Necklace Photo Retouching Tips
Necklace photo retouching is a must for any photos that want to highlight the beauty and elegance of a stunning neck piece. Often small and dainty, necklaces often get muddled in photographs. These slight errors may make a striking piece look lackluster and dull. With the proper jewelry editing, these situations can be avoided completely.
Given the variety of designs, forms, and materials that necklaces use, there are several ways to edit a necklace. Of course, the specifics of your necklace retouching highly depends on the type of photography project you’re doing. Product photography should have a different look and feel to fashion photography, even if they’re both featuring the same piece.
Whether you’re capturing a bold choker or a dainty chain, check out this guide on how to edit necklace photos for a beautiful finish:
Necklace Photo Editing Tips
There are two major shoots that feature jewelry: product photography and fashion photography. These two are closely related, yet distinct from each other. The two have subtle nuances which are quite complex and there are some shoots which are a combination of product and fashion photography.
For both cases, you might still ask how to edit jewelry photos. In this case, we answer how to perfectly highlight necklaces and other neck pieces for each shoot and what to avoid when dealing with photo enhancement.
Editing for Product Photography
As the name implies, product shoots focus on a product. This kind of photography generally zooms in on the subject using a prime lens or zoom lens, depending on the setup. In your case, the products are necklaces and other fine jewelry pieces.
A huge concern in such a close setup is capturing unflattering details such as scratches, complications in the setting, cut, or clarity. A jewelry retouching company erases these imperfections at the end product. Of course, the complexity of such a task fully depends on the photograph and the piece itself.
If you’re editing for product photography, here are some ways to enhance a necklace flawlessly:
Balance the contrast and brightness
Sometimes the only thing needed to give your pieces a dramatic flair is a little adjustment in the lighting. This is where playing around with the balance comes in. Using Photoshop, you can brighten, darken, or create a different lighting for a photo to fully showcase the beauty of a piece.
To do this, you can do the following:
- Select the adjustment layer and make a new layer
- Pick either brightness or contrast
- Make your modifications according to your requirements
- Click “OK” and use these changes
Remove unwanted spots and dust
There is a lot of foreign matter in a product shoot. Dust, debris, fingerprints, water, and even sweat can all interact with your piece. These interactions may sometimes show in the photo, creating a lackluster look for your necklace.
A good rule of thumb in necklace photo retouching is removing these imperfections. By eliminating these unwanted spots, you can showcase your piece in all its glory. Of course, removing imperfections doesn’t mean altering the color or look of a piece, so it must be done with precision and accuracy.
For this necklace retouching process, you can do the following steps in Photoshop:
- Choose a spot correction tool on Photoshop
- Select the flawed spots and use the tools to remove the imperfections
For Photoshop users, you can choose between the Spot Healing brush, Clone Stamp, and Healing Brush Tool. Each spot correction tool varies in range and intensity, but all are intuitive and easy to use. Of course, since you’re dealing with a delicate piece, the spot correction process will require time and precision to get the best results.
Adjust the background
Backgrounds play a subtle yet important role in highlighting your necklace. While it may seem minor, adjusting the backdrop is actually a crucial part of necklace photo enhancements. Color correction, spot removal, or even the complete removal and replacement of the background is a usual part of the necklace retouching process.
Neutralize the shaking of the camera or other camera shake effects
Part of the basic jewelry photo editing tips is to enhance shaky or blurry photos. This, of course, transcends to product photography. Whether you’re working with a necklace, an earring, a bracelet, or a ring, making sure that you have clear and crisp photos is a must.
Of course, in a product photography shoot, some conditions will vary. These often result in less than optimal photos. Shaky photos, bright light, and low light all result in a blurry effect that you don’t want on the finished product.
To remove this blurring, you can do the following steps on Photoshop:
- Go to the Filter Menu and choose the “Shake Reduction” option
- Apply this filter and it will automatically reduce the blurriness
This process may take some time, depending on the size and complexity of the photo. Make sure to be patient! You’ll know when it’s done based on the visible progress bar.
Upsize the resolution
Properly sized images are vital if you want good quality photos. Depending on the settings used during the shoot, the resolution of a photo may be too large or too small. While large photos capture more detail, smaller resolutions can be a bit difficult to work with.
To upsize a resolution in Photoshop, do the following steps:
- Open the photo on on Photoshop and select “Image Size”
- Check “Resample Checkbox”
- Select “Preserve Details (Enlargement)”
- Lock in these settings and go to Resolution
- Adjust the resolution to the optimal resolution
- Choose “Save Preset” in the “Fit To” field
Editing for a Fashion Shoot
Fashion shoots don’t necessarily focus on a product. Rather, it captures how a piece is worn in an outfit. Oftentimes, in a fashion shoot that involves jewelry, the pieces are styled in a set or even highlighted with a full outfit.
Clarity and enhancements should still be made, however, there are some differences when it comes to fashion shoots. For example, imperfections in a piece should still be removed, but there’s also the matter of highlighting its color or more intricate details vis-a-vis a larger canvas. In a fashion shoot, photo editors will often look at the vibrance, saturation, or even placement of a piece rather than its unique, singular quality.
For fashion shoots, here are some of the necklace retouching enhancements that can be done:
Color Vibrance
Color plays a large role in how a piece appears, especially in a fashion shoot. For many editors, color saturation and vibrance should be adjusted in a photo that has a lot of overwhelming or underwhelming hues. Depending on the color palette, you may find that the clothes, outfits, or background will be refined.
Warmth and Coolness
Much like vibrance, the warmth and coolness of a photo can further highlight the beauty of a necklace. Certain pieces stand out in certain hues and colors. But sometimes, even with the best color palette, something may feel off. This is when warmth and coolness play a role. By subtly adjusting the undertones of a photo, you can highlight your necklace easily and more efficiently.
