When it comes to jewelry in e-commerce, you want your product photos to shine. The background is instrumental in showcasing your rings, necklaces, watches, and more online. Picking a suitable backdrop can be challenging, but it doesn’t need to be.
The best background for your jewelry photography depends on the product and the type of image. You need to decide what style brings out the best in your product: a classic approach generally does well in e-commerce, such as a plain white background, but you can also go for a more creative approach by using props or a textured backdrop for example.
In this article, we’ll help you make your jewelry stand out online by taking you through the best background options available. We’ve come up with 9 options in total, so read up on all the possibilities and choose your backdrop styling carefully.
Why the background matters so much for jewelry photography
It’s always important in e-commerce to make your product stand out, but that’s even more the case for jewelry. The background is vital, no matter the product. But unlike product categories like clothing or furniture, jewelry tends to come with delicate and shiny elements that need specific backgrounds in order to stand out in a product photo.
The wrong choice of color behind the product can make even the most brilliant gem look dull. Vice versa, the right background can make jewelry shine brighter, which appeals to your products and is likely to boost online sales.
In addition, the background lets you portray your products in a particular setting. That way, you can tell a story that fits your jewelry type or brand to make it more appealing to your customers.
So, if you own a website that sells jewelry or photographs it regularly, you should never forget what background to use for the products.
9 background options for jewelry photography
You can do a lot to make the jewelry stand out in the photograph. As you’ll see below, the possibilities for the background are not limited to color alone. Playing with textures or using a mannequin or model, you can bring out different aspects of the product, which you wouldn’t get from a basic pack shot.
However, there is no such thing as the best background for jewelry photography. It all depends on the product, how you want to market it, and your own brand identity. You have the most excellent chance of success when you use several styles and angles together on the product page because it gives customers the best and most extensive picture they need to base their shopping decision on.
1) Plain white background
A plain white background is usually a good choice for product images, which also applies to jewelry. The clean backdrop eliminates all possible distractions and puts the product in the center of attention.
However, products with many white or very light elements don’t do particularly well against a white background. And jewelry has a tendency to shine brightly. The lack of contrast makes essential features invisible or even the entire product. When this is the case, it’s better to use a darker backdrop.
2) Black background
Black backgrounds are great for showcasing the product, like white backgrounds, but they add a touch of class to the image. If your jewelry contains gems, or in general, if you want a more luxurious look, black might be what you need. Reflections of the product also benefit from a dark background because it shows them more clearly than against a light backdrop.
3) Grey or neutral background
Looking for something less bright than a plain white background for your pack shots? Then grey or neutral background colors like beige or off-white are your best alternative. Neutrals are used often instead of white in e-commerce and are also suitable for highlighting products. But you have to ensure that the grey or neutral colors don’t affect the colors and shine of the jewelry.
4) Textured background
Want to add some dimension to your jewelry photography? A textured backdrop perfectly creates a dynamic image without too much effort. You can use a piece of cloth to put the jewelry on and move it however you like to create folds below the product. For different colors or textures, you can experiment with various fabrics.
5) Mannequin background
Mannequins are always a relatively easy way to show how a piece of clothing or jewelry would look on a person. For jewelry photographs, you don’t need the whole mannequin, only the bust and perhaps an arm. Especially necklaces and rings profit from a mannequin, as they give shoppers a better idea of the size of the product.
6) Model background
If you want to display your jewelry worn more dynamically, you cannot do without a model. Models can show the products in various ways: as part of a complete look, in detail, or in a particular setting. For more success, you can shoot product video content with the model wearing your products.
7) Gradient background
A gradient background works well to add depth and elegance to your jewelry product photo. You need to put the product in the brightest spot and let the gradient make the background darker as it moves away from it. Colors are great for this background as long as they don’t outshine the product.
8) Colorful background
Why not add a splash of color to the background to make the colors in the jewelry stand out even more? The more and brighter the colors, however, the greater the risk of losing focus on the product, so choose them with care.
9) Using a specific material as background
Different materials can emphasize certain aspects of a piece of jewelry or frame it in a certain way. For example, if you want to point out the organic qualities of the product (or brand), using wood in the background is an excellent way to do so. Marble or velvet, however, are perfect for making jewelry look luxurious and unique.
Perfecting your background in post-production
Even when you use the best background for your jewelry photography, there’s always room for improvement. That’s where post-production comes in. You can make small changes through image editing, like adjusting the background’s brightness and the product’s positioning, but you can do much more.
Reflection Perfection
You can give your jewelry images a reflection to add depth and make them look more appealing, but the chances of getting it right during the shoot are slim. Often, you’ll need some editing to make it come out as you’d want it to. However, with the power of image editing, it’s not even necessary to create a reflection in production; you can add one afterward in post-production. That saves you time during production and guarantees consistent quality.
Virtual jewelry
Do you want to offer your customers the best possible online shopping experience? Then CGI is the solution for you. People can twist and zoom on the product as much as they want by using computer-generated product images of jewelry, just as they would in a physical store. The highly detailed imagery dramatically increases your online conversions. Curious? Let us tell you more.
Make your model images shine without effort with POS3D
Model images are a must-have for selling jewelry online, but they are much more expensive than your average pack shot. With our POS3D on-model imagery, you can have quality model shots without needing to pay for models for every shoot. Thanks to intelligent editing, the jewelry and a basic model image can be edited together to make it look like the model is wearing the product.