Digital Editing Basics

Digital jewelry photo retouching, put simply, is the art of digitally manipulating existing photographs or pictures of jewelry in order to enhance or freshen them up. This is usually done using Adobe Photoshop, GIMP, or other image editing software to edit small details such as scratches, reflection, and shadow, and lighten and darken certain aspects of the photo to create a balanced and more aesthetically pleasing image.

When it comes to digital editing jewelry photos the basic steps should always be followed:

Make sure your camera is set up correctly for the particular shot - The settings you choose will depend on the effect you are looking for, but a lower ISO and higher shutter speed are generally considered best for jewelry photos. Try different angles, shoot in different lighting conditions, and experiment with different focal lengths.

Do any preliminary correction work - This can include deleting or adjusting dust, spots, and fixing any red eye, lens flare, and distortion caused by the camera, as well as making any other adjustments to ensure the photo is properly exposed for editing.

Get rid of any unsightly reflections, highlights, and shadows in the imageThis will make the jewelry look more appealing and eye-catching. You can do this by using Gaussian blurs, curves, luminosity, and contrast adjustments. Sharpen and enhance the fine details of the jewelry from the photoThis is typically done with the help of unsharp masking, levels, and contrast. Create a frameCreate a frame for the jewelry piece(s) in the photo in order to separate it from the background, as well as accentuate the beauty of the piece(s). You can do this by using the “Polygonal Lasso” Tool or other masking tools.

Last but not least, always remember to save and export the final file in a high-quality JPEG or PNG format.