Engagement Rings
Bringing Us a Photograph You Found Online
Almost everyone starts here β and a photograph carries less information than it appears to.
Written by the Mapple Gems workshop, Surat Β· Updated 1 October 2026
Short answer
Bring the photograph β it is the fastest way to communicate a look. But be aware that a top-down image contains almost no specification: it shows outline and setting style, and hides profile height, shank thickness, gallery architecture and true stone size. Say what you like about it rather than βthis oneβ, because that is what can actually be reproduced. And we will not copy another makerβs distinctive design outright β we will build the thing you like about it, properly specified.
Almost every ring conversation starts with a screenshot, and that is a perfectly good place to start. It is worth knowing what the picture does and does not carry across.
A top-down photograph β the angle almost every inspiration image uses β conceals precisely the four specifications that decide how a ring wears for the next twenty years. Looking straight down you can see the stone outline, the setting family, roughly how many accent stones there are, and the metal colour. What you cannot see, at all: PROFILE HEIGHT, which decides whether the ring catches on everything and is fixed permanently at casting; SHANK THICKNESS, which decides whether it survives to year twenty or bends by year eight; GALLERY ARCHITECTURE, which decides whether it can ever be cleaned properly; and TRUE STONE SIZE, because a macro lens makes every stone look enormous and the hand in frame is usually smaller than average. So two rings that look identical from above can be completely different objects β one at 1.4Β mm and one at 2Β mm, one sitting 5Β mm proud and one sitting 9Β mm. That is why we ask for a side view or a description rather than only the photograph, and why the useful sentence is not βmake thisβ but βI like the thin band and the way the stone sits lowβ.
What travels, and what does not
| The photo shows | The photo hides |
|---|---|
| Stone shape and outline | Profile height β fixed at casting |
| Setting family and prong count | Shank thickness in mm |
| Metal colour | Metal karat, and solid vs plated |
| Roughly how much pavΓ© | Gallery, and whether it is open |
| A sense of proportion | Actual stone millimetres |
The bottom-right cell causes the most disappointment. Product photography is shot close, at a flattering angle, often on a small hand β so the same stone in real life correctly looks smaller and calmer than the image that inspired it. Always convert to millimetres and do the paper-circle test before deciding.
Say what you like about it
This is the single most useful thing you can do, and it takes one sentence. βThis oneβ gives a workshop an image. βI like how thin the band is and that the stone sits lowβ gives it two specifications.
Useful things to name: the stone shape, whether you like it high or low, whether the band should be plain or set, whether the metal should be warm or white, and whether the overall impression should be delicate or substantial. Five short answers, and a designer can work.
It also helps enormously to send two or three images rather than one β what they have in common is usually the real brief, and it is frequently not what you would have named.
Where we draw the line, and why
We will build a ring that gives you the qualities you like. We will not produce a direct copy of another makerβs distinctive, recognisable design. That is partly a matter of respecting someone elseβs work, and partly practical: a copy made without the originalβs specifications is usually a worse object, because it reproduces the appearance and not the engineering.
What is entirely fine, and what most inspiration photos actually are: common design vocabulary. A solitaire, a three-stone, a hidden halo, a cathedral setting, a tapered pavΓ© band β these are the shared language of jewellery, not anyoneβs property, and nearly every βcan you make this?β is a request for one of them.
If a design genuinely is a signature piece, the honest advice is to buy it from the maker, and we will say so.
Two checks worth running on the photo first
- Reverse-image-search it. Inspiration images circulate endlessly, and the same photograph frequently appears on a dozen sites, most of which did not make the ring. It tells you who the original maker is β and whether the seller you found it on is a maker at all.
- Look for a side view of the same ring. If the source has one, it answers profile height and shank taper immediately, and it is worth more than five more top-down images.
What happens next
From a photograph plus a sentence, the process is ordinary: a quote, then a CAD render for approval. Treat that render as the real decision point, because it is the last one β profile height, shank thickness, prong placement and total width are all fixed at casting.
And ask for the side elevation with the height in millimetres, not only the top-down view. That is the request that closes the gap between the photograph you started with and the ring you receive β and it is exactly the information the original photograph never had.
Keep reading
Frequently asked questions
Can a jeweller make a ring from a photo?
Yes, and it is the fastest way to communicate a look β but a top-down photograph carries no specification. It hides profile height, shank thickness, gallery architecture and true stone size, so say what you like about the image rather than βthis oneβ.
Why does the ring I received look smaller than the photo?
Because product photography is shot close, at a flattering angle, often on a smaller-than-average hand β so a real ring correctly looks smaller and calmer than the image. Convert to millimetres and do the paper-circle test at the stated size before deciding.
Will you copy another brandβs ring exactly?
Not a distinctive, recognisable signature design β partly out of respect for another makerβs work, partly because a copy without the originalβs specifications reproduces the appearance and not the engineering. Common design vocabulary like solitaires and three-stones is nobodyβs property and is entirely fine.
What should I send along with the photo?
A sentence saying what you like about it, and ideally two or three images rather than one β what they have in common is usually the real brief. Then ask for the CAD side elevation with the height in millimetres, which is the information the original photograph never had.
Send the screenshots. All of them.
Two or three beat one, and what they share is usually the brief you did not know you had.
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