I was on a mission. Alarm at 3:30, early flight out of Malaga, full portable studio packed, straight into it. This time I was shooting in Amsterdam Vintage Watches territory.

I landed in a city just stepping into its first real warm day of the year. People out along the canals, energy everywhere, that shift you feel when winter finally lets go. Amsterdam was wide awake, and I was there for one reason.

One specific watch was waiting for me.

Inside AVW

I've recently started working more closely with Collectors Gallery, who collaborate closely with Amsterdam Vintage Watches, and this was one of those assignments where everything lines up. No time to waste. Straight from landing into setup, lights on, and into the work.

Interior of Amsterdam Vintage Watches — dark walls, framed oil portrait, bookshelves with archival objects, vintage luggage stacked by a fireplace, a green velvet armchair
Vintage Rolex Quartz dealer display clock, burled-wood dial, marked Time to the Second
Green vintage Rolex presentation box opened on a shelf between older Rolex boxes and accessories
Gold Audemars Piguet Calendar 2100 octagonal desk clock with moonphase and triple calendar subdials, displayed on a wooden plinth

Less retail, more lived-in. Archive in every corner — a dealer clock, vintage boxes, an AP Calendar on a plinth.

Thursday afternoon

The Watch

Then you get that moment. The first time handling the watch.

Rolex 6062 "Stelline". Read more on Collectors Gallery →

Some pieces you just shoot and move on from. This wasn't one of them. You take a second, then another. It makes you slow down without even thinking about it. The kind of watch you don't expect to come across, and probably won't again.

The rest of the time moved fast. One watch after another, constant flow, different eras, different stories passing through the table. Reset, shoot, move on. That rhythm you get into when everything just works.

Twenty-second video showcasing the vintage gold Rolex ref. 6062 Stelline — moonphase triple calendar with star hour markers — held up between two hands against the original green Rolex presentation box, turning to reveal the engraved bracelet and dial detail
Three luxury watches held together in one hand — a gold diamond-bezel Patek Philippe, a steel diamond-bezel Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, and a gold pavé-diamond Rolex Day-Date with coloured stone markers
Vintage gold Rolex ref. 6062 Stelline moonphase triple calendar with star hour markers, day and month apertures, and an engraved gold bracelet, held up in one hand
Top-down view of a travel watch case holding fifteen vintage dress watches in three rows — Cartier Tanks, Patek Calatravas, rectangular and round pieces on black leather inserts
Wrist shot of the gold Rolex ref. 6062 Stelline on Jimmy's wrist with a white shirt cuff, day aperture reading FRI and month APR

Stelline first, then the rest of the day. Pateks, Cartiers, a tray of dress watches in rotation.

Thursday into Friday

Look Up

In between, you look up and realize where you are. The city, the light, the people. Amsterdam doing its thing. The shop felt the same way. Not really a shop, more a space built around what they care about. Watches, history, cigars, a bar in the corner. Nothing forced, just natural.

Close-up of orange, yellow, red and pink tulips in full bloom in an Amsterdam flower bed
Plate of Dutch bitterballen with mustard, pickles and yellow pickled tomatoes on a table covered in Amstel beer coasters, a glass of Amstel lager alongside

Tulips in bloom, a beer in the evening. The city between frames.

Thursday evening

On the Way Out

Thirty-six hours, and it was done as quickly as it started.

I really appreciate this kind of assignment. Already looking forward to the next one.

And Amsterdam — unreal time. Definitely a city I'll be coming back to this summer.

More on the watch soon.

Overhead shot of an espresso in a white cup on a round marble table, next to a Sony FE 2.8 50mm Macro lens
Point-of-view looking down at Jimmy's hand holding a Sony Alpha camera body on a brick Amsterdam street, the gold Rolex Stelline visible on the wrist, white sneakers in frame

Espresso, the macro lens, camera in hand. The piece still on the wrist.

Friday morning