Victory at Gem-A Photographer of the Year 2022

I won first place in the Gem-A Photographer of the Year 2022 competition, organised by the Gemmological Association of Great Britain.

The competition rewards the best photographs of gems, with a strong focus on inclusions and internal characteristics of stones.

Winning photograph: Inclusion scene in a Sri Lankan sapphire

Field of view: 4 mm.

This image shows negative cavities containing black hexagonal graphite inclusions and diaspore needles within the host sapphire. A fluid phase and numerous gas bubbles are also visible. The effect was obtained by heating the sapphire above 31.1 °C to reach the supercritical point of CO₂, followed by cooling that revealed the bubbles. In metamorphic corundum, the presence of CO₂ fluid inclusions is a diagnostic indicator of untreated (unheated) sapphire.

The photograph was taken using photomicrography with a monocular microscope and a 28 MP C-mount camera, via focus stacking of 48 images. Lighting was provided by four optical fibres, one of which was blue to enhance colour. Only standard adjustments of colour balance, contrast and sharpness were applied.

This image was published on the cover of Gem-A’s Gems & Jewellery magazine (Winter 2022 issue).