Dubai · Guide for photographers and filmmakers
“Jewellery is the only product that's mostly reflection. You light the room it reflects, not the piece.”
Gold and diamonds act like mirrors: they show the softbox, the camera, the window and you. The fix is to control what the piece sees, and to cut glare with polarised light. Here's how to photograph jewellery without ugly reflections, on a tabletop and on a model, with real campaigns from Dubai as examples.
L'Officiel Baltic · Palazzo Versace Dubai
01 · The problem
Why jewellery is hard to light
Metal and stones reflect their surroundings. A polished ring will show a rectangle of softbox, a dark shape of the camera, and every bright thing in the room. The aim isn't to remove all reflection; it's to choose which ones appear.
Gold needs a gradient
A large soft source with a smooth falloff gives polished gold a clean graded shine instead of hard white blocks.
Diamonds need small sparks
Stones need a few small, hard points of light to sparkle. Kill all reflection and diamonds look grey.
Black and white cards
White cards put clean highlights where you want them; black cards add definition along edges and stop flat, washed-out metal.
Hide the camera
Shoot through a hole in a white card or a light tent so the lens isn't reflected in curved surfaces.
02 · The technique
Cross-polarisation, step by step
Illustration (AI): a polarising sheet on the light, a polariser on the lens.
Cross-polarisation removes surface glare while keeping colour. It needs two polarisers: one on the light and one on the lens, turned at right angles to each other.
1. Put a linear polarising sheet over the softbox or LED.
2. Put a circular polariser on the lens.
3. Watch the live view and rotate the lens polariser until the glare disappears (about 90° to the sheet).
4. Expect to lose light: compensate with exposure or more power.
5. Take one frame fully cross-polarised and one without, then blend: clean colour from the first, a little sparkle from the second.
Sources: Paul Bourke, cross-polarisation · DIY Photography, what is cross-polarisation.
03 · On a model
Jewellery on skin
On a model you can't build a light tent, so the work moves to angles, skin and hair.
Angle the piece, not the light
Small turns of the neck or wrist move reflections off the stones. Direct the pose a few degrees at a time.
Clean skin around the piece
Matte skin around a necklace or earrings keeps the eye on the metal. Shiny skin competes with it.
Hair away from the piece
Slicked-back or up-styled hair shows earrings and necklaces. Loose hair hides them.
Sparkle on video
For film, a slow move past a small hard light makes stones flicker. Slow motion makes the most of it.
Jewellery editorial, Dubai · Damas Jewellery campaign, Dubai
04 · Worked examples
Damas, Anabela Chan and L'Officiel in Dubai
Anabela Chan at Bayt Damas · Nadine Njeim for Damas, behind the scenes
For Damas Jewellery, the flagship campaigns were filmed with director Yehia Bedier and 1602 Studio, alongside behind-the-scenes films and an interview with jewellery designer Anabela Chan at Bayt Damas (watch it on the Damas Jewellery channel). Interviews like this need a different approach from the campaign: soft, even light on the face, so the jewellery reads clearly without the speaker squinting into hard light.
For L'Officiel Baltic at Palazzo Versace Dubai, the necklace was shot on a bare back in warm, low corridor light, so the stones caught the practical lamps while the skin stayed soft.
05 · Checklist
Before you shoot jewellery
1. Clean every piece with a microfibre cloth and wear cotton gloves.
2. Bring polarising sheet, a circular polariser, white and black cards, and a small hard light for sparkle.
3. Plan the security: who holds the pieces, insurance, and a sign-out list.
4. On location in Dubai, check the venue's permission and the shoot permit.
5. Shoot a reference frame of each piece on a grey card for colour.
Planning a jewellery shoot in Dubai? Read the Dubai photoshoot permit guide.
FAQ
Common questions
How do you photograph jewellery without reflections?
Control what the piece reflects with large soft light and white or black cards, hide the camera behind a card or tent, and use cross-polarisation to remove surface glare.
What is cross-polarisation in photography?
A polarising sheet on the light and a polariser on the lens, rotated about 90° apart. It removes surface reflections while keeping the colour of the subject.
How do you make diamonds sparkle in photos?
Add small, hard points of light, and don't remove every reflection. Blending a polarised frame with an unpolarised one keeps clean colour and some sparkle.
How do you light jewellery on a model?
Turn the pose a few degrees to move reflections, keep skin matte around the piece, style the hair away from it, and use a small hard light for sparkle on video.
Written by Joshua Swain, who films and photographs jewellery, beauty and fashion in Dubai and London. See the portfolio.