When you look at that Diamond Plot you may think to yourself "
I can understand that!" But the true test comes when you then look at that real Diamond under a microscope.
Surprise! It looks nothing like the plot.
Looking at a line drawing of a Diamond with Inclusions, and looking at a real Diamond with Inclusions are total opposites.
A Plot is one dimensional and looks straight down into the Diamond. Looking into a 3-D Diamond is difficult to judge and navigate. It will even take you a while just to get used to the microscope! (Remember Science Class in 6th grade?)
What do most people see?
Most people will only see about half of the Lines, Dots and Marks listed on any given Plot. Squint your eyes and look at the Plot again here - Diamond Plot. That's pretty much what an untrained eye will see. It takes the Inclusions down to about 6 or 7 marks. (6 or 7 with this particular Diamond which is rated a VS2 Clarity - Different Diamonds and Clarities will be more or less!)
Focal Length?
And it even gets more fun because even though you are looking at the Diamond under a microscope... What focal length are you using?
Are you focused at the Top of the Diamond, Middle of the Diamond or Bottom of the Diamond? Moving the lens up and down will bring different parts of the Diamond into focus. That's when you will see some Inclusions appear and others disappear as you move around the Diamond. (Even more so in larger Carat Weights!)
A Side View
Plus, some Inclusions are almost impossible to see unless you view the Diamond from a Side-View.
A Top-Down view can hide flaws because of the Facets and blinding Sparkle, but a Side-View brings it all into focus. It makes Inclusions easier to spot. Point is, you have to look at the Diamond from all Views!
Rotate the Diamond, adjust the focal length and turn it over to really see all the Imperfections and Flaws a Diamond may have. (Or just look at the Plot!) Plus a mark that looks like a skinny, little line from the Top-View could actually be a deep, dark, wide Inclusion when viewed from the side! You must scope it well!
What's the really fun part of viewing Diamond Plots? Read on...
