How To Photograph a Watch

You don’t have to be a professional photographer with expensive camera equipment to take an exceptional photo of your watch. In fact, with a few adjustments, it is possible to take a great photo with an ordinary camera, or even a smartphone. Given the amount of pictures people send us of their watches every day, we have compiled a list of tips and tricks for taking high-quality, professional-looking photos of your watch.

 

Adjust Your Camera Settings

To avoid blurry photos, we recommend using your camera’s digital macro setting. It allows you to take up-close pictures while focusing on the subject.

 

Get Up Close

It is best to take the photo very close to the watch in order to clearly show the details of the face.

 

Use Natural Lighting

When photographing your watch, it’s always best to turn your flash off. Using natural light eliminates glare and ensures that the colors are evenly distributed.

Here are some old customer photos of watches that are good examples:

By comparing these next photos with the ones above, you can see how much of a difference camera setting, distance and lighting makes. The following are examples of what to avoid when photographing your watch:

 

Set the Scene

You can easily make a set for photographing your watch with things that you have around the house. In this example, the photographer created a set using a large shadowbox, a white bucket and some towels. It can also be helpful to use a stand for your camera instead of holding it with your hands, in order to make sure the photos don’t come out blurry.

 

Include the Model Number

If you are photographing your watch with the intent to sell it, including the model number along with the photo ensures that you will get an accurate quote for the watch. The watch model number is usually located on the back side of the watch, unless it is a Rolex (see below). Here is an example for the location of a model number located on the back of a Breguet:

On a Rolex, the model number is typically on the watch itself, or on the paperwork that came with it.

If the model number is on the watch itself, it will be located between the lugs attached to your watch band at the 12 o’clock side. Do not confuse this with the 6 o’clock side of the watch where the serial number may be located. To find the model number, you need to remove the watch band, which is completely safe.

Before removing your watch band, we recommend checking your watch’s paperwork for the model number. It will be in the section labeled “Style Number.”