Photographing Jewellery

1.    Step 1

If you already sell online, you most likely you already have a digital camera. If not, you'll want to get a camera that has at least twelve mega-pixels such as the Kodak Easyshare C182, which is an excellent camera for the price. It's best to purchase a digital camera that allows you to make adjustments in shutter speed and aperture size both automatically and manually to give you the flexibility you need to photograph jewellery well.

2.    Step 2

You'll also want to purchase a tripod to take jewelry photographs. A tripod is important for holding your camera steady. This allows your images come out sharp and clear. You may think you can get by without one, but even taking a shallow breath during jewellery photography can cause the camera to shake, ruining your beautiful image. Tripods are generally quite reasonable in price and can often be found for under £20

3.    Step 3

Designate a corner of a room to set up a small area for photographing your jewellery. Move a large table into the room and use this as your base for jewellery photography. To avoid the appearance of shadows and glare when taking your photos, you can purchase a light tent. This helps to diffuse the light, eliminating shadows and reflections during photography. It's possible to make your own, but this is often more trouble than it's worth.

4.    Step 4

You'll need to consider lighting for your jewellery photography. If you want to take the more expensive route, you can visit your camera store and purchase special photography lamps. The less expensive route is to buy three table lamps. If you haven't seen these, these are lamps with a metal base and a flexible metal stem that allow you to move the head ot the lamp in different directions. While you're there, pick up some fluorescent daylight bulbs which should give you a pure white light to help eliminate shadows and other detractors from your jewellery photographs

5.    Step 5

6.    Step 6

Now that you have your necessary items, how should you set it up to photograph jewellery effectively ? You'll want to place your light tent on the table you've designated for your photography. Place your lamps along each side of your light tent. You can then set up your tripod with your camera and place it in front of the opening of the light tent.

7.    Step 7

You can may choose to place a background against the back wall of your light tent. This can be done by pinning a dark fabric to the light tent wall and extending it into the floor or your tent to create a seamless backdrop. You can then place your jewellery stand in the center of the light tent. Place the head of your tripod a bit above your jewellery display with your jewellery, so you're looking down slightly on your jewellery. This gives a more professional appearing photo.

9.  Step 9

• Kodak Easyshare C182
• Tripod
• Table Lamps
• Light Tent