Wedding Jewellery Photo Ideas and Tips

Is it vital to have detail photos of your jewellery on your wedding day? No. Will these shots be your most treasured images? No. BUT…..Will they add a different dimension to your wedding gallery? Will they provide a little slice of shiny calm in the story of a crazy busy day? Will they lift the overall look of your coverage, give a classy, fine art feel and provide variety for the layout of your album? YES YES YES!

I love to take detail shots like these during the prep stage of the day, when everyone is getting ready. There is generally a fair amount of time to play around without missing anything important, especially at the beginning while hair and make up is still being perfected. I often feel like a happy little magpie when I turn up to a wedding, carefully gather up all the shiny little treasures and dart off to a corner to play with them! Here are some images I’ve created along the way and a few tips and ideas to help.

Tips for photographers…

A decent good macro lens is ideal for these shots. I use a Canon EF 100mm f2.8L. This isn’t a cheap lens (around £900) but it’s brilliant, and really versatile. I love it for portrait work too and nearly always use it for my food and product photography. It’s always in my bag at weddings.

When it comes to styling these type of shots, look for props. You don’t need a lot of space or background, so books, fabric, veil, shoes, a wedding invite, a patch of frost etc all work great. If you can’t find a book with a nice cover then look for a page which has interesting/relevant text. A dictionary or map/atlas can work well, or even a close up of the date on a (respectable!) newspaper.

Be aware of reflections and light. The less you have to sort these out in post-processing the better. Use a reflector if you have one or if not a piece of white card/paper works well. Be careful not to over expose shiny areas nearest the light source.

Bonus points from me if you can get people involved in the photos too. This really brings details to life and makes them even more meaningful for the couple.

During the ceremony don’t just aim for shots of the rings being exchanged but check where they are at points before this in case anything interesting is happening – or can be staged!. Usually there is a best man or bridesmaid nervously clutching them.

Finally – make sure you’re photographing the right jewellery – on more than one occasion I’ve carefully photographed a necklace or earrings which the bride had decided not to wear – whoops!

I hope you enjoyed my Wedding Jewellery Photo Ideas. You can check out advice for photographing rainy weddings here.

Looking for personalised and meaningful wedding jewellery?

Hand on Heart have been a commercial client of mine for many, many years. They are a brilliant Lakes based company and specialise in producing personalised jewellery and accessories, including memorial jewellery. You can check out some of the pieces they have created for my couples here and here.