How to Photograph Your Jewellery for Insurance and Estates
Most people photograph their jewellery once, badly, on a kitchen counter, and then discover after a break-in that the picture shows a gold blur on a wood grain background. It proves almost nothing. The useful version takes an afternoon, needs a phone and a window, and produces a record that an insurance adjuster or a family lawyer can work from. Here is how we would do it.
What an insurer is trying to establish
Policies differ, so treat this as the common pattern and confirm the exact requirements with your own insurer. Broadly, a claim rests on three questions. Did the item exist. Did it belong to you. What was it, and what was it worth.
The Insurance Bureau of Canada tells people filing a home claim to attach proofs of purchase, receipts, police reports, owner's manuals and warranties, and to review their files for photographs of stolen items. Its general claims guidance says insurance companies ask for additional information such as police reports, receipts, photos and home inventory lists to process a claim.
Notice where photographs sit in that list. They sit alongside receipts and inventories as evidence, and they answer the question a receipt cannot: what did this thing look like, and what marks would identify it if it turned up in a pawn shop.
Photographs and appraisals do different jobs
An appraisal is a written opinion of value, signed and dated by a qualified appraiser. It is the document that sets your coverage amount and anchors a payout. A photograph records the object. Keep both, because each one covers a gap in the other.
An appraisal describes a ring in technical language: metal, weight, stone measurements, clarity, setting type. A photograph shows the shape of the gallery, the worn patch on the left shoulder, the inscription your grandmother had cut into the band in 1974. Those are the details that identify one specific ring out of the thousands that share its written description. We set out what an insurance appraisal has to contain in our guide to what your policy actually requires, and whether you need separate jewellery coverage at all in our piece on jewellery insurance in Canada.
The shot list, piece by piece
Work through one item at a time and take every frame before moving on. Eight shots per piece is our working number. It sounds like a lot until you try to describe a clasp to an adjuster over the phone.
| Frame | What to capture | Why it matters in a claim or an estate |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Overall | Whole piece, plain neutral background, lit from a window | The identification shot. This is what gets circulated if the item is stolen. |
| 2. Scale | A ruler or a coin laid beside the piece | Fixes the real size. Without it, a pendant and a brooch look the same on screen. |
| 3. Hallmark | Macro of the karat stamp and maker's mark inside the band or on the clasp tag | Proves metal and karat, and often the maker and country. |
| 4. Inscription | Any engraving, date, initials or laser inscription | The strongest single identifier most pieces carry. |
| 5. Marks and repairs | Wear patches, solder seams, replaced prongs, chipped stones | Distinguishes your piece from an identical model. Also records condition. |
| 6. Clasp | The closure, open and closed | Clasp style and maker's tag are common identification points on chains. |
| 7. Setting profile | The piece from the side, at bench level | Shows gallery height and setting style that a top-down shot flattens away. |
| 8. Reverse | The back or underside | Carries construction detail and repair history the front hides. |
Add frames wherever a piece has more to say. A bracelet with a hallmark on each link deserves two stamp shots. A ring with three stones deserves a frame per stone.
Technique that works on a phone
You do not need a camera. You need light, a steady phone, and a few habits.
Use window light, never flash. Flash sits beside the lens and fires straight at the metal, which bounces back as a white blowout and erases exactly the hallmark you were trying to record. Set up beside a window on a grey day, or in the shade near a bright one. Soft light from the side shows form. Hard light from the front flattens it.
Plain grey or white background, matte finish. Printer paper works. Grey art card works better, because a white field can push the phone's automatic exposure into darkening everything else in the frame. Skip wood grain, patterned cloth and coloured surfaces, all of which throw the colour balance and can turn yellow gold green on screen.
Turn on macro mode, or lock the focus. Modern phones switch to a macro lens when you move in close. If yours does not, tap the hallmark on screen and hold until the focus locks, then take the shot. A stamp photographed out of focus is a photograph of nothing.
Brace the phone. Hand shake at close range is the main reason phone macro shots fail. Rest the phone on a small tripod, a stack of books, or the edge of a mug. Use the two-second timer so your finger press does not move the frame.
Shoot at full resolution, and move instead of zooming. Check the camera settings and turn off any reduced-size or storage-saving option. Digital zoom crops into the sensor and throws away detail, so walk the phone closer to the piece rather than pinching the screen.
Review at full size before you move on. Open each frame and pinch in to full magnification. If the hallmark is not readable on screen now, it will not be readable in three years when somebody needs it.
Photograph the paperwork too
Jewellery paperwork is where a claim gets settled quickly or slowly. Photograph each document flat, square on, filling the frame, with no shadow across it. Then take a second, closer shot of the numbers: the report number, the appraised value, the date, the signature.
Cover the grading report, the appraisal, and the original receipt. If a piece came from us, the receipt shows date and place of purchase, which is the ownership evidence an insurer wants. Store these images with the photographs of the piece itself so the set stays together.
