The how to photograph watches thread

[cyberface]

I guess this one could be a useful sticky or wiki - mods, please decide.

Lots of us post pics of our watches on here. There's even a perpetual Wrist Shot thread. Many of the photos are simply dire - the usual excuse is 'poor equipment' but unless you've got a pre-3GS iPhone, that's BS Some of the photos are comically bad - taken clearly with a multi-megapixel decent digital camera, with the owner's patterned carpet in crisp, precise focus but the arm and watch blurred to hell Some aren't even recognisable as a watch. Many photos taken with the flash are all over the shop because watches tend to be shiny and the flash bounces back off the watch and blinds the CCD. And the slightest amount of shake or blur ruins fine detail, which is a shame when you're trying to show some particularly beautiful guilloche on the dial. Even if focus is manually sorted, some photos don't look anything like the watch in reality because the colours are all out of balance, and this can make what is an utterly stunning watch in real life look plain and dull in a photo.

I'm guilty of ALL of the above at some point (though never focused on my shoes, I've certainly had a freckle on my wrist in perfect focus but the dial guilloche (which I wanted to show) blurred enough to be useless.

Every photographer I've met whose photos I consider to be 'art' (good, in other words ) all say the same thing - it's not the camera, it's the subject / situation and the light. This is true - artistic photos often result from being in the right place at the right time, and any camera you have will have to do. But in the case of watch photography, we've got a defined desire for the photo (a clear, accurate image of the watch showing what it really looks like).

So - how do we do this guys? I was inspired for this thread by a reply from andy tims, whose photography is consistently superb. Oddly enough the other regular who I immediately think of when great photos are considered is andy_s, so that's two quality snappers called Andy. And I can't forget tertius, who is also one of the top dogs (his photos of his Zenith El Primero chronos are just sublime). No offence to the other regulars here who also take cracking photos, but these three are my favourites….

andy tims said:

NeMiSiS said:

I take it you have a decent camera and maybe light box, they are not your average BlackBerry shots, well done.

Cheers
The camera is a Nikon D90 (so pretty decent, but far from pro quality) No light box though, I just position the watches near some natural light - usually the kitchen window sill.

Please can everyone chip in with suggestions on how to take great watch shots. Focus (heh) on the type of camera being used. I have a D50 Nikon but can't achieve anything *like* the results Andy Tims does - his camera is better than mine but not by the proportion that his photos are better than mine.

Ideally I'd like this split into three classes - recommendations (from those who've had success) on how to get the best watch picture using:

• a smartphone camera (forget pre-3GS iPhones, the camera was beyond useless, but most modern phones can take acceptable photos done correctly)
• a typical point-and-shoot (e.g. Canon Ixus, that type of thing)
• a typical DSLR (an average one like my D50)

I'm assuming that anyone with an old SLR and film is an enthusiast and knows what they're doing. But most of us have cameraphones, most of us will have a digital point-and-shoot, and it appears that quite a few of us here have DSLRs. And many of those (like me, for example) are 'all the gear, no idea' and don't know how to use them properly.

Selfishly, I'd really appreciate tips on what settings to use with my D50 so I can just bung it on its tripod, arrange the watch in the position I want, adjust the focus manually so it's perfect, and take the photo. However I'm so inept that every time I try this, the camera makes some decisions for me… and I'm not skilled enough to use FULLY manual mode. So for DSLR muppets like me - which variables at a *minimum* do I need to adjust to get good watch pictures? I understand focus and exposure length. Do I need to know about aperture… and if so, what do I do? And how can I set my D50 to allow me to manually do focus and exposure (and whatever else is required for watches) but everything else is handled by the camera? It's a lot of questions, sorry if it's asking too much.

For point-and-shoot, you're going to be dependent on the camera's autofocus in most cases. The quality of the light will therefore have the biggest impact so tips on where best to actually *take* photos, and with the light from which direction, would be useful. I've found that using the flash always ruins a watch picture so manually turning off the flash with a point-and-shoot is essential - this often then needs a tripod to avoid shake. Some point-and-shoots have adjustment for exposure, aperture, colour balance (digital) etc. so tips on what can help here would be good.

For smartphones, there are fewer parameters to get really good photos. Bright natural light is best because the phone can take a short exposure time and this minimises shake. Any application that allows you to take a photo either timed after a delay, or by pressing a hardware button (and not pressing a touchscreen like the standard iPhone camera app) is valuable since you can then clamp the smartphone somewhere solid, turn off the flash and use a longer exposure without hand shake ruining it.


