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Tino Hammid Memorial Gemmological Scholarship Program

Tino Hammid

In every industry there are iconic individuals, giants who stand head and shoulders above the rest. In the field of jewellery and gemstone photography, there is little debate that Tino Hammid was a visionary, a rare talent who possessed the unique ability to capture the true beauty of gemstones. For almost forty years his photography adorned the pages of every important publication around the world, showcasing his unrivalled ability to inject realism into his work.

Tino started his career as a staff gem photographer at the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) in Santa Monica, California (1980 to 1982). In 1983 he started his freelance career in gem and jewellery photography and began a 25-year association with David Federman providing photographs for Modern Jeweler’s monthly Gem Profile column. During this period they jointly won two Jesse H. Neal awards from the Association of Business Publishers. In 1987 he acquired Christie’s Auction house as a client and photographed more than a hundred of their jewellery sales catalogues.

In 2012, Tino joined forces with gemmologist Geoffrey M. Dominy and provided the exquisite photographs for The Handbook of Gemmology, the first digitized gemmological textbook released in 2013.

Sadly, Tino passed away in 2015 after a two-year battle with cancer, however through the Handbook of Gemmology and now the World Gem Foundation courses, his legacy and monumental contribution to our industry will live on for future generations to appreciate and admire.

In 2024, the World Gem Foundation will award five scholarships allowing deserving students to take the World Gem Foundation theoretical 'Career Gemmology' course.

The deadline for submitting your application is December 31st, 2023. All applications will be judged by Tino's wife Petra and his oldest daughter Evelyn with the mandate to select those five candidates who, in their opinion, best epitomize the spirit of Tino.

Scholarship Application Form Download

Scholarship Application

Download the application in PDF format by clicking on the icon to the left.