Pearls

[minicoop1985]

Another obvious title, I know. Shot with my wife's Sony a55 and 50mm 2.8 1:1 Macro.

Pearly Whites by longm1985, on Flickr

 

[orionmystery]

Lovely shot.

 

[limr]

I'd like to see them piled so I can't see the surface they are lying on.

 

[minicoop1985]

I'd like to see them piled so I can't see the surface they are lying on.

Actually, I tried to do exactly that, but they wouldn't cooperate.

 

[limr]

I'd like to see them piled so I can't see the surface they are lying on.

Actually, I tried to do exactly that, but they wouldn't cooperate.

Pearls are stubborn that way I like the lighting on them. Maybe go into a Wal-Mart or...do they still have Joanne Fabrics there? Did they ever? - anyway, you can get fabric remnants for cheap. You can look for a white material with a similar sheen to the pearls.

 

[minicoop1985]

The other side of that board is white. I can try that, see how that works. Otherwise I have some white stuff I got from Joanne Fabrics (got one here) that might work. I used the black to separate them a little, but never tried with white.

Lighting was done with two bare speedlights on tabletop tripods, about as ghetto as I could possibly make a macro flash setup.

 

[limr]

I think seeing the fabric works better if it also has a bit of shine to it. Pearls=luxury, so you think silk or satin, like the strand is lying on silk sheets or something. I was thinking of the white so the pearls themselves would sort of blend in, but I suppose with the right sort of sheen to the fabric, and maybe rumpled a little instead of totally smooth, it would look nice in just about any color.

 

[minicoop1985]

I tried on the white cardboard since it was handy, and you're right. It needs something with a sheen to it to pull that off.