But I'd really like to take quality photos with my DSLR. If everyone chips in with top tips (and examples where necessary) then this thread could be a gold-mine of information for the entire forum, and even better - improve the average quality of posted photos. And that'll be superb, because there are people here with some utterly beautiful watches - and a real broad range of tastes - and sometimes I'm left thinking 'oooh - that looks like it'd be gorgeous but I can't tell from the photo'.

I'm about to start Project Lator and that will involve lots of photos, some of some exquisite detail. If I take the photos with my current skills and knowledge, the thread will be disappointing. I'd love to get *great* pictures of this.

And a fancy setup isn't needed. Yes, the SLR makes manual focus a bit easier and more wieldy. But I bet one of the Andys or tertius with my iPhone 4 would take a better picture of my watches than me with my DSLR. It's in the skill and knowing how to use the light, then knowing how to use the camera.


Basically, I know some of what I don't know - and that's more than half way there (there are, of course, the unknown unknowns, but I don't want to go there because I'll have that Rumsfeld explanation in my head and be laughing all afternoon). Industry and trade secrets aside, what are the best things to do? Especially if one has a DSLR?

[Dominic H]

"Paging Andy Tims!"

I think Andy is using a dedicated Nikon 60mm Macro lens on his D90. I will be following this closely, as I would love to improve my images....

[Muska]

I'll come back with more and a few links later, but for starters I wouldn't use photobucket, it degrades the images quality.

FlickR is also free (you can pay a small amount for unlimited space each month) and also has an excellent online community.

Also there is no need for full size files on the web (unless you really want to view the full thing) 500 or 700 pixels on the long edge is fine as is 96dpi (dots per inch) and will not appear any different from 300dpi unless you try and print from it.

Edited by Muska on Tuesday 28th September 14:33

[judas]

A polarising filter is often useful for controlling/reducing reflections.

HTH

[ThatPhilBrettGuy]

Extension tubes are a cheap option to buying a dedicated macro lens.

[ThatPhilBrettGuy]

Macro lens. Can focus close to the front of the lens. Costs £200+

Extension tube. Put it in between normal lens and camera body to make it focus close again. Disadvantage is you'll probably have no auto focus and have to control aperture manually. Costs <£10 though.....

[tertius]

I use a 40D, a 28mm F1.8 macro lens (longer would be better), and sometimes extension tubes (though in that case with a 50mm F1.8), a tripod and a matte light shade "box". I frequently use a mirror as a "prop"

All my pics pretty much are here.

[ehasler]

The most important factor is light. Ideally you want a soft diffused light, rather than something harsh like the built in flash. Near a window is good, or use a piece of white paper to bounce light back.

If it's too dark, you'll risk the shutter speed being too low causing blur but too much light will cause harsh reflections off shiny parts of the watch so you may need to experiment.

Here's one I just shot in a hotel room with just a reading lamp and my iPhone. I also have a pro DSLR sitting just feet away, but no way to upload any shots till I'm back home next week. But hopefully you'll agree that decent shots are possible with basic equipment.



An SLR will give you more control, and access to better quality lenses including macro. The two key aspects here are shutter speed which has to be fast enough to make the image sharp, and aperture which controls how much of the image is in focus - ideally the watch is sharp with a nice creamy out of focus background. Both are directly linked, and there are plenty of tutorials on the net that describe this in more detail than I can on my phone :-)

[Stuart]

Some great advice here, from people who I personally respect well for their ability to photograph watches. Happy to sticky it.

My advice? Everything here, plus two things;

1) No Richard Keys forearms please.

2) Watch in focus please, not keyboard.

[andy tims]

Dominic H said:

"Paging Andy Tims!"

I think Andy is using a dedicated Nikon 60mm Macro lens on his D90. I will be following this closely, as I would love to improve my images....

Yes I do use a Nikon 60mm AF-D Macro lens, with my D90 (and previously the D40) but I've seen some amazing results with decent quality point & squirt camera on macro settings. That said, here are my tips for what they worth based mainly on using a DSLR.

