Jewellery is my absolute favourite product to shoot and I get so excited whenever I get to come up with new ways to photograph beautiful jewellery brands. My creative juices are fully flowing and one of the reason for that is because I get to choose and decide on the props that will work well with the jewellery pieces.
So today I thought I’d share my favourite props for jewellery product photography, let’s dive right in!
1.Trinket trays & dishes
These guys are such a game changer when it comes to jewellery product photography. They can add interest to the image by providing height, depth, colour, texture and so on to your shots. I love draping necklaces over some trays and dishes to create beautiful shapes or placing a pair of studs at the edge of a little trinket dish to elevate the product and create some depth in my image.
This is also a great way to play around with colour and texture to compliment your jewellery.
2.Shadows & reflections
I know I know, these aren’t *actual* props, but they add so much to the image there’s no chance I wasn’t going to add them to my list. Whether you’re working with natural light on a lovely and sunny day or using studio lights to create controlled lighting conditions, I highly encourage you to play around with creating some shadows and reflections. This is such an effective way to add interest to your jewellery shots which will make your pieces sparkle and shine!
3.Dried flowers
Dried flowers used to be my absolute go to for propping up jewellery shots. There’s so many different options that you can get nowadays that include different types of flowers, textures and colours so your possibilities are endless! I love bringing dried flowers close to my lens for a super soft and blurred effect in the foreground or slightly behind the jewellery for a delicate interest in the background.
If you get something with slightly firmer stems, you can also hang your pieces off of them for that lovely dangly look. This works particularly well with hanging statement earrings or necklaces as it really allows them to be captured in their full form.
4.Rocks & stones
For that extra polished, high end look, I really love playing around with props that you might not typically pair up with jewellery. Rocks and stones are a great option if you want to give your pieces some height and lift them up so they don’t look flat in your photos.
Pro tip: if you want some small pieces that will work well with your jewellery, I suggest purchasing some tile samples and smashing them up! This way you end up with lots of small and unique pieces, perfect for pairing them up with different types of jewellery.
5.Fabrics
Fabrics are great for introducing colour and texture in your jewellery product shots. I love natural looking fabrics and my absolute go tos are any types of neutral linen or calico, I find that they can really set the tone for your images especially if you’re a hand made or sustainable jeweller.
For something a bit more luxurious, you might want to experiment with some satin or even velvet to add an extra oomph to your jewellery images.
If you’re looking to get some fabrics for your jewellery shoots, I’d recommend to watch out for anything that is too textured, especially if you’re shooting with a macro lens as it will pick up on every single little detail (I’d always recommend using fabric with a lower thread count)
Next time you shoot your jewellery at home, I highly recommend you give some of these a go. Play around and try out different props and see what really stands out to you and compliments your jewellery.
