What equipment should you choose for jewelry photography?
What equipment should you choose for jewelry photography?

Someone on your team (and an Orbitvu photo studio)
An SLR camera, a macro lens, multi-source LED lighting, and a tripod

To photograph jewelry, precious stones or timepieces, it is essential to use equipment specifically designed for macro photography. 💎
The aim : quickly obtain high-quality visuals that highlight multiple details, ornaments and textures, while ensuring a color rendering faithful to the original.
We reveal all our practical advice and tips from professionals in this complete tutorial, in order to master the art of photography of jewelry and precious objects.💍
Choose an SLR camera for your jewelry
📷 For macro photography of this type of room, opt for a SLR camera. There are two types of sensors for this range: APS-C and Full Frame sensors.
They are composed of photocells that capture light for each pixel in the image. The full format thus offers a better rendering of the image.
🔍 Depending on your budget, it's up to you to find the balance between camera and lens. There are very good entry-level SLR cameras with APS-C sensor (Canon EOS 800D).
For full-frame sensors, the entry model is the Canon EOS 6D Mark II, followed by the 5D Mark IV.
Macro lenses: essential for your jewelry photos
🔍 Choose a macro lens with a fixed focus. This type of lens is much more sensitive to light and offers better quality rendering than a zoom lens.
The ideal focal length is 100 mm, with a large aperture (F2.8) and a ratio of 1 to 1 to 1 to visually restore the object photographed to its real size.
📷 There are good affordable macro lenses dedicated to SLR cameras (Canon EF-S range) and full frame SLR cameras (Canon EF range). Count between 300 and 800 euros.
The photo tripod: find the right compromise
Finally, equip yourself with a quality tripod. It is essential for stabilizing your camera and maintaining focus.
Since the diaphragm is often very closed, the tolerance to movements is therefore zero. Several major brands offer quality tripods: Manfrotto, Gitzo or even Vanguard.
Choosing an aluminum tripod allows a good compromise between stability, weight and price. Carbon fiber is driving prices up a notch and plastic tripods are clearly to be banned due to their poor quality.
✨ Alternative solution : the specialized accessory, theOrbitvu Column Stand. This custom tripod with ball joint system is adjustable in height and distance thanks to a rail system. The ball joint also allows the device to be tilted degree by degree.
Opt for continuous, multi-source and point source lighting
💡 When it comes to photographing your jewelry, quality lighting plays a key role. For example, you will avoid unwanted shadows and reflections, while providing a faithful rendering of colors and materials.
For this, a multi-source LED lighting with adjustable intensity is ideal. It has a color rendering index (CRI) greater than 90.
💻 On a lightbox studio controlled by software, modulate its intensity over several ranges. The beach, which is around 3000°K, offers a warm finish, ideal for taking photos of gold jewelry. Between 5000 and 6500°K, the intensity corresponds to daylight.
This temperature provides a natural look perfect for revealing small details such as ornaments or engravings.
💎The lighting says punctual is a direct light beam that can be moved around the piece of jewelry to complement fixed lighting. It is particularly useful for obtaining quality lighting on gemstones that are difficult to illuminate.
What if you used software for jewelry photography?
💻 Packshot automation software allows you to remotely control the steps in the shooting process.
📷 You avoid any direct manipulation of the case and therefore everything risk of moving the device photo during the shooting of your jewelry.
💡 With this system, Remotely adjust and view lighting settings and camera settings before shooting.
📂 Once set up and registered, you can reuse these settings, whether specific to an emerald, a diamond, a sapphire or a set gold ring.
A software dedicated to the photography of jewelry like Orbitvu Station is essential if you are equipped with a 360° shooting system.
Check out our guide to camera settings for jewelry photography.
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