What you’ll learn in this episode:   What makes jewelry so difficult to photograph, and Kim’s tips for capturing jewelry in photos What techniques Kim uses to make gemstones look shiny, sparkly and colorful Which tools and tips photographers need to get started with jewelry photography Common jewelry photography mistakes and how to avoid them How to choose the right jewelry photographer   About Kim Nunneley:   Kim Nunneley is a Los Angeles-based IATSE Local 600 photographer specializing in unit photography, gallery, lifestyle and portraiture. She has held various roles, from photographer at a fashion merchandising company to photo assistant, and she has worked at one of the world’s most prestigious photo studios in NYC. She has developed a niche as a jewelry photographer working for major jewelry companies.    Additional Resources: Website Instagram Facebook   Photos Available on TheJewelryJourney.com   Transcript:   A simple photo can never quite capture the real-life beauty of a diamond, ruby or sapphire. That’s why photographer Kim Nunneley relies on a variety of tools, software and experience to make jewelry photographs that shine. She joined the Jewelry Journey Podcast to talk about the mistakes she made when she first started photographing jewelry; her tips for burgeoning jewelry photographers; and what questions jewelry brands should ask to choose the right photographer. Read the episode transcript here.    Sharon: Hello, everyone. Welcome to the Jewelry Journey Podcast. This is the first part of a two-part episode. Please make sure you subscribe so you can hear part two as soon as it’s released later this week.    I’m sure you’ve struggled with making the piece of jewelry that was in front of you look as good in a picture as it does in real life. A good picture attracts customers. The quality of a picture can tell people a lot about your business. After all, you’re selling luxury, and the quality of the picture tells a lot of the story. My guest today is Kim Nunneley of Kim Alexis Photography. She is a photographer who specializes in jewelry. She’ll tell us some of the tricks we should know to take a nice photo. Kim, welcome to the podcast.   Kim: Hi, Sharon. Thank you for having me. I’m really excited.    Sharon: How was it that you came to photographing jewelry? People photograph all sorts of things.    Kim: It’s such a specific niche. About 10 years ago, I had a friend who came to me. She majored in sculpture, and she had just started dabbling in creating jewelry pieces. She said, “Can you photograph some of these?” I had no idea what I was doing. I didn’t realize how reflective jewelry was, any of that. It’s photographing little mirrors, but I did my best. I didn’t know anything about focus stacking, which is really important in jewelry photography. I did my best, and we got some good photos. To this day, she’s still my client 10 years later.   After that, about a year later, I actually got a full-time position as a staff photographer at a fashion merchandising company in New York. Some of the things we had to shoot were jewelry pieces, and then and there I really learned to hone my skills. I learned to use a lightbox, tools that are helpful. I can get into that later, but there are certain tools that are very helpful. I learned a lot at that job. Honestly, just from there, I’ve grown.   Sharon: It’s true that photographing jewelry is harder than other things, would you say?   Kim: Oh, yes. I think it’s the most difficult thing to photograph. I do various types of photography, and I say it’s the most difficult.   Sharon: I never tried. I wouldn’t want to try.   Kim: Making the diamonds sparkly, the opals really saturated. There are techniques for doing that.   Sharon: Is that like where you look at a picture and you know the model has makeup on and everything? Is that what you do in jewelry? Do you make a sapphire bluer?   Kim: Sometimes yes. We make it blue. We tweak it, saturate the colors. There are also com