Techniques to improve watches photography
Professional watch photographer, Mauricio Figueroa shares his tips and tricks with you to immediately improve the image quality of the watch. He wrote a similar but more general article for photojournalists, but the advice is also useful for people who like to take pictures.
watch stylish photography
Some information about me.
My interest in watch photography arose after falling below a few watch forums years ago. My main goal is to learn mechanical watches, but as a side benefit, I also started to learn photography. That was ten years ago. Since then, I have learned a lot, taken a lot of photos, seen my work on the cover of a magazine, carried out official promotion for the watch brand, and taken a lot of photos for many brands. Now it’s time to share some tips on taking pictures of your watch.
Watch Photography
I was an enthusiastic amateur photographer at the time, and I continued to experiment in the next few years. I am always critical of the results and strive to improve. About 5 years later, I made 3 calendars with a clock, my photos were published in different (see) magazines, and I can proudly display my first photo on the cover. Many people ask me: “What is the best camera?”, “What lens do you use?” The real question is: How to get a good picture of the watch? It takes much more time than “good” cameras and lenses. Here are ten simple tips to take your photo watch to the next level.
Tripod
Be sure to use a tripod to avoid a camera shake. The closer you are to the subject to be photographed, the more obvious the action will be. Every slight movement will adversely affect the sharpness of the photo. Because not all tripods are the same. Hard, and sometimes even upside-down mirrors can cause strong vibrations, making it almost impossible to take clear pictures. In this case, it is recommended to use the camera's "mup" (mirror lock) function. After enabling this function, first, turn on the mirror, and then the camera will take a picture after a short delay (or after pressing the button for the second time), which can prevent the vibration of the mirror from affecting your photos. In addition, please make sure that all buttons, knobs, and clips are tightened and can be removed, preferably using a remote control or built-in timer. If your B-pillar has hooks, add some weight to increase stability.
Professional Tripod
For beginners and professionals, tripod legs are relatively simple things, limited to three simple factors: weight, carrying capacity, and price.
Accessories
Before you start shooting, you should consider whether you want to find one or more accessories (props) to get the overall picture. It can be anything, depending on the type of clock and the result to be created. Everything in the kitchen, such as sea salt or coffee beans. Old and slightly worn materials or raw materials are also very suitable as backgrounds and/or surfaces. Imagine a wooden table (garden) or a piece of stone (slate). Borrow (some) diving equipment to take pictures of the diving watch. The choice of background is limited, it is your own creativity. Sometimes, you just want to keep things neat and simple by choosing a minimalist background. In this case, please avoid other elements and/or shadows in the image.
A Liv Watches Stylish picture.
I used my bag from my MacBook Pro like background.
Clean Dust
Before taking a picture, try to clean the watch thoroughly (a lot!). Use dry lint-free or microfiber cloth. The small edges and hard-to-reach areas of the shell can be easily cleaned with a cotton swab dipped in a small amount of acetone or alcohol. You can buy them at a local pharmacy for a few dollars. Don't put it on the belt! Contact with these liquids may discolor or damage the skin. The case and bracelet are easy to brush, and experience shows that no matter how spotless, it is almost impossible to obtain a 100% clean and dust-free watch. It can always be deleted digitally. It may take a long time if it is not cleaned properly, but it is better to be safe than sorry.
Raw Macro Watch Photography
No count how nicely you smooth a watch, you can not keep away from eliminating dirt inside the virtual process.
Clock Hands
This can be seen in almost all commercial timepieces: the clock hand is about 10 and 10 minutes, and the secondhand is about 33 seconds. As a result, the dial is optically symmetric, and the distance between the hands is evenly divided into three parts. If your watch has a hacking mechanism, you can stop it by pulling out the crown and setting the hour and minute hands when the second hand is in the correct position. Use photo editing programs. If there is no such software or no skill, you can set the time to a few minutes. Then, all you have to do is wait and take a photo at the right time. Do not use slow shutter speeds to avoid jitter. When using a chronograph, the extra hands usually point up or in the direction, allowing you to see the dial better.
Giorgio Piola product watch photography
It is believed that the position of the hands is ten minutes later than the first ten hands, forming the brand name that usually appears on the upper half of the dial.
