taking photos

*sigh*
I spent tonight taking photos. Maybe one or two turned out well, but the rest look awful. It's hard to take pictures of metal. Getting the lighting right. Making sure there's no glare. Is there enough light? Is there too much light? Is there sparkle where there should be sparkle? blah blah yada yada
*sigh*
With so many artists opting to take their own photos, jewelry photography has become a lot more creative and the rules for the black, shadowed, background have loosened up a bit. I thought I might try to make my set up a little more traditional tonight, but once my images were uploaded I realized my lighting was pretty off and there were some focus problems. 
So...perhaps it's time to invest in a proper lighting set-up.

This image isn't too bad. The lighting was okay from the start and there isn't much glare.

Now, this one didn't seem to take to the lighting I had set up well. The difference between the gold and the steel reflected the light differently and the steel looks dirty and splotchy. The diamond is a blur as well.

I'm not too disappointed with this shot but you can see the earring on the left has some glare. 

I've found that using natural light tends to work out well for the type of jewelry I make. The steel is dark and the gold is reflective so finding something that doesn't get lost in the steel or glare off the gold can be frustrating. When it's cloudy out, which is often in Portland, the light isn't harsh or bright so I really like to take my photos in the morning and near my biggest window. Even outside, sometimes. I use white paper opposite the light source in order to reflect the light back onto the work.
I guess I'll be taking some more photos in the morning!