How to Photograph Your Collection for Insurance

Why a Photograph Is Worth More Than a Description

If you have ever tried to describe a piece of Art Deco pottery to someone over the phone, you will know that words run out quickly. A jug with orange trees painted on it could be worth £30 or £300, and no claims handler is going to take your word for which. Photographs do the work that adjectives cannot. They show scale, colour, condition and the small maker's marks that separate a common piece from a rare one.

When you insure a collection — whether it is forty pieces of studio pottery or four hundred postcards — you are really insuring your ability to prove what you owned, and what state it was in. Good photographs taken calmly on a Sunday afternoon are far more useful than a panicked set taken after a burglary or a burst pipe.

Build a Tiny Studio From Things You Already Own

You do not need a light tent or a costly camera. A smartphone from the last few years, a window and a plain surface will do it.

• Work near a north-facing window, or on an overcast day. Even, soft light is the goal; direct sunshine creates harsh shadows and blown-out highlights on glass and glazed ceramics.
• Avoid flash entirely. It flattens texture, creates hot spots and makes metal look like plastic.
• Use a plain background — a sheet of white or grey foam board, a clean pillowcase, or a roll of lining paper. Neutral grey flatters silver, gold and coloured glass better than pure white, which can confuse a camera's exposure.
• Steady the camera. A cheap mini tripod, or a stack of books with the phone propped against them, will keep edges sharp and let you use a slower shutter speed.
• Turn on grid lines and tap to focus on the item itself, not the background.

The Four Shots Every Piece Needs

Aim for consistency. Every item in your collection should get the same treatment, so that if you ever have to hand the file to an insurer, it reads like a catalogue rather than a jumble.

• The full view, straight on, filling most of the frame. No clutter, no fingers.
• A three-quarter angle showing depth and profile.
• The base or reverse, where maker's marks, hallmarks and backstamps usually live.
• A scale shot — a ruler, a coin or a banknote beside the piece. This settles arguments about size instantly and helps if the measurements in your notes are ever questioned.

For jewellery, add a shot of the clasp, the hallmark and any stones, using a small magnifier if you have one. For textiles and rugs, photograph the whole piece, a corner, and the reverse.

Photograph the Flaws — Deliberately

It feels counterintuitive, but damage photographs protect you. If a vase has a hairline crack, a chip to the rim or an old restoration, record it clearly now. Otherwise an insurer may later argue that the damage happened while the item was in their client's care, and your claim can be reduced or refused. A clear, well-lit close-up of an existing fault removes that argument before it starts.

Do the same with marks and signatures. Hallmarks on silver and gold, impressed factory marks on ceramics, pencil signatures on prints, stamped dates on furniture — get close, keep the camera parallel to the surface, and check the image is sharp before you move on. These are the details that establish authenticity and value.

Don't Forget the Paperwork

Photographs prove you owned something. Receipts, valuations and certificates prove what it was worth. Photograph those too, and photograph them well.

• Auction and dealer receipts, including the date and the price paid.
• Written valuations from a qualified valuer, with the date and the valuer's details visible.
• Certificates of authenticity, provenance letters, and any documentation of previous restoration.
• Old family photographs showing the item in situ, which can help establish long ownership.

Name, Store and Back Up Your Files

A folder of two thousand images called IMG_4471 will not help anyone. Rename each file with the maker, the item and the date — for example, "ArtDeco-vase-1920s-front.jpg". Group photographs by room or cabinet, or by category if your collection is stored together, and keep a simple written inventory alongside them with measurements, purchase dates and prices.

Store the whole record in at least two places: an external hard drive at home and a cloud account, or a second drive kept somewhere else. Paper copies of the inventory and the most important valuations in a fireproof box are still a sensible belt-and-braces measure.

Keep the Record Alive

An insurance file is not a one-off task. Add new acquisitions as they arrive, re-photograph anything you have had restored, and review the whole thing once a year when your policy comes up for renewal. Values in the antiques and vintage market move, and a collection photographed thoroughly in 2019 may need a fresh look today.

Set aside an afternoon, put the kettle on, and work through one shelf at a time. It is far less tedious than it sounds — and it is the difference between a claim settled in a fortnight and a claim argued over for months.