# Watch Photography Tips?



## paulie485

Based on what I see in here, I know there are a lot of really fantastic photographers on the forum. I would like to see a thread of commons sense tips on how to produce good images of watches. I'm an average snapshot photographer with a good quality consumer point-and-shoot camera with macro features. I find it really hard to get decent shots that have sufficient detail, aren't too dim or too harsh, etc. Finally found the sticky threads, which need studying. Thanks.


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## curiousMan

Count me in - especially I'd like to know how to avoid reflections, except shooting from angle


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## 124Spider

I'm no expert, but some things that I've found to help are:

You first should decide whether you want a real shallow depth of field, or a deep depth of field, and set your aperture accordingly.

On a wrist shot, you need to have a fast enough shutter speed to freeze it, while still having enough light to show it. The sun is too harsh; try a bright, overcast day. As a last resort, you can crank up the ISO to allow a fast enough shutter speed.

On a non-wrist shot, use a tripod, to allow you to use native ISO and a slow shutter speed.

Soft light is the key, and enough of it.


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## StufflerMike

Post moved.


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## jose-CostaRica

hello paulie485, may I know what camera you have? that could be helpful if someone else have the same camera, well there are lots of tricks you can do to avoid reflections on the crystal of the watch, for example if you have a fluorescent desktop lamp you can "filter" the light trough a thin white shirt or small blanket which will soften the light therefore the reflections will be softer also but that will not eliminate reflections due to the nature of the crystal... so if you really want to get rid of reflections I recommend you to get a Circular Polarized Filter, that will reduce significantly reflections. but let´s start by knowing your camera, I have a point-and-shoot also which allows to attach extension tubes in order to use filters and some other cool stuff ...


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## paulie485

jose-CostaRica said:


> hello paulie485, may I know what camera you have? that could be helpful if someone else have the same camera, well there are lots of tricks you can do to avoid reflections on the crystal of the watch, for example if you have a fluorescent desktop lamp you can "filter" the light trough a thin white shirt or small blanket which will soften the light therefore the reflections will be softer also but that will not eliminate reflections due to the nature of the crystal... so if you really want to get rid of reflections I recommend you to get a Circular Polarized Filter, that will reduce significantly reflections. but let´s start by knowing your camera, I have a point-and-shoot also which allows to attach extension tubes in order to use filters and some other cool stuff ...


Hi, Jose,

I have a Panasonic Lumix with 14 megapixels. It is the waterproof shockproof version. I don't think there are any polarizing filters that fit it, but maybe I am wrong. It does have quite a few different settings to work with. In think one of the big factors will be getting used to taking advantage of ambient light and not relying on flash. Thanks for any tips you can give. I also need to study the sticky threads. 

Cheers, Paulie


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## DragonDan

Hi, there are other similar threads in this photo section, although I can provide some simple tips. First: focus is paramount. This is helped by stability of camera. A tripod is great, although a bag of pinto beans works well too. Use of the built-in timer or a shutter release keeps you from bumping the camera while tripping the shutter - even mirror lock-up for DSLR cameras. Second: small aperture (large f/stops) to keep depth of field usable (This only applies if you are in manual mode). Generally speaking, f/stops between f/11 - f/22 work well (I normally shoot at f-11 to f/16). The idea is that the smaller the aperture (larger f/stop number) the more depth of field, which keeps more of the watch in focus. The trade-off is that small apertures let in less light, so you need longer shutter speeds.
Third: composition. Make it interesting to look at, keep distracting things out of the frame, have a clear subject point.

OR, if you're using an automatic mode - put it in macro mode, get close enough to organize a good composition, have plenty of diffracted/ diffused light, set the self-timer and let it do its thing.

As for reflections, those are tricky to handle (I'm still working on it myself). Try having enough light to give you proper color reproduction, and have some black construction paper that you can hold in various positions to keep direct light off of shiny surfaces. A CP filter will work, although these have limitations and are probably not used with a point-n-shoot. CP filters work well on glass/ crystal so you can see the dial nicely, although they won't help with blown-out highlights on a shiny case. 

