[ConElPueblo]

I've owned a Seamaster Professional for some four months now, and have noticed that some of the trademark details really only are noticable in pictures. This, specifically, is the "wavy dial" and the HEV valve, both of which are a prominent feature of nearly all photos of the watch (mine is the black variant), but when viewed on my wrist nearly disappear. The valve is something I was very sceptical about after seeing pictures on the watch, but it just sort of blends in with the rest of the watch, I hardly ever notice it. If the watch was taken away from me and I was asked to make a drawing of it, I would most likely forget to draw it! The waves on the dial, on the other hand, only really seem to stand out when I view it from certain angles, the dial seem flat black for the most of the time instead.

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Another watch were I was surprised to see the watch change appearance in real life was the Tudor Heritage Chronograph. Really surprised how such a fantastic looking watch could dissapoint me to such an extent! The entire dial just looks flat and boring, almost as if it was a piece of printed paper... In photos, lacking the three-dimensional aspect, it looks amazing, full of life, but on the wrist... A great dissapointment :-(


How about you, experienced something similar? Any watches with hidden qualities or the opposite?

 

[Splinter Faction]

Beware the genius of the professional photographer. If I can't see a watch I'm considering, I rely on WUS and other online "real" pictures to get a more complete perspective.

 

[Arthur M]

The Tudor Black bay for me. It looks big, bulky and too bright In an alarming amount of pictures . The reality is that the watch just doesn't lend itself well to pictures, especially wirst shots (hard to find a decent shot despite the fact it looks brilliant on wrist in real life). In person, it's quite slim (12mm), hidden by the blocky design of the profile, and the red is actually a dark dark burgundy which cameras rarely capture well. I tried one on at an AD and then immediately picked up the first one that popped up in Canada. No regrets.

 

[geoffbot]

Beware the genius of the professional photographer. If I can't see a watch I'm considering, I rely on WUS and other online "real" pictures to get a more complete perspective.

Indeed - lots of Photoshopping goes into pro shots to enhance the features

 

[mew88]

Most microbrand divers. Looks great on the web but upon arrival, they were rather disappointing.

 

[Likestheshiny]

Seiko has a remarkable ability to somehow make Grand Seikos look dull and flat in stock photography.

 

[Toothbras]

I agree with you about the Seamaster, in the right light the dial is awesome, but mostly just a solid color. I too thought it would be distracting but in real life it's the cat's pajamas.

 

[hpark21]

Seiko has a remarkable ability to somehow make Grand Seikos look dull and flat in stock photography.

I MUST agree!!

I saw the stock pic of snowflake and I was like, "A LOT of work went into photoshopping the watch to make it look bad..."

It isn't easy job, but I guess SOMEONE has to do it to make the brand even more exclusive.

 

[Rdenney]

The Ebel Classic 100. Ebel's photos are flat, two-dimensional, and artificial. In person, what looks plain in their photos comes to life with really modern touches on the traditional design.

Their picture:


My picture:

Rick "who always wants to see a watch in person" Denney

 

[Mark355]

Definitely agree on the SMP's He valve. Some folks make a big deal about it, but it really does get absorbed into the watch's overall presence on the wrist. Fits the character of the piece anyway.

 

[sleepyhead123]

It's like how it is almost impossible to get your car as good looking as it is in the showroom or on brochures. Or how the Big Mac looks so much better on the commercial than in your drive thru. That's why you should always try it in person first. I mean, you would try out a car before you buy it right? A watch may be (usually) cheaper, but if I'm going to spend more than ~500 USD on a watch, I'm going to try it first. At that point you can see how it compares to the websites.

 

[X2-Elijah]

Uh.



Lume.

 

[cedargrove]

Two things, the ROLEX engraving in the rehaut and the cyclops. I usually notice them in pictures, but barely notice them on my wrist.

I actually have to really focus and concentrate to even faintly see the rehaut engraving.

The cyclops is a little more obvious, but from my vantage point as the wearer I see it head on, so it comes close to disappearing (unless the minute hand is under it).

 

[Mark355]

It's like how it is almost impossible to get your car as good looking as it is in the showroom or on brochures.

Ha, challenge accepted. My second passion.

 

[sticky]

I look at so many different pictures of a watch on the interweb that I've yet to be surprised by any watch when I pull the trigger.

 

[mlcor]

Yes. Here is the on line picture of my Maurice Lacroix Les Classique:



Luckily I found a video of the actual watch on line, and the picture above couldn't have made it look more lifeless and dull. Here's the real thing on my wrist, two different angles to show the dial:

 

[sleepyhead123]

Ha, challenge accepted. My second passion.

Well if you spend as much time cleaning a watch as you can with polish and clay all you would have left at the end is a bunch of broken parts on the table and floor. :-d

 

[Iliyan]

The Nomos Zurich Blaugold is an example - I have yet to see a picture that shows the awesomeness of that dial. The color is amazing in person. These are the only ones that get close:

 

[mikeylacroix]