 PM
Author: ms101
Hmm... I am considering a ACA and never heard this complaint before. It doesn't sound like anyone regrets?


Can you please share the details of your setting? I love it and am still searching? I like the symmetry of your 2 bands! Total width?
Click to expand...
My setting is a 6 prong, kind of low set. With three channel set diamonds on each side. Then I have two channel set wedding bands soddered on either side. The total width of all three bands together is 10mm I think.

From what I read, poorer cut stones might out perform in brigh sunlight, but suffer elsewhere. But like I said, I love it in ALL other lightings. I think it irritates me so much because my SUV has tan interior, and when the sun light comes in my car it goes dark, but also sort of takes on the tan color of my interior. ICK!!! It's much better in my husbands grey interior.


Oldminer, it happens when the sun is at any angle. When taking this picture, there was nothing in the way. Infact, the two sunny pictures were taken at different angles.
 
Date: 12/16/2005 4:30:16 PM
Author: skphotoimages

Oldminer, it happens when the sun is at any angle. When taking this picture, there was nothing in the way. Infact, the two sunny pictures were takken at different angles.
Click to expand...
Yes....there is something in the way....your head and your camera.
1.gif


It''s the result of obscuration when you''re viewing a diamond in strong light.
 
Date: 12/16/2005 4:34:56 PM
Author: aljdewey
Date: 12/16/2005 4:30:16 PM

Author: skphotoimages


Oldminer, it happens when the sun is at any angle. When taking this picture, there was nothing in the way. Infact, the two sunny pictures were takken at different angles.
Click to expand...

Yes....there is something in the way....your head and your camera.
1.gif



It''s the result of obscuration when you''re viewing a diamond in strong light.
Click to expand...

Sorry, but that is not correct. In the closer up sunny picture my diamond is up in the air, facing the sun, I am below taking the photo. And technically if my head or the camera were blocking the sun, there would be a shadow. This happens AT ANY ANGLE in bright sunlight.
 
Look at some of the photos DBOF shoots in their direct Florida sunlight. Those diamonds sure aren''t dark!

As was said it''s about your noggin blocking out the direct rays and the stones contrast to everything else in direct sunlight. Even in your pictures you can see that the diamond is only slightly darker from one to the other. The real difference is in how bright your hand and the rest of the background lights up in the bright sun.

Not to worry!
 
Date: 12/16/2005 5:49:51 PM
Author: Rank Amateur

Look at some of the photos DBOF shoots in their direct Florida sunlight. Those diamonds sure aren't dark!
Click to expand...
Unless there are 3-4 suns beaming at different angles over Florida...

There's something surreal about those pictures. I like how they present their diamonds, but that ain't sunlight. IMO, of course.
38.gif
 
FINALLY. I found the thread containing what Johnathan said. I hope it is ok to quote...
"There is one more factor that is a possibility as well.

When you take a diamond into direct lighting (ie, spot lighting, sunlight, etc.) ideal cut diamonds take on a "dark" appearance. Ironically it is in these environments that stones with excessive leakage take on a "brighter" appearance however the flashes of light that come out of an ideal cut in those conditions are way more intense than the non ideal but if you''re not aiming the face of the diamond towards the direct light source the stone can take on a darker appearance in those conditions.

Rhino
GoodOldGold.com"
The thread can be found here with his own photos
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/why-do-some-diamonds-look-dark-inside.35389/

While I am no expert on photographing jewelery, I am a professional wedding photographer. I understand the concept of lighting and the subject being photographed. I can assure you that atleast in my diamond, this is not from my head, or my camera. My husband can hold my ring out at arms length, and I can stanf 5 feet away and still obsrve this darkness. Now I just wonder what our neighbors must think of us and our sharades in the front yard.
37.gif
 
Date: 12/16/2005 4:54:35 PM
Author: skphotoimages

Sorry, but that is not correct. In the closer up sunny picture my diamond is up in the air, facing the sun, I am below taking the photo. And technically if my head or the camera were blocking the sun, there would be a shadow. This happens AT ANY ANGLE in bright sunlight.
Click to expand...


Date: 12/16/2005 4:54:35 PM
Author: skphotoimages

FINALLY. I found the thread containing what Johnathan said. I hope it is ok to quote...
"There is one more factor that is a possibility as well.

When you take a diamond into direct lighting (ie, spot lighting, sunlight, etc.) ideal cut diamonds take on a "dark" appearance. Ironically it is in these environments that stones with excessive leakage take on a "brighter" appearance however the flashes of light that come out of an ideal cut in those conditions are way more intense than the non ideal but if you're not aiming the face of the diamond towards the direct light source the stone can take on a darker appearance in those conditions.

Click to expand...
That's the disconnect. Your diamond isn't facing the sun full on.....it's facing the direction the sun is coming from, but not facing the sun itself.

If your diamond is in the air your camera is below it....and you are getting a picture of the table......the table of the diamond is facing down, so it's diamond is not directly facing the sun. It is positioned at an angle to the sun, which means Jonathan's explanation would kick in; in that scenario, the face of the diamond is not facing the direct light source....the sun.

Anywho, not really vested in it, just tried to help. If it's not of help, oh well. Someone else can chime in.
1.gif
 
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