Independents

Passing the time on a quite wintry day here in Seoul -- at least there is some sunlight, allowing me to take a few photos of a favorite:

Different Observatoires have different executions of the Voutilainen script on the movement.  I happen to like this one best:

Neat to see the blued hairspring with its overcoil -- note how the spring is centered; when it contracts and expands, it appears to "breathe" concentrically rather than veer to one side

Down through the works -- interesting to me how the balance wheel is in motion, yet the spring appears stationary:

Time for a closer look at the dial...

Good light to catch the guilloche:

From the other side:

And, one final shot in the afternoon sunshine:

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Kari had the watch certified at the Besancon Observatory, and it was well within the tolerances.

The first month that I owned the watch, I wore it every day and (as recommended by Kari) wound it each morning and evening.  At the end of the month, the total deviation was +9 seconds for the entire month -- pretty good!  I haven't repeated the test recently, but when I have the watch in rotation and keep it wound over the course of a week or so I don't recall ever having to correct the time -- so it must still be keeping good time in "real world" settings.

Thanks for asking!

Best,

Gary G

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Great photos Gary, thnaks for sharing.

Always fun for me to try to capture some new angles on this one!

Best,

Gary

nt

Hard not to be weak in the presence of this beauty.Your shots are very good Gary.

Mo

Watchmakers complain (appropriately, I think) that the standard of criticism should be as seen at 10 cm by the naked eye, not in zillion-sized macros on the computer, but Kari's work certainly stands up to the more severe level of scrutiny...

Best,

Gary

His watches are just so attractive in a way that cannot be described!

Great line, Sidney!  I always thought of that photo as "two smiling guys in turtlenecks," but perhaps your interpretation is more apropos!  Kari is not too devilish, but I aspire to it

Will definitely have at least one camera with me in Switzerland in January.  I have been really pleased with the D-Lux 5 -- a significant step up from the D-Lux 4 that I also have.  And a lot lighter than a Nikon D700 with 105mm macro affixed! 

Best,

Gary

Hey Gary! While Kari's of course is not devilish, his fine hands are able to craft watches that are so devilishly attractive, and all your photos of the Observatoire really put me (and a lot of us here) under a spell - hence the Devil and his apprentice! I can't get Kari out of my head after seeing the photos of his watches - and this is without seeing them in the metal. I think if I see one in the metal, I'll need an oxygen mask!

Thanks for the enjoyable elaboration of your "devilish" thoughts!  Great fun to read.

You should call the Lumix the "smart man's" version of the Leica -- I comfort myself with the idea that the D-Lux has a more "Leica-like" color profile in its JPEG processor, but at the end of the day it's very much the Lumix in a slightly different case.  Ah well -- no one's perfect!

I do have the pop-open lens cover -- didn't have one for the D-Lux 4, but saw them on others' cameras and had to have one.  The best 10 bucks (give or take) that I have spent in a while -- it makes the camera so much easier to use!  And, you don't have the risk of the lens cover leash appearing in the middle of a prized shot.

I hope that Kari (and others) have some splendid, sharable things to photograph in January!  I have to say that I have a long way to go with photos in "live" situations like restaurants and ateliers, but will be working on it...

Best,

Gary

Really enjoy the photos Gary

The great majority aren't worth looking at twice, and most others are for my personal review and learning, but once in a while it is fun to post a few.  Glad you enjoyed them!

Best,

Gary

Really really do enjoy it! 

Thank you for sharing your impressions and your very nice pictures, especially considering the p&s camera.
I am off course a little jealous of the trip you are planning for in January but console myself in expectation of your customary, comprehensive report
Here with thanks a picture of my Observatoire in festive advent (pre-Christmas) mood.
This site is all about sharing. May I invite other happy owners to follow suit and post new picture(s) of their watch... Please.



Best regards
Ztirual

...with their versions of this watch!  Thanks for posting yours.

Best,

Gary

hard to believe. But I still can remember ...



... when Magnus and I ...

... had the pleasure ...

to take pictures of that beauty - before Kari finished it. We didn´t see any need to work on it further, but Kari (THE perfectionist) asked for two more weeks

Oliver

Thanks for posting these great reminders -- and thanks once again to you and Magnus for helping me out with some photos of my incoming watch at a time when I was desperate for any news!

All the best, as always,

Gary

Love the dial, the case and the iconic movement.  Perfect in virtually every way.

Thanks for posting.

Darren

I did pick this one as my one "keeper" in the recent HoMe thread on what you would do if you could only keep one watch, so it seems I agree with you!

Best,

Gary G

All taken with a P&S ? You must be kidding! I thought it was all about the equipment. As they say, a poor craftsman always blames his tools.

Thanks for sharing this absolute gem with us. Time does fly when life is good.

Best

fernando

Better equipment does help a lot -- both for technical reasons and because having a new gizmo of some kind motivates me to practice my photography. 

I am finding that the D700 images give a lot more latitutude for post-processing (and therefore often end up looking better) and there are also the issues of sensor size and dynamic range, but the D-Lux photos often look good right out of the box.

Fun to practice with both!  Thanks for your kind message.

Best,

Gary

A very beautiful looking piece

...wearing it right now, and smiling every time I look down at my wrist...

Best,

Gary

Amazing how many varied aspects you got out of that dial!

Much appreciated, Andreas

One of the benefits of using a hand-held P&S rather than DSLR and tripod is that you can experiment with lots of different angles without having to stop and change position of watch, tripod, and lights.

Glad you liked some of these!

Best,

Gary G

There is something I really love in Kari's watches: the hands. I find them beautiful, charming, original... and perfect.

Fx