Most importantly: have fun and keep at it! Post some experiments you've set up and we can offer some specific tips.
~D


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## curiousMan

DragonDan said:


> As for reflections, those are tricky to handle (I'm still working on it myself). Try having enough light to give you proper color reproduction, and have some black construction paper that you can hold in various positions to keep direct light off of shiny surfaces. A CP filter will work, although these have limitations and are probably not used with a point-n-shoot. CP filters work well on glass/ crystal so you can see the dial nicely, although they won't help with blown-out highlights on a shiny case.
> 
> Most importantly: have fun and keep at it! Post some experiments you've set up and we can offer some specific tips.
> ~D


would it be OK to hold CP filter in front of the point&shoot camera?


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## jose-CostaRica

curious1234 said:


> would it be OK to hold CP filter in front of the point&shoot camera?


YES it is ok! actually there are brackets that do that, they old the piece of polarized glass in front of the lens but for DSLR cameras only (cameras that chance lenses), I like to be graphic so here you have an example from the internet:









just remember that PL Filters have 2 grades of "polarization" into the glass... this means that one half of the glass has stronger level so it will saturate colors more than the other (in landscape photography this can be used to give deepness to clouds in the sky or to saturate and make more blue the sky), for instance a "circular" filter is obviously a round piece of glass which you can rotate as you like in order to "apply" that higher portion of polarization to your scene... oh boy I now I talk to much but I´m just trying to be as helpful as possible. So the objective of this is that if you hold a PL filter in front of your lens just make sure that the portion which is covering the lens is the one with that higher level of polarization...

and here is a good example of a PL filter in action, the picture at the left was taken with polarization, you can see that reflections have been eliminated, the same applies to a watch:


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## jose-CostaRica

paulie485 said:


> Hi, Jose,
> 
> I have a Panasonic Lumix with 14 megapixels. It is the waterproof shockproof version. I don't think there are any polarizing filters that fit it, but maybe I am wrong. It does have quite a few different settings to work with. In think one of the big factors will be getting used to taking advantage of ambient light and not relying on flash. Thanks for any tips you can give. I also need to study the sticky threads.
> 
> Cheers, Paulie


Paulie that is a sweet camera!  , DragonDan said it wright! you can use a mirror to reflect the flash to a wall or ceiling... but that will probably cast an undesired shadow also, specially if you are very close to the watch using macro. If your camera has the option to use it in full MANUAL mode, take advantage of that, you can also use semi-manual modes like Aperture Priority (Av), but basically what you should try is activating MACRO and sit the camera in a book or some other object if you don't have a tripod, also use the self timer, compose the image, half-press the shutter button so the camera can focus properly and then fully press it and leave the self timer do the rest. To avoid reflections as much as possible... well my friend play with angles.


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## curiousMan

wonderful - THANK YOU VERY MUCH!


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## yk1michael

You say it's a Lumix point and shoot so I assume it's a S8. Maybe you know this already but remember you have to activate the Inteligent Resolution mode unless you are shooting in 1A. At the bottom of this page www.mkdigitaldirect.com there's instructions for a basic indoor set-up that you could gerry-rig without spending a lot of money. My understanding is the S8 gets good indoor noise suppresion results so you should be able to get some good shots. Also I've also found that the best shots arn't the planned ones. Understand your camera''s focal length, take a lot of shots, take the time to go through them with basic photo-editing and you should get a lot of shots you'll keep.

I always find my biggest mistake is not cleaning the watch properly before I take the photo! I wind up with perfect shots of dust, grime and fingerprints!


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## Chromejob

I don't think it's been mentioned yet, but a "shroud" around your camera will help eliminate distracting reflections. Me, I take my pics at and angle and find one of the black screens from my speakers work well to block a reflection. I haven't gotten so clever as to fix a stand or holder for the screen, so I set the timer on the camera (always using a Pedco tabletop/outdoor folding tripod, or a full size one) and holding the screen. Takes practice, but the results are unmistakable.


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## zephyrnoid

DragonDan said:


> Generally speaking, f/stops between f/11 - f/22 work well (I normally shoot at f-11 to f/16). The idea is that the smaller the aperture (larger f/stop number) the more depth of field, which keeps more of the watch in focus. The trade-off is that small apertures let in less light, so you need longer shutter speeds.


More depth of field can be really helpful for certain shots but, the trade off in apertures smaller than two stops down from full aperture (the sharpness sweet-spot) is that diffraction will result in progressively less sharp image. This generally results in our having to perform careful compositions and camera angles to reach a compromise between smaller apertures . I generally try not to shoot at apertures smaller than f8 for this reason. Obviously, view camera would be the ideal.

