10 Top Tips for Photographing Jewellery using a Smartphone (podcast episode)
This week on the Jewellers Academy podcast, Jess is joined by jeweller and product photographer Karen Young. They discuss Karen's top 10 tips for getting great photos of your jewellery with your smartphone. Covering the basics like don't forget to clean your camera lens! They also cover lighting, equipment, how to plan your shots and more.
Listen now:
223: 10 tips for photographing jewellery using a smartphone
with Karen Young
This week on the Jewellers Academy podcast, Jess is joined by jeweller and product photographer Karen Young. They discuss Karen's top 10 tips for getting great photos of your jewellery with your smartphone. Covering the basics like don't forget to clean your camera lens! They also cover lighting, equipment, how to plan your shots and more.
We would love you to join our free 5 day Jewellery Photography Challenge, starting on 16th September 2024 and you can find the daily prompts now on the link below so you can make a start. Plus right now, you can get 50% off our brand new Photographing Your Jewellery Using Your Smartphone online course packed with tips on photographing and editing your photos on your phone.
Enrol on the course now, 50% off (limited time only)
Join the FREE 5 day Jewellery Photography Challenge
10 tips
Here are the top 10 tips. Listen to the episode for all the details
1. Use high quality light - either natural daylight or invest in some LED Lights calibrated to daylight to light your scene. Your lights don’t need to be expensive - good budget brands are Neewer and Godox. You will need some sort of stand (either tabletop or full size) to hold the lights so you don’t need to hold them by hand.
2. Think about where the light is coming from - this will help you determine where your shadows will fall and where to position your reflectors for maximum impact
3. Use reflectors (foam board in different sizes) to reduce reflections on jewellery so you can see the detail - it is easy to cut to size and is really inexpensive
4. Make sure to clean your camera lens before starting to shoot! You don’t want smudges or dirt on your camera lens ruining potentially amazing shots. Remember your phone is often being handled or in a bag or pocket so can easily pick up dirt and grime
5. Use a tripod - this keeps your hands free
6. Check your shots before moving on to make sure they are sharp and the jewellery looks how you want it to
7. Slow down and look at the screen to make sure your shots are composed the way you want them
8. Once you have captured your key shots - take the phone off the tripod and shoot by hand - play about with positions and angles - remember photography is meant to be creative. It might just give you some amazing shots to choose from
9. Edit all your photos before you use them to make sure they look the best that they can do
10. Plan your shoot in advance - think about the shots that you need (what you're using it for e.g. Instagram so what shape the final image will need to be, parts of the jewellery you want to show off, any items to be shot together. And for lifestyle shots what is the story you want to tell).
Your next episode:
Jewellers often photograph their jewellery with props but using a model can really elevate your brand, give your jewellery a particular look and make it more desirable for your customers. Join Jess in conversation with jeweller Elin Horgan who has experience of working with jewellery photoshoots for her own brand to pick up her valuable tips and advice
