Happy Friday everyone!!

Last weekend, the Hubs and I traveled over the mountains to Asheville, NC for the weekend to find a house to live in, as we are moving in 3 weeks! We have to rent before we decide where to buy, so trying to find a house that hasn't had pets in it since I am allergic to cats and most dogs, but that will allow my dog, since she is hypoallergenic and that has an outside workshop has been, well, extremely difficult! But we held out and found a house to live in that meets all of our weird criteria in Brevard, NC, just outside of Asheville, NC.

Whew!



I want to bring your attention to the largish outbuilding to the left above...that will be my new studio/workshop for the next year! I am so jazzed about having a beautiful place to work, well, with a little elbow grease it will be quite nice on the inside!  I have a creek that runs across the front of the property, and it feels very country, but we are only about 1 mile from downtown Brevard.

We. Can't. Wait!

Since I have been making jewelry, I haven't lived in the same place for longer then a year and a half. I thought I would share with you what my various work spaces have looked like, and that sometimes my sacred space was deluxe, and other times, well...not so much.



In the video above, I did a brief tour of my portable studio set up when we were staying in Hot Springs, Arkansas for two months.  It was in the middle of the summer and even though the house we rented was great, there was no space for me to work inside.  I learned to work fairly fast here since I was afraid of getting Dengue Fever (nightmares from living in Singapore) from all the mosquitoes I had to contend with, not to mention snakes trying to escape the heat.

Our next stop was Taos, NM. I had a pretty good set up in the house we rented in Taos. We were there for 8 weeks, and the owner said that I could use the sun room for my portable set up. We stayed on the canyon road between Taos and Angel Fire, and every morning as I got into the studio, I would watch coyotes and mountain lions drink from a stream outside of my window. I knew the place was pretty granola, as the owner also told me she gave birth to both of her children on the living room floor. And yes, there was also an outhouse on the property...a working outhouse.


Our next stop was in Bellingham, WA and my studio was in a barn. Actually, this was pretty nice, as I would open the garage door up and would often be surprised with little deer that were practically tame. They liked to watch what I was up to, and I learned to always keep my camera nearby for candid shots.

Fire and Water Sterling Silver Small Cuff Bracelet by Stacie Florer

I'm often surprise at the number of jewelry artists who find photographing their work so difficult. No doubt it is a continual learning experience, but you needn't be a professional photographer or have a very expensive camera or Photoshop to make your jewelry shine in pictures.

Here are some simple tips to get started:


1) Learn about your camera. 

-A simple point and shoot digital camera that has a macro option will more than get you started. Read your manual and learn about your camera.

A higher number of megapixels will allow you to get larger and more detailed photos.

2) Select a background that compliments your style of jewelry. 

-Your background shouldn't be too distracting and should have a matte finish. Avoid reflective surfaces like glass or china, or fabric that has a sheen to it until your become more comfortable with your camera and skills.

-Plain white backgrounds are always appealing but if you're inexperienced, it can become frustrating and difficult to achieve a well lit white background.

3) Use correct lighting.

-Natural outdoor light will provide the best and most immediate results. The best most even light is generally achieved early in the morning or late in the afternoon, after the bright sun has past.

-Avoid taking photographs in bright sun as this may cause a glare or harsh shadows on your work.

-Avoid using artificial light such as household lighting as this will cast a yellow or blue light to your work and not represent the most true picture of your work.

4) Learn to edit your photos. 

-Once you've photographed your work, it may be necessary to crop and LIGHTLY correct your images in a photo editing software. There are many free versions of photo editing software such as Picasa as well as online programs such as Pixlr and iPiccy. Your camera may have even come with a photo editing software!

-The best photographs should need little adjustment. If you're spending too much time correcting the contrast and brightness in your photos, keep adjusting your setup in different lights to find the best lighting.

How do you take your best photos? Do you have any tips for taking the best photographs of your jewelry?