I was very lucky to have stumbled on Lex McColl's very first Modahaus tabletop studio a few years ago.  It, together with the camera tips this professional shared, has greatly improved my jewelry photography. 

Modahaus TS320
It's not like light tents which get wrinkly and dirty.  These studios not only are wipe clean and anti-static (no dust or hair!) , they are also portable and can be stored flat.  The design is clever as the smartcase doubles as the diffuser.  It was his very own need as a professional jewelry and watch photographer that led him to create it first for himself and then for others.

I bought the smallest one soon after it was launched.  I've gone on to review the steady stands and the largest model, the TS400, in past posts.  I recently decided to buy the mid size one - the TS320 - shown in use above.  You can see the relative sizes of the TS216, TS320, TS400 below.  The TS 320 is a good compromise (between use and cost) size.



The latest tabletop studio models, unlike the early ones, now come with 6 advanced polymer background sheets - blue, red, black, grey, matte white and shiny white. This is the principle reason why I wanted the TS320 .  Modahaus listened to feedback from artisans who pleaded for black and grey as these are excellent colors for jewelry besides white.

Photo credit : Modahaus
The tabletop studios are very fast to set up.It's a breeze to swiftly change the backgrounds. Check the TS320 guide for more information on how to use it.  The one great feature about these studios is the infinity curve - there are no horizons in the backgrounds!

For white background photographs using natural light, I find the shiny white tunnel really helps brighten the shot.  I also adjust the EV settings (exposure compensation) on my camera and made sure I used spot metering so I didn't have to do much post editing. See links below for photography tutorials and tips.


Here is the resulting white background shot I took for a Goody Beads review and giveaway.


The plain metallic color also allowed for other colors. The backgrounds can be laid over another to extend the color range.  The photographs below show the same heart pendant with blue on black as well as blue on red for purple.


Grey is the most versatile colored background color because it will go with just about any jewelry piece.  If you are struggling to get white backgrounds to work, try grey as I did for this Goody Beads post photo :


I find gold colors and bright brass or bronze designs look great on black as with this kumihimo bracelet from my tutorial post.


I tend to take natural light photography.  But reader and past featured designer, Heather Botteron O'Cain of BluKat Design uses artificial light for her wonderful pictures. She is a highly productive and hard-working artisan!  Not too long ago, she shared this photo of her TS320 in action on Facebook :


The clothes pegs keep the fishing line in place for her earrings.  She actually uses 2 lamps - the left one (not shown) is a broken photo lamp which she holds with her left hand!  She uses a full size tripod in front of the Modahaus and says she doesn't use the diffuser case.  Heather sent me one of her original "as is" images of her earrings :




It is a wonderful picture as it is but Heather prefers white backgrounds so with some photo editing, this is the final picture that ended up in her Etsy store :


I am giving a presentation at the Grand River Bead Society on How to Photography Jewelry today at 7.00 pm in Guelph, Ontario. Check the website for details.  It's free for members and for first time visitors. The society charges $5 for non-members. Check out the synopsis here.

Giveaway
If you'd like to win a Modahaus TS320 photo studio,  please make a comment below.  Make sure you leave contact info below if you do not have an online shop or blog.

Subscribers need to click on the post title to come to my actual blog. Scroll down and enter your comment. Pick Name/URL. If you don't have a store or blog, leave the URL blank.

This giveaway is international.

Extra entries if you become or are a blog subscriber or follower etc. If you also do shout outs about this giveaway, those will count as additional entries too! Please say so in the comments.

It ends in a week's time at 6 pm EST Monday,  October 28, 2013. I will pick the winner randomly and announce the results as soon as possible after. So be sure to leave a contact email if you don't have an online link or make sure you come back and check! Otherwise I will redraw in a week. Good luck!

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Original Post by THE BEADING GEM
Jewelry Making Tips - Jewelry Business Tips