New Masters of Watchmaker

Who doesn't like a little list ?

Lists are brilliant and lead to some lively discussion too, so as I haven't done a list for quite some time. I thought i'd start with some members from the WatchMaker community who have recently joined and are making massive contributions or stunning creations

The first inspiration to spring to mind is +Ken Van Vliet

He makes lots of designs (both originals and micro brands) from scratch in Photoshop, and is always happy to help and inspire
But his real talent is in the lumes he adds to his watches, they're striking and he helps others to achieve a similar effect

See more of Kens work here 

Next is +Jerry Mills 

A recent newcomer, but what a great designer. Only a few watches under his belt but they are stunners - Well worth keeping an eye on

And +berad stefan 

Berad has been making and uploading watches since June, and makes them entirely in the WatchMaker app. I have been privileged to add lume to some and am always astonished at the complexity of the layers

Lets not forget past masters such as +Milan PRIBULA, +JC Dalisay, +Craig Goh or +Rakesh Ajwani who are no longer active but with massive back catalogues of  unsurpassed work

And not forgetting the oldies (sorry guys) that still never fail to inspire

+Sean Grondin    -   Watchmaker extrordinair, maker of parts and sharer of tutorials

+artur r    -     Probably the most prolific designer

+Ram Mor   -     Beautiful recreations

+ajoy das   -    Prolific and arty, truly unique designs

+Massimo Parisi    -     Stunning Designs

+mookie    -   Masterful

+Mike McKee    -    Master of the Intricate Code

+Jesus Paino     -    Tucci Originals

+Tom Hald     -    No one dims quite like Tom

+Nite Owl     -     Tourbillon master

+Frank Dufaux    -   Opulence Watches

+Cyrille LE RAY    -    Makes and share watch parts as well as watches

+Mark Askey     -     The Invicta King

+Klaus Koehler     -     Code Wizard

+Ashley Hansgen   -   Beautiful Dims


Of course there are so many great designers, if I missed some out, please do mention them in the comments.

If you like what you see or think someone else might like it, please share it

Change a Watch Strap

A simple guide to changing a watch Strap

Not just for smart watches either

You will need a spring bar tool to do this, but if you shop around for a new strap you can usually find some that come with the tool and new spring bars
You will also need to know the size of the strap before you buy it, measured in mm.

Set your area up before you start, a towel is a good idea as it stops things rolling and it also protects you watch from hard surfaces (you will notice that I was in too much a hurry to get my new bracelet on my watch to follow my own advice!)

Working from the back, remove the old strap.

Wiggle the pronged end of your spring bar tool in between the strap and the watch lug. The spring bar has a ridge that the tool will grab

Gently apply press inwards towards the strap and away from the watch to depress the spring bar. At the same time, apply some downward pressure so the bar will pop out. 

Pressing too hard and/or fast, and the tool may slip damaging the watch or the strap

Now attach your new strap/bracelet


Make sure the pin bar is central positioned in the at either end of the new strap or link bracelet


Again working from the back insert one end of the spring bar into the hole in the lug

Then using the spring bar tool, depress the other end of the pin bar allowing it to slide into the lug. 

Repeat on other side

Encourage the pin bar into the hole and make sure both sides are secure (you don't want it to fall off)

These photos were taken just over a month ago and since then I have upgraded from the 360 to a Huawei. It's worth noting that the Huawei has easy pin bars, they have a small little posts that you can move (and therefore release the pin bar) with a fingernail, thus removing the need of a fiddly spring bar tool

Just so you know I am no expert just a normal bloke finding things out for himself and trying to share so if you like this or think you know someone who might like it then please share it

And if you like to buy me a coffee, I have no objections !
paypal.me/bowmore

Getting a better glow

I have been experimenting with the look of my lumes by adding a glow effect, and have talked about this before.

I think I'm getting better at it now. Massive thanks to +Ashley Hansgen  for his help, and I have learned a lot from his contribution here Ashley Dims

So to begin
If the watch has been made entirely in WatchMaker I turn all hand layers to never show and then hit export/share
If the watch is photoshop or cookie cut the watchface image already exists, just export/share

How do you know if its Watchmaker or Photoshop ? Have a look in customise if you see one image of the watchface it's photoshop/cookie cut. A watchmaker watch is usually lots of shapes and shadows and parts expertly put together to recreate the watch.

Now in your phone explorer find the folder and rename it from .watch to .zip
now open it with and an unzip app, and then rename the individual images you intend to lume (you have to take the dot from the beginning of the name. i.e img1234 instead of .img1234)

The image can now be found by the phone/tablet.

I use an app called eraser - open the image and carefully remove everything that you don't want to lume or glow. Save

Then I open it in another app image editor - top of the screen is a edit button from here tap focus and choose blur and then fog. Save

Now go back to watchmaker, add the dim layer (a 512x512 circle coloured black with a level of opacity between 50 and 70 percent).
Add new images, first the one edited in eraser and then the one with a blur effect, pick a colour.

Edit the hands in the same way as the main face. When adding the new lumed hand layers, it is best to copy the existing hand then change image (sometimes the size needs adjusting - but the rotation code will be correct)

If you like this or think someone you know will like then please share it

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New Luming

It's been a few weeks since my last post, but the reason for that is I have been delving into new a new code for my dims and perfecting a glow to go with it.

I have for some time been looking for a way to make the lume gradually brighten, and had experimented with a few codes I had found, but was never completely happy with the results.