Laser inscriptions: the strongest identifier a diamond can carry
Many modern diamonds carry a microscopic laser inscription on the girdle, the thin outer edge of the stone. GIA offers laser inscription as an add-on service on its diamond grading reports, and notes that for a Diamond Dossier the stone must carry the original GIA report number laser inscription.
That inscription ties a physical stone to a specific written report. If the stone is recovered, the number confirms which one it is, with no argument about whether two similar diamonds got swapped. Some owners pay to have a stone inscribed for exactly this reason, with a report number or their own initials.
You will not see it with your eyes. It takes 10x magnification, which means a jeweller's loupe or a microscope. Ask your jeweller to read it out and write it into your inventory, and have them photograph it through the microscope if they can. Record the report number in your written inventory either way, because that number is what lets anyone verify the stone's recorded characteristics against GIA's own records later.
The written inventory, and where to keep it
Photographs answer "what did it look like". A written inventory answers "what was it". Keep one line per piece, and include:
- A plain description, enough that a stranger could pick the piece out of a tray.
- Metal and karat as stamped: 14K, 18K, 950 platinum, 925 silver.
- Stone details: type, cut, measurements or carat weight, and any grading report number.
- Measurements: ring size, chain length, pendant height, bracelet length.
- Total weight in grams if you know it, which our bench can measure in a minute.
- Purchase date and place, and who it came from if it was a gift or an inheritance.
- Current appraised value, with the appraisal date beside it.
- The date of the photographs, so you can tell which set is current.
Then store copies away from the house. A fire that takes the jewellery takes the paper file in the next room, and a burglar who takes the jewellery box may take the laptop as well. IBC's claims guidance recommends keeping records in a safe place, such as a safety deposit box or a secure online option. Cloud storage, an email to yourself, or a copy with a relative in another city all satisfy this. Two copies in two buildings.
Serial numbers, and why police care
Recorded identifiers help police return recovered property. Richmond RCMP's property crime unit tells the public that having serial numbers or unique identifiers allows police to return stolen items to their rightful owners, and that officers add those numbers to a national database any officer in the country can check. The Canadian Police Information Centre runs a public stolen property search by serial number.
Most jewellery has no serial number. Watches usually do, on the case back or inside the lugs, so photograph it. For everything else, an inscription or a laser-inscribed report number is the closest equivalent, which is another reason to record them.
Update the record when the piece changes
Documentation goes stale the moment a piece goes to a bench. A remount puts the stone in a new setting and every old photograph now shows an object that no longer exists. Resizing alters the shank and can move a hallmark. Replating white gold changes its colour on screen. Re-shoot after any of it, date the new set, and correct the written line so words and pictures agree.
Two other moments deserve a fresh look. Re-photograph before a long trip, which pairs with the packing decisions in our guide to travelling with jewellery. And re-photograph when you reorganise where things live, because the habits in our guide to storing jewellery properly work better when you know exactly what is in each box.
Pieces worth documenting first
If the whole collection feels like too much, start with the items that would be hardest to replace and hardest to describe: anything inherited, anything custom made, anything with a stone over half a carat, and anything you wear daily.
Key Takeaways
- Take eight frames per piece: overall, scale reference, hallmark macro, inscription, distinguishing marks, clasp, setting profile, and the reverse.
- Use window light with the flash off, a plain matte grey or white background, macro mode or locked focus, and a braced phone at full resolution with no digital zoom.
- Photographs sit beside an appraisal rather than replacing it. The appraisal carries the value, the photographs carry the identification.
- Keep a written inventory line per piece covering metal, karat, stone details, measurements, weight, purchase date and place, and the current appraised value with its date.
- Store one copy of everything outside the house, and re-shoot after any remount, resize or repair that changes the piece.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does an insurer actually need to settle a jewellery claim?
Insurers generally look for three things, and you should confirm the list with your own company because wording differs between policies. First, evidence the item existed and belonged to you. Second, evidence of what it was: metal, karat, stone sizes, measurements, hallmarks. Third, evidence of value, which usually means a written appraisal or a purchase receipt. The Insurance Bureau of Canada tells claimants to attach proofs of purchase, receipts, police reports, owner's manuals and warranties, and to review your files for photos of stolen items. Photographs do the middle job better than words can. A sentence saying "gold ring with a blue stone" is worth far less to an adjuster than eight clear pictures showing the hallmark, the setting, the clasp, and a ruler beside the piece.
Do photographs replace an appraisal?
No, and it helps to understand why each one exists. An appraisal is a written opinion of value from a qualified appraiser, and that is the document your insurer uses to set a coverage amount and to calculate a payout. Photographs record what the item looked like and what marks it carried. The two work together. An appraisal without pictures forces an adjuster to imagine the piece from a written description. Pictures without an appraisal give a clear view of an item with no agreed value attached. Photograph the appraisal document itself as well, including the appraiser's name, credentials and the date, because appraised values go stale as metal and stone prices move. We go through what appraisal paperwork has to contain in our guide to jewellery appraisals for insurance.
What shots should I take of each piece?
