I love photographing beautiful watches, often sports watches or luxury timepieces and I’m very lucky to be able to do this full-time. I've already shot dozens of them including Rolex watches, Breitling, Omega, Longines and Tag Heuer watches. I do a good job at it but I also know that learning never stops!
But how do you photograph watches?
In this article I share my best watch photography tips (to date) and if you are interested to see more examples of my watch photography, head to my dedicated luxury watch photography gallery/portfolio.
Watch photography tips:
1 - Choose the right background materials / textures / colours
It is easy to focus excessively on the watch itself and forget the importance of background in photographs. The choice of background can completely change the final outcome. Spend time thinking about it and experimenting with various options. This could mean using a sheet of brushed aluminium to match a mostly metallic watch, or perhaps worn leather to contrast with the watch texture-wise or simply organic things such as coffee beans (often done and I’m not too sure why honestly), fallen autumn leaves, crushed concrete, etc… Colourful paper or fabric are great too as they can complement colours used in the watch.
2 - Inspect the watch carefully
Look carefully at all the details and the craftsmanship that make this watch what it is. Not just the front but also the back, the bracelet, the box etc…
This will help you pick the best bits to shoot and highlight the best features of a particular watch in your photographs.
3 - Set the time
I’m personally not too picky about this (some may frown) and not all watch photographers find this essential, however it is often said that setting the time to ten past ten or alternatively ten to two for a more balanced image. Here are two examples, one with the time set, the other without. I tend to think that I’d rather have a great image with random time than an average photo where all I thought about was set the “correct” time.
4 - Wipe and clean both the watch and the shoot area
This is perhaps the most important aspect of watch photography! Make sure you have a perfectly clean area to capture your timepiece, don’t assume it is clean, just give it a good wipe as dust is your worst enemy and it will find its way into your final images if you are not careful and prepared.
Secondly, clean the watch with a microfibre cloth that doesn’t leave fluff behind, don’t use your t-shirt! This will remove any fingermarks, fibres or dust specks.
Finally, wear latex gloves when handling the watch so as not to re-introduce dust or fingerprints.
It is useful to also carry a dust blower normally used for lenses and camera sensors. A quick blow on the watch between images will ensure it stays clean.
5 - Get yourself some C-Clips for watches
C-Clips are, as the name implies, C-shaped displays/stands for watches. They help me greatly when capturing watches making them appear as to float. As in this image for example. There are many types available, some better than others. I would advise against clear hard plastic ones, instead I use black rubber-type ones which are flexible and have a soft touch which guarantees not to scratch or damage the watch.
6 - Use a tripod
For sharp images you will want to ensure your ISO is set to 100 and ideally not higher. Because often you will need to shoot at a smaller aperture to increase the depth of field required to capture all details, this will require a slower shutter speed which can lead to camera shake and blur. Using a tripod allows for low ISO, small aperture and long shutter speeds. It is key in most instances. Of course some handheld shots are absolutely possible at times!
7 - Lighting for watch photography
Lighting can be as simple or complicated as you want it to be or as you can afford. The same goes for photography as a whole. I believe that what matters most is being resourceful and creative. Watches can be lit with a simple mobile phone, I should know as many of my images were lit simply with a mobile. Long exposure light painting is also a very effective technique which I often use (again, often using a mobile phone), such as in these two photos of a Longines watch.
8 - Lenses for watch photography
I tend to only use one lens for watch photography and it is the Sony FE 90mm f/2.8 G OSS Macro Lens which I previously reviewed on this blog specifically for macro nature photography.
This is my favourite lens and such a versatile one. It is excellent for macro photography of nature, excellent for portraits of people, car photography and in this case: watches.
Of course bear in mind that the closer you get in your watch photographs, the most it will highlight any dust, scratches or fingerprints but that doesn’t matter since you followed my advice and work in a perfectly sterile environment (cough cough).
9 - Camera settings for watch photography
Every photographer is different and my settings may not be the same as the nest photographer, we also probably use different cameras.
As a general rule I keep my ISO as low as possible to reduce any ISO noise, however good the camera is in dealing with it.
For aperture I tend to often stick to f5.6 (usually where a lens is at its sharpest) but can go down to f2.8 if I wish to create a more arty look with a more shallow depth of field or as high as f16 if I am super close and want full detail from foreground to background.
One super helpful tip is to set your camera on a tripod and use the self-timer. The reason for it is to avoid camera shake potentially caused when pressing the shutter button. Instead, set the timer to 2 or 5 seconds so the camera is perfectly still by the time it takes the shot. That will ensure sharp images. Alternatively use a remote shutter release.
10 - Post-processing / editing watch photos
This is once again key, it will make your photos really stand out. Shoot in RAW if you can (instead of JPEG) as it allows for much more flexibility in the editing as it retains more detail than a compressed file. I use Lightroom to batch edit and then make extra adjustments to individual files. I then inevitably import in Photoshop and use the spot healing tool (I prefer the Photoshop one to the Lightroom one) to remove any leftover dust specs. You’ll be surprised (and frustrated) at how impossible it is to fully get rid of dust however much you thought you did a good job cleaning.
I'm quite conservative with my post-processing on watch photos, I don't like to go over the top or try desperately to fix a bad photo, I just try my best to get it as right as possible in-camera first. A bit like preparing a dish in the kitchen, it's always better to get the seasoning right as you cook rather than try to add seasoning later, it's never the same!
11 - Practice
I say this often. Anything you do in life gets better with practice. So just shoot and shoot some more and your average photos will improve with time, dedication and perseverance.
I hope these tips will help you improve your watch photos!
If you’d like to learn more about photography, my book “How to take amazing photos” is out now in all good bookshops. In it I share simple techniques to elevate your photography, whether you like to shoot nature, street photography, light painting, landscapes, people… All subjects I have covered over the past 15 years.
Until next time,
Nico