Preparing the watch – Assuming it’s not filthy (in which case a gentle scrub with soap & an old tooth brush may be needed initially) clean the watch with a glasses cleaning cloth or similar & if you have one, use a photographers squeeze-bulb blower to get the residual dust off perhaps repeatedly if you’re taking several shoots. With macro, the watch that looked clean to the naked eye, can look filthy close up.
If possible mount the watch on a stand that allows you to tilt & rotate giving different angles. The odd straight on “full frontal” is OK, but they are a bit boring.
I usually shoot watches with the time showing 10 past 10 as this usually frames the manufacturers logo and does not obscure the date window, but this “rule” may need bending depending on dial layout. If I’m shooting from the crown side of the watch, I generally don’t want to see the crown pulled out, so the watch will be running & I try to pay attention to the position of the second hand, so it’s not obscuring any of the logo’s, the date window or the hour or minute hand. If the watch is running, I may take 3 or 4 shots on a single setting & then select the one with the most pleasing second hand position.

Mount the camera on a tripod & shoot using either an Infra-red remote, cable release or the timer to reduce camera shake at the point of firing. If your lens has any sort of image stabilisation / vibration control then disable this as on the tripod it has no “shake” to work against.
It's not necessary, but If you're going to buy a macro lens go for a 105mm or similar as my 60mm can be a bit limiting, especially if I also wanted to shoot insects etc. A 105mm lens gives you a greater working distance between the front of the lens to the subject at the closest focusing distance helping to avoid spooking those insects and reducing the chance of you blocking the light on the subject.
If you don’t want to buy, or make a lightbox use indirect natural light. I used to shoot outdoors, but apart from the odd looks I got from my neighbours, the biggest issue was dealing with unwanted reflections especially on watches with flat crystal & no anti-reflective coatings. I now favour the cill of a large window that gets very little direct sunlight, but creative use of reflection can be successful.
My camera settings are generally as follows (sorry for the use of some Nikon terminology for those using other makes)
I set the camera to aperture priority, letting the camera select the shutter speed. The ISO setting I choose depends on how much light is available. If possible I’ll go for ISO 200, but 250 or 320 are often necessary.
If your eyesight is good enough to focus manually, I’d do that. Mine’s not, so I use AF. On the D90 I select AF-S (single servo autofocus) as the focussing mode and the single point autofocus area mode. Then, by looking through the view finder I can alter the single focussing point to any of the 11 the D90 has, which (especially if I’m shooting the watch at an angle) may not be the centre of the picture.
Shooting in RAW format gives you the most post production options, but I’m using JPEG. However, to allow the picture to be cropped and stay sharp, use the largest / best quality file size the camera allows.
I use spot, or centre weighted exposure metering since I’m not interested in the backgrounds.

Once all of the above are taken care of the main variable (and how you’ll take most creative control) is the aperture setting. Apart from controlling the amount of light hitting the sensor, the aperture setting controls the depth of field. Higher aperture settings (lower f numbers) give more light and a shallower depth of field. A very shallow depth of field is fine if the watch is either perpendicular to the camera (which is good if you want to get some really tight crops of parts of the dial) or you deliberately want just part to the watch in focus. With a macro lens, very shallow DoF will be achieved from f/2 to about f/7. Generally, with the watch at a slight angle & when I want the whole watch in focus I’ll use f/9 to f/12 and if I want a deeper DoF, I might go as far as f/36
One thing to remember about using a remote, or the timer is that unwanted extra light will get into the camera through the view finder, when you don’t have your eye to it, so block the view finder off, with either a proprietary accessory, a small bit of card, or your hand held close.

The main thing with a digital camera is to experiment with different settings especially aperture & ISO and see which combination gives the best results.

I’m not much into to post production and have only recently invested in Photoshop elements, so can’t give many tips on using software. However, what I have learned includes; When cropping, try not to leave the complete watch dead centre of the shot and if sharpening, don’t over-do it. Zoom in to check you haven’t over-pixelated the shot.

Here are a few pics to help explain the use of aperture settings to control depth of field

Use of shallow DoF

In this shot I wanted just the crown detail in sharp focus, so I used f/4.2

it could have been sharper

Here I just wanted part of the bezel in focus so I used f/8


Use of deeper DoF

Despite the angle, pretty well the whole watch head is in focus here using f/36


and here I wanted all the detail sharp, but had the watch more perpendicular and used f/22


I hope that’s of some help. I’m really no photography expert. Whilst my results are not bad, they have improved significantly in the last few months, having read my camera's manual (and the book Nikon D90 for Dummies) and tried lots of different settings I now know with practice, what most likely to get decent pictures. However, to put my efforts into perspective, just look at this guy’s work.

http://www.watchwallpapers.com/

Edited by andy tims on Tuesday 28th September 23:34

[andy_s]

Brilliant stuff, good initiative CF and thanks for all the input. Is there anything anyone does to the pics after taking to enhance them or is it all 'raw'?

