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Tahitian pearls - Vendor vs. IRL pictures

bsomlo|1417044434|3790933 said:
Wow, another example of better in real life!
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Thanks! Would you believe that my first feeling was disappointment because they didn't look super colourful? It was the darn black box effect I tell you! And to make matters worse, I pulled them out onto my dark desk...and it wasn't until I got them on my neck and snapped some shots that they woke up! I'm loving them now! There are a few blue pearls on the strand that are just stunning, and the little pistachio one on the right side is a beaut. I've been having fun looking at them all.

It's too bad about your multis not calling to you much. But I have to say that your exotic red/green strand is fantastic!
 
My own lightbox:

_24614.jpg
 
cmd2014, Y-U-M-M-Y :love: :love: :love: They are so colorful and clean, beautiful shaped drops. I love the half color rings on the pearls and so plump. What size are we looking at? Your make-shit light box works!
 
Frost me -- your typo makes me laugh! I can't believe the filters allowed it!

Those drops are "drop" dead gorgeous! And that make-shift lightbox sure does the trick!
 
Cmd: I love those half-half pearls! So interesting and colorful!

Bsomlo: I didn't know about exotics! I LOVE the purple!
 
Yikes, thanks bsomio - I requested it be removed!
 
Cmd, gorgeous strand. Pretty colours and nice plump shapes.
 
Frost Me|1417099645|3791217 said:
Yikes, thanks bsomio - I requested it be removed!
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Oh no! I think it's hilarious though....because truly my make-shift light box consists of the box lid and a sheer window blind...so the accidental description is actually fairly accurate! :lol: :lol: :lol:

Thanks everyone! I love this strand! I vowed to myself that I was going to stop buying things given that I truly went a bit wild with the PP Tahitian sale, then the Connoisseur sale, and then the 20% off spookysale (there's a theme in there somewhere....), but then I saw them and could not resist!
 
They are beautiful, cmd! Enjoy in good health!
 
This thread is extremely helpful. I've been studying the pictures and think I have a much better sense of how to translate vendor pics.
 
I think this thread is very helpful and it's funny but I quite prefer most of the 'home grown' photos to the 'glamour shots' . cmd your strand looks gorgeous in your photo from home! Really pretty colours! :appl:
 
This is an immensely helpful thread. Thank you so much for starting it. I purchased my first strand of Tahitians (harvest strand) on Black Friday and when they arrived I was most disappointed. I had been lurking and ogling the harvest strands on their blog and here for months, and when I found out they would have them on BF, I was very excited to snag one. Yet, when they arrived, they all looked the same there was none of the variation in color that is in the photo, and instead of a beautifully mis-matched set of harvest pearls, they look like a bland poorly matched set of painted plastic beads (bit harsh, maybe, but I was quite underwhelmed).

here's the beautiful strand photo from the site, and a quick snap of them with my own camera.

PP's Beauty Shot
screen_shot_2014-11-28_at_12.png

My "in the box" shot
pp-0704_2.jpg

My "whitebox" shot
pp-0705.jpg

pp-0706.jpg

My "neck" shot (indoor with hotshot flash)
pp-0708.jpg

pp-0709.jpg




My true favorite pearls for comparison IRL neck shots:
BF lavender keishi pearls (keeping!)
pp-0710.jpg

pp-0711_0.jpg

Favorite Fireballs
pp-0712.jpg

pp-0713.jpg

Faceted White FW Pearls (I call them my Wilma Flinstones)
pp-0715.jpg

pp-0714.jpg
 
strawbearlyjamms -- Thank you for sharing your story and pictures with us!

Lavender keshi are so endearing (all nacre, not too expensive, lovely colors and luster) and your "Wilma Flinstones" look just great on you!

Can you tell us about the fireballs?! I've wanted a fireball necklace for a while now. Are those from PP -- because they look very different from the one posted on the webite:

http://www.pearlparadise.com/p-4485-120-160-mm-metallic-white-freshwater-fireball-pearl-necklace.aspx

Regarding the Tahitians, sigh, Tahitians are so tricky for me!

The shot on the black velvet is certainly underwhelming -- I wish the boxes came with white velvet! Black is a terribly unflattering background for pearls.

But frankly, I think your neck shots and shots in the white box are much prettier than the PP glamour shot! The pearls have a nice variety of colors and shapes and are really lovely on your neck.

I'd put them on a white background (I use Kleenex) and glance at them now and then for a few days. See if something (good) happens with your feelings regarding them. If not, back they go! But maybe you'll see their charm and start to love them. They're so different from the other pieces and I think beautiful on you. But what you think is what matters!

Please keep us posted.
 
My fireballs are my pride and joy of my pearls.

Purchased on cyber monday in 2011 (can't believe its been that long!)

Here is the description from my receipt:

FBN090-102Fire
11.4-13.0 mm Exotic Multicolor "Fireball" Freshwater Pearl Necklace
Select Clasp : 14K WG Ball Polished

They were listed at $490 but my grand total shows $392.

