Watch photography with a smart phone - advice?

jaspers · Nov 14, 2019

I like to take photos of my watches, and I want to get better at it. However, I do not own a standalone camera, and don't want to own one either. I have a pretty good camera on my iPhone X, which I can grab out of my pocket immediately when the light or background is just right—try doing that with a camera that's buried in your backpack somewhere.

Given this (arguably significant) constraint: how can I make the best possible pictures of my watches, using only my iPhone? What mistakes have I been making so far (some examples from my IG below)? How could I improve? All pointers very welcome. Thanks!

Deafboy · Nov 14, 2019

From a technical standpoint the pictures are good (sharpness, exposure, lighting, etc.). The artistic aspect is a very personal therefore no "mistake" can be done. My 2-cents. Can't say I'm thrilled by the yellow cast in the first picture, nor the green cast in the last.

steveb73 · Nov 14, 2019

Take the photos in RAW format and edit them in an app. Shooting in RAW gives you much better control of the finished image and allows you to tweak everything.

JimInOz · Nov 14, 2019

jaspers
...... What mistakes have I been making so far (some examples from my IG below)? How could I improve? All pointers very welcome. Thanks!

Stop taking photos of your shoes.

It's the WIS equivalent to duck face bimbos taking bathroom mirror selfies.

jaspers · Nov 14, 2019

Deafboy
From a technical standpoint the pictures are good (sharpness, exposure, lighting, etc.). The artistic aspect is a very personal therefore no "mistake" can be done. My 2-cents. Can't say I'm thrilled by the yellow cast in the first picture, nor the green cast in the last.

Thanks, real helpful! The casting is because of the filter I used—what throws you off?

jaspers · Nov 14, 2019

steveb73
Take the photos in RAW format and edit them in an app. Shooting in RAW gives you much better control of the finished image and allows you to tweak everything.

Thanks a bunch! Shooting RAW photos turns out to be remarkably complicated on my iPhone Xs—I didn't know until I read this and this article:

"as part of the computational approach Apple takes with its camera software, the company seems to be prioritizing higher-speed image captures that are then blended with other images to produce a final photo.

To achieve those higher speeds, the camera increases the ISO, which adds noise to the individual images. However, the software applies noise reduction passes to offset the noise. For our raw discussion, that turns out to be less desirable, because [...] single raw images produced by the camera sensor are noisier and a little over-exposed. (Halide will include a feature that compensates for this effect in an upcoming software update.)

So if you’re shooting raw images with an iPhone Xs or iPhone Xs Max, you may need to perform a little extra post-processing."

I'll check out if Halide already corrects this!

jaspers · Nov 14, 2019

JimInOz
Stop taking photos of your shoes.

It's the WIS equivalent to duck face bimbos taking bathroom mirror selfies.

What you don't like my shoes? I thought this was a sneaker forum 😉

wagudc · Nov 14, 2019

jaspers
What you don't like my shoes? I thought this was a sneaker forum 😉

I like the shoes in wrist shots. I always considered it intentional. Kind of like the out of focus dog in the background.

kip595 · Nov 14, 2019

Without taking the trouble for RAW, lighting becomes (even more) hugely important. Current smartphones can take excellent photos and even video. The degree is such that at least a few ultra-low budget indie films have used the tech for film making, in part or whole. In still shots it's simpler, but check your light sources, do multiple shots of various angles, and always vet/edit in high res. Even slight angle changes can completely change a look as well as the clarity, so I often take ten or twenty shots to get one I'm satisfied with.

Just my advice, if you want to avoid a standalone camera setup. Hope it helps! 😀

jaspers · Nov 15, 2019

wagudc
I like the shoes in wrist shots. I always considered it intentional. Kind of like the out of focus dog in the background.