[Miguel Alvarez]

Wow. Impressed.

[LordGrover]

Digital zoom = never. Better off taking photo and using software later to zoom in.

No idea on the rest.

[cyberface]

Thanks *ever* so much - this has given me already a load of information which will make my pictures orders of magnitude better.

Haven't been on the forum much this week because of 18 hour days on an insane timescale project, and though both my Lator with Landeron 189 and rose gold Chronographe Suisse (turned out to be rubbish, wasn't expecting to be lucky twice with eBay frankly) have arrived, I haven't been able to do anything other than pull the casebacks off and check the size and whether the CS was 'heavy solid 18ct rose gold' as described by the seller (it isn't - the caseback is incredibly thin 18ct rose gold, the lugs are hollow and the watch weighs less than the 9ct plated Lator - hardly a 'heavy gold' watch… looks like I may have to get one custom made).

However this doesn't mean Project Lator is dead and I won't be taking the photos that I wanted to learn about here… because the CS contains a Landeron 48 - with a screwed balance. I've only seen screwed balances on top-end watches (proper top-end) and the Landeron 189 in the Lator doesn't have one.

All my documentation says that most parts are interchangeable between Landeron chrono movements… so I'm going to try to fit the screwed balance to the Landeron 189. It may not make the movement keep better time, but it'll look much nicer

So, now I'm armed with basic knowledge of what the aperture f-numbers actually mean and examples of what they do, I reckon close-ish photos with great focus and control of focus (depth of field) are within my grasp, which is essential when photographing a movement!!!

Keep it coming and thanks for making it sticky - no doubt there are some trade secrets that will be kept secret by those in the business who want an edge, and I have no problem with that - but already I feel that I can do better with my DSLR even without buying a dedicated macro lens… This sort of information helps us all, especially in the Wrist Shot perpetual threads

[andy tims]

I can't take good wrist shots to save my life & could use some specific tips on that if anyone has any please?

[cyberface]

andy_s said:

Brilliant stuff, good initiative CF and thanks for all the input. Is there anything anyone does to the pics after taking to enhance them or is it all 'raw'?

Given my Apple tendencies I've got a basic install of iPhoto - which has amongst its very basic 'easy' features a levels adjuster. This shows the RGB intensity across the spectrum and I use it extensively to get away with crap light conditions - if you've taken a photo in bad light then you may have all the colours bunched up towards the darker end of the range - iPhoto lets you stretch it out to make the most of a bad pic.

However the best trick is to not take a bad photo in the first place. There's only so much you can achieve with software - if you don't have the data to begin with (resolution here applies to both range of intensities of colours as well as spatial resolution) you can't magic it into existence. Interpolation is obvious to most eyes, and with finely detailed objects like watches, sometimes pretty useless.

[rottie102]

andy tims said:

I can't take good wrist shots to save my life & could use some specific tips on that if anyone has any please?

What's wrong with them?

[andy tims]

^^^ Well this is about the best I've managed



See what I mean - crap. I can't hold the camera steady & pose, or hold the watch in front of the camera on a tripod.

Edited by andy tims on Monday 4th October 16:31

[rottie102]

I like a challenge That's what I've managed in last 30mins:

and a different crop from the same picture:


Canon 450D, Sigma 50mm f1.4 at f13 and RayFlash.

The main problem for me was focusing using quite long non macro lens while "posing" with my other hand. With somebody else wearing the watch, the wrist shot would be much better. Also the reflection in left bottom corner would be gone if I would be able to twist my hand a bit more

Edited by rottie102 on Saturday 2nd October 23:17

[rottie102]

NeMiSiS said:

CameraPhones rule....

Camera In Phones suck though

If that's all you have, the good way of getting a not blurry shot is to use a car holder, attach it to the table or sth like that with a suction cup, then set up a shutter delay and bob's your uncle. Also don't be afraid of using an artificial light, it's much easier to control something like a desk lamp then the sun . This way there will be less glare and every part of watch will be well visible.