# How To Photograph A Watch (Or At Least How I Did It)



## fi20100 (Aug 27, 2011)

I was asked in this thread to explain the equipment and setup that was used for these two photos (larger versions in the original thread), so I thought it would be best to post it in this sub-forum.

















Iâ€™m sort of a photography buff. Photography has been a hobby for many years. I will tell you what I used, but Iâ€™ll also explain how you could do this on a budget with stuff you already have.

My primary camera that I used is a Canon EOS 5D (Classic). For these shots I used a 100mm macro lens, which lets me get really close. To get enough depth of field (focus plane) I shot it at the aperture f/22. I used ISO 100 to get as much detail as possible in the shot. Using a tripod is essential. For lighting I used a single studio strobe in a 66x66cm soft box that was mounted on a boom stand straight above the table. This gave me a very soft light from above. I then used flags, black, white and fill cards to control highlights and shadows, but also what the highly reflective metal would reflect.

A flag is an object (could be a piece of black paper or fabric) that blocks the light from hitting either your camera (which could cause flare) or what you are photographing. A black card is used for controlling shadows and reflections in highly reflective objects, such as a shiny metal or glass. A white or fill card can be used for adding highlight in highly reflective objects or just bouncing some fill light where needed. You could also use a set of small mirrors if you want more specular reflections.

I used a matte black paper as the background because I wanted it quite dark.

If you want to do this on a budget (or with stuff you already have), itâ€™s easy. You can pretty much use any camera for this, but itâ€™s great if it is decent at taking close-ups. Itâ€™s also great if you can control the exposure manually. Having a tripod is crucial for several reasons:

1) You want to lock down the composition so that you can take several photos in the same position where you only do tiny changes to the lighting (moving around the flags and fill cards).

2) In case you donâ€™t have a of camera flash or studio strobe, the shutter speed will be pretty long and impossible to handhold. Remember, you want to keep the ISO as low as possible for less noise and more detail.

The first rule is that the onboard flash should not be used for a photograph like this. Your onboard flash will be very harsh and flat, and it will be almost impossible to control the lighting. If you donâ€™t have a flash that you can use off camera, you can always use a reading lamp or flashlight or any other quite strong lamp. You donâ€™t want the light to hit the watch directly, since that would make the light very harsh. Instead you want to create a larger light source that will give you soft, beautiful light. This can be done by letting the light pass through a larger white paper or fabric, or even by bouncing the light via a white paper. When we talk about a large light source, itâ€™s relative to the size of what you are photographing and how far the light source is from the subject. If Iâ€™ve got a 1 x 1 meter soft box, it will still appear small if I use it from very far away. Think about the sun... itâ€™s huge, but here on earth itâ€™s a very small and harsh light source on a clear day. However, on an overcast day the light is very soft because the light is being scattered through the clouds making them the light source.

Now, when lighting a watch, one thing you have to take extra care with is what is being reflected in the glass. Depending on the angle you are photographing at, you have to be careful so that the glass doesnâ€™t have a direct reflection from the light. This will give you flare or a very hazy glass. If you remember that reflections come from a 90-degree angle, you can easily figure out what the glass will reflect. For instance, if you photograph from a 45-degree angle, the glass will pick up reflections from what is on the other side of the watch on a 45-degree angle. By putting a black card there, the glass will only reflect black, giving you a super clear view through the glass.

By controlling the light with black and white cards, youâ€™ll be able to get the photograph you want. This is a time consuming process, and tiny changes can yield big changes in the final photograph. Take your time and have fun.

-Stefan


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## martinzx (Aug 29, 2010)

Hi Stefan,

Thanks for taking the time to share, your pictures are excellent, I will have an experiment or two with the B/W cards, when I find time ..............

Cheers Martin


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## jasonm (Nov 22, 2003)

Great post Stefan, thanks for taking the time to do that :good:


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## Retronaut (Jun 14, 2010)

Great write up - candidate for a thread sticky somewhere?


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## Deco (Feb 15, 2011)

thanks Stefan, first a great watch, now a great 'how to' thread!


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## lewjamben (Dec 4, 2007)

Fantastic post and well written too! Thank you.


