If you’ve decided to buy a piece of photo engraved jewelry, it’s a good idea to know what qualities to look for in whichever photo you select. You may also still be deciding on which photo engraved pendant is the best for you.
You might be surprised to know that there are certain things that make a photo better than others when you’re selecting for your photo engraved pendant. Choosing the right one is important since it’s probably something you will want to look at quite often!
Read on to find out more about custom photo jewelry and what makes some photos better than others, plus our different pendant options and how to decide which pendant best fits you and your jewelry needs.
First, what is photo engraved jewelry? Photo engraved jewelry is created by duplicating an original photo you’ve given us. The pendants are available in black and white, or in color—whatever appeals to you the most!
That photo enhanced by our engravers and is then permanently etched onto the metal of a pendant of your choosing using state of the art engraving.
If you’re the kind of person who loves having the freedom of being able to customize your jewelry and the gifts you give to your loved ones then photo engraved jewelry is probably right up your alley. By nature, there are a variety of options with picture engraved pendants of any kind. This kind of gift gives you a ton of space to utilize your creativity and come up with something new and original as a gift to your loved ones or for yourself.
The uniqueness is in the fact that you can choose which photo gets engraved for whatever occasion you happen to be buying for! See which options listed below would best suit you and your jewelry needs.
There are many different sizes and shapes with our pendants, so you already have a ton of personalization options available to you between the photo you choose to have engraved, and the size and shape of your pendant. Choose from round shapes, rectangular, heart-shaped, and much more.
You always have the option of choosing a pendant that holds ashes, or just a regular pendant that does not hold ashes. Regular pendants come with the options of stainless, and gold plated over stainless.
You can select from cremation pendants that discretely hold a small amount of ashes. These come in a selection of stainless, gold plated and rose gold plated materials.
You can have your pendant come with or without gemstones. How bright and shiny your pendant looks can be all up to you.
A selection of pendants can even have birthstones added to them!
Your pendant can be attached to a keychain, making for a great gift for anyone, and in a variety of situations. This can be a good bulk gift for a team, a group meeting you go to each month like a church group, a family reunion, or just a group of life-long friends!
You can choose a photo engraved pendant that can hang on someone’s car rear view mirror—or even on your own! This is a great way to put the photo you choose right in someone’s line of sight so they can see it throughout the day, and wherever they may travel to.
Select photo engraved pendants that have a little extra kick, with both color and texture! Utilize all the different ways you can personalize your engraved pendant.
There are several different options available when it comes to customizing your photo engraved jewelry. And remember, no matter what you choose with your picture engraved jewelry, it serves as a unique way to remember a loved one who has passed on, or even to create a gift for someone special in your life!
You have a couple of metal options to select from. You can either choose to have your photo etched into Polished Stainless Steel, or Gold or Rose Gold Plated Stainless Steel pendants.
You could choose to have an added personalized engraving on the back. This is a great way to add a name, a phrase, special dates and more to customize your selection and make it your own.
Add a birthstone to any of our photo engraved pendants. The birthstone can be set into the surface of the jewelry or can be added as a birthstone heart that acts as a separate pendant.
How can you decide on a photo for your photo engraved jewelry? What constitutes a “good photo,” anyway? Won’t it turn out the same regardless? Believe it or not, the photo you choose for picture engraved jewelry does matter! Different photos pose varying challenges when it comes to engraving them onto the metals and we want the end result to be as perfect as the picture you present.
Read the following for our ten tips to take into consideration for both black and white, and color engraved pendants when you’re searching for that perfect pendant photo.
Photos that have been taken in dark areas or rooms with low lighting are not the optimal photo because there is too much shadow. The details of the subject are also often more difficult to enhance.
A dark room also casts a shadow over the person in the photo and makes it harder for our engraver to grab the crucial details of a person’s face and their facial expression. Try and avoid using photos like these when possible.
Look for a crisp, clear photo. Make sure it is completely free of any shadows, and that it isn’t blurry. A general rule of thumb is that the higher the resolution, the better the photo will engrave into the pendant!
In the case that you have an old photo you want engraved that may have a lower resolution, we can still use it. We can usually smooth out any wrinkles, as well as erase any lines or spots on the photo. Our engravers are able to enhance the image to bring out the best possible engraved image.
Size does matter with photo engraving! We recommend choosing a photo that’s no smaller than 400 pixels.
This will make the engraving process easier and will ensure you get the best quality engraved image for your pendant, regardless if you choose black and white or color.
Close up shots work very well for engraving. A nice and clean “from the shoulders up” photo usually shows a good amount of facial detail, which allows us to make a good, quality engraving of your loved one.
Something like a head shot styled picture, or even a photo taken with the portrait mode feature that iPhones have. Any photo that really focuses in on facial details works great!
Photos that are taken in the sunlight, or any bright light in the background tend to wash out the subjects of focus that we are trying to engrave. Bright lights can often cast a shadow over the face and the front part of the person that we are trying to get good engraving details from.