Eight frames per piece covers most situations. One overall shot on a plain neutral background so the whole item reads clearly. One with a ruler or a Canadian coin beside the piece so anyone can judge scale later. One macro shot of the hallmark or karat stamp inside the band or on the clasp tag. One of any inscription or engraving. One of distinguishing marks: a worn spot, an old repair seam, a chipped stone, a replaced prong. One of the clasp or closure. One of the setting from the side, which shows the profile and gallery that a top-down photo hides. One of the back, because the underside of a setting carries more identifying detail than the front. Add frames for a second hallmark or a second stone. Extra pictures cost you nothing.
What phone settings give the best results?
Use daylight from a window and turn the flash off. Flash fires straight down the lens axis, which blows out metal into a white patch and hides the hallmark you were trying to record. Window light on an overcast day is soft and even, and it shows shape. Switch on macro mode for hallmark shots, or tap the screen to lock focus on the stamp and hold it there. Steady the phone on a tripod or a stack of books, because hand shake at close range destroys fine detail. Shoot at the phone's full resolution rather than a reduced setting. Move the phone closer instead of using digital zoom, which crops pixels and produces a soft, blocky picture. Check each shot at full size before you move on.
What background should I use?
Plain grey or plain white, matte rather than glossy. A sheet of printer paper works. Grey card from an art shop works better, because white can trick the phone's exposure into darkening the whole frame. Avoid patterned fabric, wood grain and coloured surfaces: they pull the camera's white balance around and make gold look pink or green, which matters when someone is later trying to tell rose gold from yellow. Avoid black velvet, which the jewellery trade loves for display and which makes phone cameras overexpose the metal. Keep the background clean and empty so nothing competes with the piece. One exception: put the ruler or coin in frame deliberately for the scale shot, then take it out for the rest.
How do I photograph the paperwork?
Lay each document flat in even light and photograph it square on, filling the frame, with no shadow from your own head or arm. Take one shot of the whole page and a second close shot of the report number, the appraised value, the date and the signature. Those small details are what an adjuster reads, and they are the first thing to go blurry in a quick snapshot. Do this for the grading report, the appraisal, and the original receipt. For diamonds, the report number matters most of all, because GIA lets you look up a report by number on its Report Check service and confirm the stone's recorded characteristics. Keep the originals somewhere safe and treat the photographs as the working copy you can send by email.
Why should I store the copies off-site?
Because the event that destroys your jewellery usually destroys everything sitting near it. A house fire that melts a jewellery box also burns the folder of appraisals in the desk drawer six metres away. A break-in that takes the jewellery may take the laptop holding the only photographs. Store one set outside the home: cloud storage, an email to yourself, a copy with a family member in another city, or a safety deposit box. The Insurance Bureau of Canada advises keeping records in a safe place, such as a safety deposit box or a secure online option. Two copies in two buildings is the standard worth aiming for, and it takes one upload to achieve. Check once a year that the off-site copy still opens and still matches what you own.
When do I need to re-photograph a piece?
After any work that changes the item. A remount moves the stone into a different setting, so every existing photograph now shows something that no longer exists. Resizing changes the inside of the shank and can move or remove a hallmark. A replaced prong, a new clasp, a re-tipped setting, a rhodium replate on white gold, a soldered-together pair of rings: each one alters the record. Re-shoot the affected frames and date the new set. Also update the written line in your inventory, because the description and the pictures have to agree. Our repair guide covers what changes on the bench during common repair jobs, and most of those jobs are worth a fresh photo afterwards. Keep the old set rather than deleting it, filed under the date, because it records the condition the piece was in before the work happened.
Does this documentation help with an estate as well as a claim?
It helps more, in our experience, because an estate has no adjuster to arbitrate and families argue from memory. A documented inventory with photographs turns "the emerald ring Mum always wore" into a specific item with a stone measurement, a hallmark, a date and a value. That removes the two arguments that hurt most: disagreement about which piece is being discussed, and disagreement about what it was worth. Photograph everything while the owner is alive and able to say where each piece came from, because provenance dies with the person who remembers it. Write that origin story into the inventory line. Our guide to appraising jewellery for estate, probate or family division covers how valuations differ from insurance ones, which surprises most families the first time they see two numbers for the same ring.
Sources
- Insurance Bureau of Canada: How to file a home insurance claim
- Insurance Bureau of Canada: How to file a claim
- GIA: Natural Diamond Grading Reports and Services Details
- Royal Canadian Mounted Police: Richmond RCMP reminds public to record serial numbers to aid in theft recovery
- Canadian Police Information Centre: Search property
Data sourced September 2026. Insurance requirements differ between policies and companies, so confirm what your own insurer needs before you rely on any of this. Bench practices described here are our own.
Visit Vanhess
We are a family-run studio at 2929 Barnet Highway in Coquitlam, and we designed and made most of what sits in our cases. Bring a piece in and we will weigh it, read the hallmark out loud, check the girdle under the microscope for a laser inscription, and give you the numbers to write into your inventory. There is no charge for that, and it takes about ten minutes per piece. Come by, or call us at +1 (604) 653-6449.