Composition
Now it's time to put the watch and accessories together. In order to achieve frame filling and beautiful design, it is important to carefully consider the use of accessories and the way the watch is installed. Sometimes your composition will become perfect immediately, in most cases it will take at least half an hour. As with the position of the hand, there are some guidelines here. It seems that the strap with the buckle looks best when worn on the wrist. This simulates the actual use of the watch. In this position, the leather strap is more or less of a natural shape. Metal bracelets usually need help, especially if it is made with small links. C-The clip on the watch holder is good to help. Compared with the plastic version, the biggest advantage is that the size can be easily adjusted. If you are taking pictures with an opened leather strap, it is not recommended to lift the bracelet above your body. Both sides. To do this, simply place something under the case to lower the end of the bracelet, or turn the watch to the side, and then bend the end of the bracelet back slightly. Deployed locked. They can be easily molded by hand (partly patiently) with partially or fully opened clasps. Place the watch so that the text on the dial is clear and easy to read. The text can be rotated up to 90 degrees. With the new rotation, the text will be mirrored. This makes normal reading unnatural. A few sentences or lines of text are usually engraved on the back of the box. In this case, you can use the medium as the center so that all text is easy to read. Time or the most interesting details stand out.
Wortelboer watches stylish photography
For this photo, I sourced Sunglasses to fill the frame
Iso (sensitivity)
Professional watch photographer, Mauricio Figueroa shares his tips and tricks with you to immediately improve the image quality of the watch. He wrote a similar but more general article for photojournalists, but the advice is also useful for people who like to take pictures.
Natural Light
Most clocks are easy to shoot under ambient light. Cloudy weather is very suitable for this operation. Ideally, if there are not too many obstacles nearby, the watch will emit light evenly outdoors. Internally, this is a different story. A simple but very useful technique is to use light objects to reflect light. The simple key is to use white objects (neutral white or light gray is best to avoid color casts). I often use this technique to quickly obtain a picture of almost any object to keep it in its best condition. For this, I actually use whatever I have on hand, such as envelopes, empty glove boxes, or the aluminum back of the Ipad screen. Just place the clock on the table near the window, put a beam of light to bounce an object to the dark side of the clock, and observe what happens. Basically, you will create a second light source. By moving the reflector toward and away from the clock, you can adjust the intensity of the fill light as if you were painting with light. Conversely, you can also remove the light from dark objects and create shadows.
Studio Light
The next step is to take pictures of the watch with artificial light. According to the number of available lights or flashlights, you can set it as needed. However, it is important to use ambient light. Consider one or more blocks (a studio flash with a softbox, or a skylight with a lamp or flash. Here are also other light-absorbing or reflective materials to increase or exclude light. Glass. You should try the following position: Use them for a Light source) My experience tells me to experiment with the placement of the light source to get the best results. Personally, I started to look at photos of a tent with lights and two cheap desk lamps from a famous Swedish furniture store. At some point, they were replaced by cheap handheld camera flashes because I wanted to control the lights more. Experiments with different power settings and lighting can vary infinitely. The harder you work, the better.
Macro
If you want to take a macro photo of the watch, you can use the same guidelines (except for accessories) to make a striking photo. Now, it’s more important to see exactly what you want to include in the photo and what you don’t want. I do not want to. If some details at the edges of the photo fit only part of the picture, try to exclude them completely or make them more clearly visible in the picture. Always make sure that the most important details to be captured are fully visible. Do not place the photos too close for reassembly later. Zoom out or move the camera back to get more field of view. Because in macro photography, when you get close to the subject, you sometimes find that there is less light there. Therefore, use additional light sources and/or one or more reflections to direct the available light to the desired location. Personally, I like to use a longer macro lens (100/105 mm) on a full-frame body. For expensive experiments, consider using a set of extension rings. They can be used in the most common cameras and are inexpensive. The use of one or spacer rings can ensure that the minimum focus distance of the lens is shortened. Your standard lens may suddenly focus closer and enlarge the subject.
Macro Photography.
You don’t need expensive equipment to learn the basics of clock photography. The upper part consists of a standard camera and a 90 mm lens.
Practice practice practice
Taking pictures of a watch takes a long time and requires a lot of practice and energy. After all of them are added, you can easily exercise within an hour when you really need the camera and find the right lighting settings. Are you surprised that you took 50 or more photos before it looked good? After this step, start fine-tuning, which also applies to fine details in the photo. By highlighting certain parts, you can gradually get closer to the final result to be digitally optimized. Over time, you will find yourself wanting to discover the limitations and take them to new heights. This is where things like superimposing focus (sharpness) and combining multiple photos into one come into play.