They look much better than in that photo, I can try to take a couple more when I try the Tahitians in better light.

What more do you want to know?
 
Um, what do I want to know? Where I can buy them -- but I can't! They're from years ago and that price, OMG! I bet they're your pride and joy! They are absolutely lovely. Wear them in health.
 
Oh, thank you! I have individual fireball pendants that I really love. But I've been wanting a metallic, fireball strand with pleasing-shaped fireballs. One day...
 
Strawbearlyjamms,

It's my issue with glamour shots too. With the direct light shots that people have posted here, I would snap many, many strands up in a heartbeat. But I've learned that the vendor photo will almost never tell you anything about what you are actually buying (with Tahitians especially), and it has led to disappointment for me a number of times. The Rikitea strands on the other thread are a great example. From the real life shots I would have bought all of the strands if I could, but the glamour shots all looked almost nothing like the strands IRL (and IMO weren't as nice as IRL).

I'm sorry you aren't happy with your harvest strand. For what it's worth, I think it looks nice on you, and the black box wipes all colour from Tahitians, so it's almost best not to look at them on that surface. They look much nicer on the neck. But it's hard to move past what you were expecting when you're disappointed by what arrives.
 
Strawberry, I always ask PP to send me photos (non-glamour shots) of pieces I am considering for purchase. They have always been accommodating of my request. If it were me, I would ask to view other harvest strands (if available) to see if there is a replacement option. Your pearls are lovely, and I even like the tahitians, but I completely understand your expectation vs your real life experience.
 
Strawberry, Just curious, did you send your harvest strand back?
 
I've struggled with vendor shots versus real life as well, in colored pearls such as Tahitians and multi-color metallics. Difficult for vendors and customers, as pearls are so tricky to photograph. I think your new harvest strand looks lovely on you, but understand the difficulty in disappointed expectations. Many of us missed out on the harvest strands; if it just isn't for you, return it and it will find another happy home :) Your other pearls are lovely on you!
 
Strawbearlyjamms - Sorry to hear of your disappointment with your first Tahitian strand. The best harvest strands have an interesting mix of pearls such that the individual pearls hold your interest and are fascinating. Too many circled drop shape pearls, and then it simply looks like a poorly matched strand. If you don't love this strand, for sure send it back, and begin your Tahitian collection with a nicely matched strand in a color that you love.

With Tahitians, I find that I depend a lot on the vendor description to check the photo and my expectations of the strand. A lot of well matched Tahitians will look medium grey in some lighting. This is probably one reason that I like strands described as having a dark body color, or a dark green body color. These may look dark in some lighting, and are less likely to look plain grey.
 
I like your tahitian strand. Please correct me if I'm wrong but your pictures look like they are taken with flourescent lighting which I find really sucks the colour out of Tahitians. You can also get another strand with intense colours and rounder drops (and perhaps some keshis, if your budget allows of course)) and restring them with your current harvest strand to make a harvest rope. Just an idea.
 
Strawbearlyjamms - Thanks fo rhsaring poictures of your various pearl strands - you have a diverse collection of strands which I like! What have you decided to do with the Tahitians? Sometmes they grow on you, especially in different light sources and with different outfits.
 
FYI all -- The my Tahitian Harvest Strand went back to PP. So I suspect they are up for grabs, if anyone is interested.

In the end, they just didn't do it for me. ;-/
 
strawbearlyjamms|1425337937|3840899 said:
FYI all -- The my Tahitian Harvest Strand went back to PP. So I suspect they are up for grabs, if anyone is interested.

In the end, they just didn't do it for me. ;-/
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That's fine, nothing wrong with that.

That's another reasons why I really trust PP, their return policy is amazing!

I hope you find things you do like!!
 
dmz|1410209394|3747199 said:
My light tent shot:
This is a fully closed light tent, with an opening for the camera lens. You can see the little "dot" reflected in the front of each pearl. This was taken using natural light, with the light tent beside floor to ceiling windows.
multi_box.jpg

Real Life
Outside on a foggy morning, with a grey wall on one side, and open sky on the other side:
multi_front.jpg

dmz, your Tahitian strand is TDF! Love how different colors come together and I think your pictures are much prettier than the vendor shot.
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Yingh - b e a u t I f u l !! That strand is drop dead gorgeous!! Lucky You !! Great photos too !!
 
I agree, Yingh, IMO it's the best multicolour ever.
 
yingh|1425911297|3844265 said:
dmz, your Tahitian strand is TDF! Love how different colors come together and I think your pictures are much prettier than the vendor shot.
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Thanks! My wife really enjoys them. More pictures from a previous post here: [URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/pp-tahitian-pearls-on-sale.204779/page-24#post-3745744#p3745744']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/pp-tahitian-pearls-on-sale.204779/page-24#post-3745744#p3745744[/URL]
 
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