super fun! one of my silliest tips for taking your own great “engagement ring” images made it into the *PicsArtStudio app. you can see my tip and others on the PicsArtStudio blog, too: “Tx for ur tips @SnapKnot community @phillipblume http://t.co/434YlrYj2x.”

If you’re not one of the over 50 million people already using this app (*the #1 most popular photo app for android), why not try it out?

engaged? while you’re here, check out the rest of our always helpful (sometime almost humorous) tips for getting great amateur shots of your ring. wait.. that sounds wrong. that is, “for getting great shots of your ring, even as an amateur photographer!” (or give us a call, and we’ll do it for you.) 😉 without further ado..

1. Forget the flash. You know the dinky flash onboard your camera? Yeah, that just isn’t gonna cut it. Direct light will wash out the true shape and color of your rock. Instead, use an off-camera flash (pro) or even a flashlight (semi-pro?) to illuminate it from the side. Can you say 3D bling!? Tip: Keep the rest of the room dim-ish.
2. Add texture. Got a collection of wine corks? How about that bag of M&M’s you gave up for the big day? Bam! Perfect backdrop for you ring! You don’t want random background lights or objects upstaging your billion-karat stone of love. Bury that beauty in a bed of dull, uniform items and let it shine! Wine corks say “romance;” M&M’s say “fun.” Get creative! (Just don’t celebrate your killer photo with a careless fistful of diamond-tainted candy.)
3. Longer is better. Relax, groom-to-be. Just because you’re using a long lens doesn’t mean you’re compensating for anything. Using a zoom lens, though, will compress your image. That means tack-sharp engagement ring, nice out-of-focus background. (Pros call that “bokeh” — also your free Japanese vocab lesson for the day.) This means you need to back that thing up. So move away from the ring, and use a tripod or sturdy table for your camera.
4. Know your ring like the back of your hand. Actually, who really knows the back of her hand? No one. And who wants to? If you’re going to wear the ring, don’t draw undue attention to the pores in your skin. Obscure the back of your hand in shadow by letting some window light shine across the tips of your gently arched fingers then toward your arm. Shoot across the fingers, not straight down on them.
5. NO karate chops. Unless you’re going for the “undead” bride look, don’t be a stiff. Let your hand and your wrist relax while propping your elbow on a table. Or even better, rest your hand on a round object — an apple, or your finace’s knee. Just be sure he’s wearing pants. (I mean as opposed to shorts, ladies. Get your minds out of the gutter!)
6. Silly Putty. I’ve just given away the pros’ most guarded trick. It seems like as soon as you’ve found the most creative location for your ring shot, the laws of physics foil your plans! Round things roll. But not with a little Silly Putty stuck to them! Voila! Your rings are now balancing on one another.. on a ball.. on a horse. The possibilities are endless.