Trying to take decent photos
In which I try (and fail) to get good studio quality shots on a jury-rigged stove top
As some of you know, I’ve been obsessed recently with making jewelry. I’m really still learning, and that goes for every aspect of making and displaying jewelry, including how to take decent photos of my work.
Everything I’ve read says to sell your jewelry online (which is a highly saturated market) you really need awesome product photos. Especially if you want to sell your jewelry on Etsy.
With limited lighting, no budget, and no props, my photos haven’t been magazine showstopper quality. Today I thought I’d try a different set up in the house and just play around and see what my camera was capable of.
Here’s where I set up my little photo shoot:
My studio…my stove top. My background? An old sheet of watercolor paper. My lighting? an old fluorescent overhead light and a couple of flashlights. Am I doomed to failure? Probably. Will I try anyway? You betcha.
Some of the halfway decent photos (with a mid-shoot interruption by Billy who insisted on posing too):
As you can see, my results still missed the mark as far as magazine-feature-ready quality. My next step on this learning journey is the get some pretty props (like fabric swatches, silk flowers, a nice display stand), build myself a light box, and buy some clip on work lights (which I need anyway for my desk).
All in all, not a bad shoot. I had fun (who knew arranging and photographing still lifes was entertaining?), and got some decent photos to list these earrings for sale in my Artfire store. If you’d like to see how I should have set this photo shoot up, please check out the additional reading links below.
-k.
Advice on Photographing jewelry:
Here’s an awesome blog post I wished I’d read BEFORE I started this shoot today:
More Photo Tips on Shooting Jewelry
And more advice:
Etsy Success: The Right Camera
DIY $10 Macro Light Tent For Handmade
Photographing Jewelry with A Scanner
Some good Videos on Photographing Jewelry:
Earrings & Jewelry Photography
Setting Up a Home Photography Studio
Jewelry Photography : Sweeps & Plexiglass for Jewelry Photography
Photography Tips for Shooting Jewelry Part 2
Karyn, I can see you have been busy…writing… LOL The earings look great. I think the pictures turned out quite well. I like the look of hanging on the red pot. You really are quite the artist.