Picture perfect

Have you ever wondered what life is like here at Rose Bay Jewellery? No? Oh, well that's disappointing...

But I shan't let that daunt my intrepid spirit! I'm going to share one of our recent photo shoots for a new batch of earrings.

As a rule, I do the making, and my husband does the pictures. This works really well as it enables me to spend more time making, and my photographic skills are a little limited, to be honest! It has become something of a family joke that, on a short break away with my daughter a few years ago, my eager attempts to take pictures of the stage resulted in some very nice pictures of the backs of the chairs in front, the floor, and other peoples' heads. Luckily, my daughter was not as inept as I was, and got some good pictures of the event for both of us!

On this particular photo-shoot day, I happened to be free and we took the new products into the garden. This is not as odd as it sounds – the light here in England can be abysmal for photographs, and if we do them indoors they can look washed out, and using artificial light just gives them a peculiar colour. And the light fluctuates, one minute its too bright, then the sun (if there is any to start with!) goes behind a cloud and we have to wait for it to peek out again. So, there we were, diving in and out of the shadows like... um... well, I have no idea what dives into shadows but think of something and apply it to us. In addition, it was pretty breezy so of course, some of my earrings were fairly lightweight – and included a pair of feathery earrings! That was interesting, to be sure. Most of the earrings just would not keep still! So I'm darting around behind my husband with bits of board and fabric and anything else I could think of, trying to act as a human wind-break. He's telling where to stand and hold my arms to protect the produce (and he's making the most of it, because he doesn't get to boss me around that often!) and then he's telling me I'm too close and standing in the light!

Oh, and then we've got our cat trying to get us to notice her, and doing her best to climb on the tray where the earrings are, and I'm moving her away again because cats are not allowed in the area when I've got jewellery out. Well, we don't want cat hair and pawprints on the jewellery, do we? Wouldn't be hygenic!

Anyway, I'm really pleased with the result but next time you see some product pictures – any handmade product, not just mine – spare a thought for the person behind the lens trying to get the best shot for you! Here you go – not a movement in sight!

Almost none, anyway...