We can use these photos, but keep in mind that they are often not the best choices for engraving.
The best kinds of photos are those where the individual is looking straight at the camera. These are the best picture style because the engraving can then pick up all the intimate details of the photo subject’s face.
In contrast, if the photo is taken from the side, it can diminish the kind of clarity that we can get from the subject’s face.
Do you have a photo with a group of people in it, but you only want one person engraved? The best way to go is to just send the whole photo and let us know the individual that you want cropped out and engraved. Be sure to leave specific instructions in the order comments, such as “only want the woman wearing the red sweater engraved”.
When you zoom in and try to crop everything else out yourself, it will cause the photo to lose some of its resolution. Instead, let our engravers take care of it. They can easily crop the person out and get a good, quality engraving for your pendant.
Say that you’ve got two different people that you’d like to be in the same photo for your engraving, but you don’t have an actual photo of them together. Well, you’re in luck! We can actually take two separate photos and merge them together.
Our expert engravers can crop out each person from each photo and merge them into the same photo. They then soften the lines from the merging and are able to make it appear just like a natural photo of both of them together.
All we need from you is to make sure that the two photos are good, quality photos. We’ll take care of the rest.
We usually take out the background of a photo that is going to be engraved because it takes away from the subject that we are trying to enhance. For that reason, it is best to not choose a photo because of what you can see in the background.
For example, say that you have a photo of two people on the beach and you want to include the beautiful blue color of the ocean. Once we change the photo over to black and white for the engraving, that blue will no longer play a part in the engraving of your pendant.
Of course, this is a different situation if you have chosen to purchase a color photo engraved pendant. In that case, the lovely and deep blue of the ocean would stand out beautifully!
Pick a photo that makes you smile! Choose one that represents a specific moment you might have shared with the person in the photo.
This could be a big and memorable day like a wedding, proposal, birth day, the day they left to go abroad, or anything along those lines. Just make sure it’s a meaningful one.
You could even choose a picture you’ve got that captured a silly moment you might have shared with the person you are gifting the jewelry to—whatever kind of photo that best captures and symbolizes your relationship with them.
Which reasons are appropriate for purchasing a picture engraved pendant? There are probably more situations relevant to buying this kind of jewelry than you even realize! From birthdays to memorials, there is actually a wide array of circumstances for which this type of gift would fit.
Some of the more typical occasions include:
Give them a gift that symbolizes a special moment in your lives that was captured in a photo. It could be a picture from your engagement that was taken for you, or one of your favorite photos from your wedding.
This would be a great occasion to buy a birthstone photo jewelry, a picture engraved bracelet, or any other kind of custom photo jewelry. It can be a lovely present for a child, parent, or significant other.
Losing a pet can be heart-wrenching because our fur babies become our family. They have a way of making a special place in our hearts their very homes, even after they are gone and what better way to honor them.
Dealing with the passing of a loved one is no easy task. It can take quite a toll on you. It may help to get yourself a token of remembrance in their honor. It can be a gift to yourself, or to someone you know who is experiencing grief.
Those who are brave enough to protect us by serving in the military and must leave on deployment would love to take a reminder of family with them! Do this by getting them a memorable gift to wear and be able to see every day.
Becoming a parent can be a very exciting and nerve-wracking time. Instead of taking the typical bouquet of flowers and card to the new parent(s), gift them a pendant that is engraved with a photo of their precious newborn!
There are a myriad of other occasions where photo engraved jewelry makes a fantastic gift to mark the moment.
There are all kinds of milestones that we go through throughout our lifetime. Photo engraved jewelry can be a great way to celebrate these special times.
Some examples might be:
Holiday moments and religious special occasions are a superb way to show family and friends a little love with a thoughtful token.
Get togethers with friends and family provide a unique opportunity to share in a special memory you made together with personally selected photo engraved jewelry.
And sometimes there are those little moments that need a little extra appreciation to let someone know we care and are proud of them!
Now that you’ve learned about which photos work the best for photo engraved pendants, you can begin the process of deciding amongst photos, and then the rest of the customizations for your special pendant remain to be chosen.
It can take some time to choose the best photo for your personalized photo engraved pendant, but making a great selection plays a big part in the aspects that will make your gift absolutely perfect. In retrospect, you’ll certainly be glad you were so selective in choosing the best photo possible.
If you're looking for a unique way to combine a special photo with an urn, we can help! One of a kind 3D Artisan Portrait Urns combine a picture that holds special meaning with a beautiful hardwood urn. These urns are a lovely display for the home or office.
Those favorite photos can also be used to personalize memorial gifts for the whole family. These handcrafted gifts are ideal for sharing in memories of your loved one with close friends, children and grandchildren.
Further reading:
Ultimate Guide On Buying Cremation Jewelry
How To Select Engraving On Your Cremation Jewelry
Ultimate Guide On Buying Ashes Into Jewelry
August 12 by Frances Kay