Something to Share
 

I have received so much support and help along my lampwork journey over the years and I feel I have given so very very little back. I am actually a newbie when it comes down to it as I only played with the glass part time for many years. I was just too busy with my jewelry business. It has just been this past year where I have focussed most of my time on my glass skills.

I wanted to share a little trick I discovered this past week. Maybe others have already discovered it, not sure.......

I was having a hell of a time trying to get good photos for my glasswork to sell on Etsy. I have all the fancy lights, tent etc but it just was not working. When I realized my whole problem was lighting and the tent was not diffusing the light like I needed, it occurred to me that if I put the beads under water I may get a good result.

And here are the results.

Unreal results they look good!!!!Im having a little trouble myself figuring out all the photo stuff too.

Karen Volkano Exotik

They look great. Exactly how do you put them under water, are you doing it in the tent.
Bob

The reason that you are getting good results under water is because the water diffuses the light. You can achieve the same results by adding another layer of fabric, or other light modifier between your lights and the tent. The more diffusion, the softer the light.

I understand the reasons . That is why I tried it. I wonder why I got so few responses. I thought people would be excited as I am lol

Oh wells!

I just put the beads in a soup bowl as my dishes are plain white and I am not using a tent.

That's a neat idea.... :) Glad you've found a technique that works for you! (the only problem I could see is if you have any etched pieces. It would make that effect "disappear"...:( (I think your florals are gorgeous! particularly that purple/black set which I was admiring elsewhere on LE -- the gallery?)

Thank you, yes I realized the issue with etched beads as i already tried it but if you look at the blue/green focal bead in this thread , it is etched. Can you see that it is or does it disappear in that picture?

Thanks for the comments on the purple set. It was a nice surprise in the morning.

Your beads look so fabulous! Thanks for this tip, as I suck at taking photos. How did you keep the water from reflecting the lights?
All of your beads look phenomenal!

Wow, that is awesome, thank you so much for sharing. I have tried everything!!! I can't tell you how many photos I have taken and how much time I have spent trying to get photos that really pop. I am going to try this right now...I'll post my results. Thanks again!!!!

Kate

I was in the same boat and to be quite honest, it brought me to tears on a occasion. Please show me how it works for you when you have time.

Well, I just have a light on each side of the bowl and I am using a tripod and point and click. That is it, truly.........when you first put the the water in the bowl, let it settle for a few minutes before putting the beads in. I discovered that this morning when I went to take the last picture, or you will have too many tiny bubbles. I just started doing this a few days ago so I am still learning too.

gemsinbloom,I.m in he process of learning my camera and photoshop ect.Thank you for sharing this tec.

Karen
Volkano Exotik

thats brilliant - i'll try it, thanks

I love the photos, and the beads are fabulous! I've known about this technique, but haven't tried it yet. Val Cox (frit queen), in her blog, mentioned how she takes her pictures this way. Amazing what a little H2o can do. Thank you for sharing.

J.

That is a stroke of genius! Your beads take my breath away! I will give this a try, as I am photo challenged.

She does? woah!

I had never heard of it myself so I thought I had come up with something new, haha. No such luck!

Great minds think alike. :-)

They came out pretty good, but you might try increasing your contrast some in your editor. Not a lot, but a little bit will help the colors pop back out.

Mike

Yeah..The underwater thing has been around for a long time.... Try a search to see when it first appeared....

Dale

I've heard of this technique too but have never tried it. Love your beads. Especially the floral ones.

I like this technique, and YOUR pics look great. I have a question though... what about encased florals? When I put mine in water, I can see the encasing... Any clue about how to get that out?

Well I have to admit, I am not taking pictures of beads immersed in water now. I found a better solution.

Yes it did not work for encased beads. I still will use the technique for beads that are extremely fussy with lighting though. I got some new blue flood lights that has helped a lot.

Blue flood lights? Can you clarify what you mean exactly, like a brand name or bulb name? Thanks!

Jo

Someone gave me this link today.

http://www.daylight-bulbs.com/9-500-...ue-light-bulb/

Gemsinbloom your pics are really good and thanks so much for sharing.The photo bulbs look interesting.

Karen
Volkano Exotik

Great pix - good thing ya don't have to put your silver into water now Those blue bulbs look like the trick - So what wattage do you use for bead pix then?

I love the outcome of your product photos. I have yet to try the underwater effect, I just hope to get the same result as well.

I am very new to Photoshop, but have been dabbling in photography for quite a while. I just broke out my photo tent today to try to get pics of some beads for an ad and a banner.

I got frustrated and have decided I need to stalk this part of LE to learn everything I can about photographing beads.

Thanks for the idea of water and the blue lights. I will keep that in mind when I get that far. Your beads look great in the pics you posted!

-Amy