A couple weeks ago I blogged about my newest group of metal clay jewelry components. I’ve finished some of the pieces and took a few photos. Here is the best one so far:
Deco Sunburst Station Necklace with Tanzanite
What do you think?
The pendant (I call them “door knock” pendants – I’m weird that way) was cast out of fine silver (Art Clay silver) from a mold I made of an Art Deco-era button. This button really appealed to me as it is unusual to find buttons in any shapes other than round, particularly with so much detail. The mold lost a little detail in the upper left area but I think that gives it a more antique feeling. I set a genuine tanzanite directly into the clay and fired it in place. I love the dissonance of the ultra-feminine, curvy pear-shaped stone with the straight geometry and faceted texture of the component.
When the clay was still wet I drilled a hole on either side so that I could later attach jumprings and chain. Once the piece was fired, brushed and burnished I added my rings and several inches of sterling silver rolo chain and added an extender chain at the back so that it may be worn at different lengths.
I took the picture with my digital camera under a daylight lamp on one of a pair of agate geode bookends. The drusy makes a nice resting area for making a small piece “stand up”.
I’m planning on playing with photography over the next few weeks and I welcome any suggestions for improving my technique. I’ll be finishing other pieces from my last grouping of components and I anticipate experimenting a lot with backgrounds, color, lighting and methods of photography.
Thank you for sharing your story and especially the photos! I’m a raleigh photographer and am constantly searching for photos that are different, unique and diverse to help my own craft.