That's exactly why I've been doing it! It provides context and depth in a wrist shot—otherwise my wrist is kinda lost in the abyss below. There's substantive context too, it that it contributes to the composition. Pairing a dressy watch with sneakers deliberately, for instance, or flip flops and socks to mess with people. Glad this practice is not universally reviled...

jaspers · Nov 15, 2019

kip595
Without taking the trouble for RAW, lighting becomes (even more) hugely important. Current smartphones can take excellent photos and even video. The degree is such that at least a few ultra-low budget indie films have used the tech for film making, in part or whole. In still shots it's simpler, but check your light sources, do multiple shots of various angles, and always vet/edit in high res. Even slight angle changes can completely change a look as well as the clarity, so I often take ten or twenty shots to get one I'm satisfied with.

Just my advice, if you want to avoid a standalone camera setup. Hope it helps! 😀

Awesome, thanks! You're absolutely right—bad lighting ruins everything. Daylight is a huge plus I've come to find out: artificial light just kind of ruins everything when taking wrist shots. Taking many pictures with slightly different angles is a great idea, I'm going to start doing that right away. Great piece of advice!

TimeODanaos · Nov 15, 2019

jaspers
All pointers very welcome. Thanks!

I really like the Max Bill. 😀
But, just on a matter of anatomical feasibility - how on earth were you holding the camera? 😕

DaveK · Nov 15, 2019

jaspers
Thanks, real helpful! The casting is because of the filter I used—what throws you off?

For art photography, just continue to do what makes you happy. Though I’d prefer out of focus dogs over shoes in the background 😉

For collector and sale photography, my $.02 is those filters keep the viewer from seeing the true condition of the watch, especially the colour of the lume, the dial, the case etc

wagudc · Nov 15, 2019

jaspers
That's exactly why I've been doing it! It provides context and depth in a wrist shot—otherwise my wrist is kinda lost in the abyss below. There's substantive context too, it that it contributes to the composition. Pairing a dressy watch with sneakers deliberately, for instance, or flip flops and socks to mess with people. Glad this practice is not universally reviled...

Agreed. Also, the fact that some people revile the practice makes me like it more!

jaspers · Nov 16, 2019

TimeODanaos
I really like the Max Bill. 😀
But, just on a matter of anatomical feasibility - how on earth were you holding the camera? 😕

You have no idea how long it took me to get this shot right. What I ended up doing is taking a photo from relatively far out, so that I could see the screen well enough AND prevented seeing my phone reflected on the plexi. Then I cropped the image to the present canvas size, and tweaked the angle a little.

jaspers · Nov 16, 2019

DaveK
For art photography, just continue to do what makes you happy. Though I’d prefer out of focus dogs over shoes in the background 😉

For collector and sale photography, my $.02 is those filters keep the viewer from seeing the true condition of the watch, especially the colour of the lume, the dial, the case etc

You're right. When selling a watch I would never use filters—that's borderline false advertising. For quasi-artistic wrist shots, I don't mind as much. Moreover, it's not as if the look of a watch is universally stable anyway—the amount of (sun)light can completely change the appearance of a watch, for instance. I've been using filters to show color shades on my watches that I know are there, but not under the lighting conditions under which I took the wrist shot. Particularly the "brilliance" filter on iOS is great for simulating daylight conditions.

TimeODanaos · Nov 16, 2019

jaspers
You have no idea how long it took me to get this shot right...

Hoho 😁
It was worth it though - nice shot! 👍

Alpha · Nov 16, 2019

Use only an iPhone these days and i.m.h.o. I think the only way to a decent image it to look closely at what you are taking, reflections, shadows etc.

Taken ten minutes ago in artificial light, not award winning but acceptable ?

jaspers · Nov 16, 2019

Alpha
Use only an iPhone these days and i.m.h.o. I think the only way to a decent image it to look closely at what you are taking, reflections, shadows etc.

Taken ten minutes ago in artificial light, not award winning but acceptable ?

Agreed, not bad at all. It's insane how good cameras on smartphones have gotten over the years. It's not that long ago that you couldn't really take any pictures inside except with flash light.

Now try this: select the photo in iOS' photo app, tap edit, and crank the "brilliance" filter all the way up. YUGE difference: all the dark spots come to life now. I love that filter to death.

janice&fred · Dec 14, 2019

a quick question...with an iPhone (iphone7) what kind of artificial lighting can I try to set up easily in our home? I don't know anything about photography but will like our watch pics to be clearer without so much glare and shadows. thanks!