I recently made one for the Michaels website (Long Walk in the Woods) that I absolutely loved. It's an autumn mix of ivory, brown, and gold beads (metal, shell, glass, gemstone) with lots of beaded links.
This long necklace would probably sell well at a craft show where customers could see it and try it on, but online is a different story. To sell online you need a great photograph and long necklaces can be tricky to showcase. I took many photos trying to figure out the best way to display this necklace. I'm sharing some of them (both good and bad) to give you some ideas for your own jewelry.
Here are three ideas for how to photograph a long necklace:
1. Use a Model or Mannequin
Ideally, a long necklace should be photographed on a model or a mannequin. This would show the customer how the necklace would look when worn. It gives them an accurate idea of the scale of the whole necklace, plus the scale of individual beads. (If I had either of these options available, I would have used them.)
2. Display on a Neck Form
The problem with displaying a long necklace on a typical jewelry display neck form is that it will extend past the bottom. To me that always looks like a mistake.
3. Arrange Flat on a Table
I also tried doubling the necklace like I had with the neck form. It's definitely better than my first flat arrangement. What do you think? |
I ended up arranging the necklace with some curves. It gives the idea of movement. (The beaded links and jump rings give this necklace a lot of movement when worn.)
You can tell that the necklace is long from the photo, although you still might have questions about scale. One idea might be to use a prop in the photo. This would help show the size of the necklace.
What tips do you have for photographing long necklaces?