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## fi20100 (Aug 27, 2011)

Thanks guys  I'll see if I can take some pictures of the setup, so that it would make it a little bit easier to understand. Concerning the text, if you've got any questions, just shoot 

-Stefan


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## DMP (Jun 6, 2008)

Excellent advice and thanks for posting! :thumbsup:


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## Pip-Pip (Sep 28, 2011)

Great post, some very handy tips.

Thanks for sharing.

Cheers


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## Callum (Nov 1, 2011)

Thanks for sharing these tips with us. What is the specification of the light you are using? Is it a 5000-6000k daylight bulb?


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## fi20100 (Aug 27, 2011)

Callum said:


> Thanks for sharing these tips with us. What is the specification of the light you are using? Is it a 5000-6000k daylight bulb?


I used a studio strobe, with a soft box attached. But as long as you've got control over the white balance, any light would work.

I actually did another variation of the photo where I used a second strobe to give the watch more dimension. The effect is quite subtle, but if you're interested you can se the resulting photo here.


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## amh82 (Dec 5, 2011)

Excellent write up, I really should get myself a macro. Or at least some extension tubes for my 50mm!!


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## fi20100 (Aug 27, 2011)

amh82 said:


> Excellent write up, I really should get myself a macro. Or at least some extension tubes for my 50mm!!


Extension tubes is a great way to go before you invest in a real macro lens. You'll also get an idea of how much close-up and macro photography you will actually do. And extension tubes works great for 50mm and longer. My recommendation is to get a third party extension tube set, like for instance the Kenko set (picture below). They make them for different camera brands. I recommend third party since there is absolute no optics in it just air, and the camera companies have very high prices on them (as far as I'm concerned, Kenko air is as good as Canon air)  With the tubes you do lose the ability to focus to infinity, so you can only use them for close-up work 



Link to the photo on flickr.


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## amh82 (Dec 5, 2011)

fi20100 said:


> Callum said:
> 
> 
> > Thanks for sharing these tips with us. What is the specification of the light you are using? Is it a 5000-6000k daylight bulb?
> ...


Just wanted to say, I looked at your images on 500px and I am blown away. Totally!! Would love to see your setups!

I've been into photography for a little while, yet still loads to learn, but strobist is quite new to me and I don't always get quite the results I'm after. The depth to the shot of your Tissot is amazing.

The krups coffee machine I like a lot also!! Great stuff!


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## chocko (Nov 9, 2008)

Just been on your link, there are some fantastic photos.


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## fi20100 (Aug 27, 2011)

Thank you guys 

I tried to re-create the setup for the photo of the watch that I have on 500px.com (so this is a two light setup), but I left in only the most important black card so it wouldn't get too crowded. Hope it helps, and sorry it took so long.


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## amh82 (Dec 5, 2011)

Cheers Stefan, I need to experiement more with white & black card.

Do you find studio lighting easier to deal with than speedlights?


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## fi20100 (Aug 27, 2011)

At the moment I've got three studio strobes and three speedlites. The speedlites are great for when you need to be mobile, but the modeling lights on the studio strobes are really helpful for speeding up the process. For instance, when I was photographing the watch, I knew almost exactly how the light was being reflected in the glass even before I had taken the first picture.

Another thing is that studio strobes actually are less expensive than speedlites, and there is tons of light modifiers (soft boxes, etc) you can get for them.

However, if you want to be creative, and you have a way of triggering the flash off camera, you could even put it into a white paper bag, and get a make-shift soft box (I've done that: 
 ) 

Studio strobes are really overkill for most people. But if you're really interested in photography, they are super


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## jkb89 (Jan 6, 2012)

Excellent post, thanks very much.


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## Mr Whimpy (Jan 14, 2012)

again fantastic post and great info on how to do the job properly


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## fernface (Mar 9, 2011)

Excellent information, just joined the forum, so dead lucky. Now perhaps i can set about some pics of my Seiko (compass), i think it is called, that i cant get on with! Thanks for the info.


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## jpjsavage (Jul 9, 2011)

Thanks for the advice here. I found it really helpful.


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## drmarkf (Jan 2, 2010)

Yes, this is a really helpful collection of good advice: many thanks


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## gametime (Feb 9, 2012)

thanks for sharing. a lot of great tips


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## gametime (Feb 9, 2012)

edit: sorry double post


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