With respect to reflections. yes. they are the biggest challenge and much of the advice already posted here is good but i've used some unorthodox methods over the past 5 years that have been very satisfactory, one is to use a combination of directional diffused light as from a tent or softbox coupled with strategically aimed specular lights from LED flashlights. I used to do this with small ellipsoidals but now LOVE my LED lights as i can actually hand hold them for the supplementary exposures.
Here are some resent, unretouched examples. When i'm finished using photoshop they should jump off the screen.


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## DragonDan

Nice! Since the op was asking for tips, I felt it best to set up a procedure that would result in some good photos right of the bat. No need to get into circles of confusion Just yet, plenty of time for that as they progress. Nothing wrong with the 'f8 and be there' attitude, there are hundreds of ways to get a nice shot!
-D


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## Chromejob

Once you find sweet spots for lighting, ASA/ISO, etc., a lower f-stop can bring the watch out. Here's an example. The vintage sunglasses and UK coin are right next to the watch, and ordinarily (on AUTO) would be in focus without the short depth of field.










There are several other mistakes here you can probably pick out. Feel free to ask if you don't see them ... the critique is a good learning tool. This was from a series of shots to specifically explore my pro-am camera's manual modes. 

If the camera allows setting this and then adjusting shutter speed, exposure, etc. then you can take a number of pics with slight adjustments then examine the results on a computer. (Boy, I never thought I'd say that, playing in a darkroom in 1975!)

One tip is to have those little 1"x3" Post-Its nearby. Put one in each shot with the settings jotted down on it ... so you know what settings "worked." (You get this with Photoshop and a camera that records all settings in the image EXIF data, but not everyone has these tools. Also ... the Post-it reminds you what you're looking for.


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## 00Photo

Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice.

No Substitute for practice.

Try things. Experiment. Have fun.

I find I don't even need my DSLR to take great shots anymore. I usually just use my iphone now. Thanks to camera and post processing apps you can do alot with the iphone camera.

99.9% of the shots in my flickr account were taken with my iphone.

Flickr: 00photo's Photostream

Did I mention have fun?


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## paulie485

00Photo said:


> Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice.
> 
> No Substitute for practice.
> 
> Try things. Experiment. Have fun.
> 
> I find I don't even need my DSLR to take great shots anymore. I usually just use my iphone now. Thanks to camera and post processing apps you can do alot with the iphone camera.
> 
> 99.9% of the shots in my flickr account were taken with my iphone.
> 
> Flickr: 00photo's Photostream
> 
> Did I mention have fun?


Amazingly nice iPhone pics. They should give us all hope. How don you adapt dslr techniques to iPhone?

Paul


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## shikha

Thanks for the tips you are sharing with us and your tips are really useful for me thanks 
if you want to get some gift ideas than try this  paintings from photos it will be help you.:-!


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## GuySie

I enjoyed this post by ASRSPR, as it also goes into the thought processes and decisions he makes along the way:
https://www.watchuseek.com/f109/guide-photographing-watches-anatomy-one-image-488756.html


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## martinellard

Hey there, I am a pro photographer but product shots are not usually my thing, so when my new watch (Pan90 homage) arrived I decided to "have a go" at some small product lighting. 

I've posted a set up shot below, it's pretty straight forward. 2 speedlites, 4 bounce cards and a large black card that I'm shooting through to eliminate reflections on the glass. in fact the black card for this shot was one of the most crucial parts, OK so you can photoshop some reflections but if it's across a dial or logo you're just making things hard for yourself, and when i'm working i try very hard to keep the post production down to a minimum.

GEAR: 
Canon 5D mkII
Canon 50mm f1.2
Canon speedlites - 550ex and 580ex mkII
triggered with pocket wizards.

my usual work's at www. grafichouse.co.uk


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## moky

martinellard, just curious about the way you positioned your flashes in the final pic, are they pointing up bouncing light upwards, or are they laying flat horizontally?

btw, that strap looks great too! would you mind sharing the link of the site where you got that from? strap looks to read PAW MARKER?


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## Chromejob

GuySie said:


> I enjoyed this post by ASRSPR, as it also goes into the thought processes and decisions he makes along the way:
> https://www.watchuseek.com/f109/guide-photographing-watches-anatomy-one-image-488756.html


BRILLIANT, thanks for referring to that thread. Superb advice and step-by-step explanation.


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