Then the very talented +Ken Van Vliet , advised me check out the even more talented +Sean Grondin who had recently added a very good gradually brightening lume to his complex setup. He in turn told me the code came from +Klaus Koehler - I am eternally grateful to all three of you 

Sean has put an excellent tutorial together here

https://plus.google.com/+SeanGrondin/posts/dye6ibF8o2y

Here is my breakdown of the way I implement the code (just so you know I'm not a coder, but learn through trail and error, and the generosity of others)

1

copy and paste text between the lines into the main script 

________________________

--! VARIABLE DEFAULTS

var_face = 1

var_ambT = 2

var_ambL = 60

var_zoom = 1

var_theme = 2

--/ VARIABLE DEFAULTS

--! AMBIENT ACTIVATION TIME

function on_millisecond(dt)

tweens.ambM = 

not {abright} and var_ambT == 1  and ({dtp}>{wssp} or {dtp}<{wsrp}) and 100 or

var_ambT == 2 and 

({wsrp}>={dtp} and 100 or

({wssp}+0.0417)<={dtp} and 100 or

({wsrp}+0.0417)>{dtp} and (100-({dtp}-{wsrp})*2000) or

{wssp}<{dtp} and ({dtp}-{wssp})*2000 or 0) or

not {abright} and var_ambT == 3 and 100 or

var_ambT == 4 and 100

tweens.ambL = 

not {abright} and var_ambT == 1 and ({dtp}>{wssp} or {dtp}<{wsrp}) and var_ambL or

var_ambT == 2 and

({wsrp}>={dtp} and var_ambL or

({wssp}+0.0417)<={dtp} and var_ambL or

({wsrp}+0.0417)>{dtp} and (var_ambL-({dtp}-{wsrp})*(2000*(var_ambL*.01))) or

{wssp}<{dtp} and ({dtp}-{wssp})*(2000*(var_ambL*.01)) or 0) or

not {abright} and var_ambT == 3 and var_ambL or

var_ambT == 4 and var_ambL

end

--/ AMBIENT ACTIVATION TIME

--! TAP ACTIONS

function tap_ambT()

if var_ambT == 4 then

   var_ambT =  0 else

   var_ambT =  var_ambT + 1

end end

--! TEXT FADE

function tap_fade_text()

wm_schedule { 

action='tween', 

tween='fade_text', 

from=0, 

to=100, 

duration=2, 

easing=linear 

}

wm_schedule { 

action='tween', 

tween='fade_text',

start_offset=1, 

from=100, 

to=0, 

duration=2, 

easing=linear 

}

end

--/ TEXT FADE

________________________

2

the dim layer - that is to say the layer which is normally a 512x512 black circle set to an opacity level of 25 - 75 (you don't need this circle - but it does help your lume colours pop)

put this code into the opacity level
_________

tweens.ambL

_________

the level of opacity is controlled in the main script under VARIABLE DEFAULTS

3

the other dim layers that glow or lume, put this code into their opacity

_________

tweens.ambM

_________

4

now add a circle shape and add the following code to the run script in tap actions, once the code is added set the opacity of this circle to 0

________

tap_ambT()
tap_fade_text()
_______

5

and finally add text and paste in this text

__________

var_ambT == 0 and "no lume" or

var_ambT == 1 and "auto lume at sunset" or

var_ambT == 2 and "always lume after sunset" or

var_ambT == 3 and "normal ambient lume" or

var_ambT == 4 and "lume all day and all night"

__________

You can change the wording between the "quote marks" to your own preference

Test it, the only thing really to adjust will be the level of opacity on the dim layer (in Variable Defaults)

And make sure all the dim and lume layers are displayed Always

You will be able to cycle through 5 dim modes, Normal, Never Lume, Always Lumed Day & Night, Auto Normal Lume and Auto Always Lume

The Auto modes will take an hour to brighten at sunset and gradually unbrighten (is that a word ?)  at sunrise.


If you like this or think someone you know might like it, please share it

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Zooming Watches - A Guide

I sometimes like put on a zoom on a watch - this is especially good for people who don't like bezels.

I can't take credit for this, and I'm not sure who first implemented it. I am sure it's very old and probably one of the first codes that spread around the watchmaker community

To get the hang of it, try adding it to an already complete watch that is open for editing/customisation


1
As usual there is a main script code - add this to script panel.
If you can't see this tap the little watch icon to bottom left of your watch preview

For ease copy and paste everything below that is between the lines into aforementioned script panel
________________________

--main zoom script

var_scalefactor = 1.10

var_zoomSpeed = 3.0  

tweens.scale = 1

var_scale = 1

var_zoom = 0

function tweenme(rot,f,t,d,e)

if d == nil then d = 2.0 end

if e == nil then e  = inOutCubic end

wm_schedule {action='tween', tween=rot, from =f,to = t, duration=d, easing=e } 

end

function zoom_out()

tweenme('scale',1,var_scalefactor,var_zoomSpeed)

end

function zoom_in()

tweenme('scale',var_scalefactor,1,var_zoomSpeed)

end

--[[

tap action

*tweens.scale

--]]

_______________________________________

2
Now the tedious bit (sorry)

Every visible image layer has to have code added to the x and y position if not already zero
 example Position x 0 stays 0
 example Position y 95 becomes 95*tweens.scale

Also every visible image layer must have the size, both width and height (you must un-link them by tapping the little link icon)  altered with the same code
 example width 512 becomes 512*tweens.scale
 example height 125 becomes 125*tweens.scale

And if you have text layers these too must have the values altered in x and y position and font size too

And any layer that has a radius also need the code added

The good news is that if you copy the code *tweens.scale  you can paste it into every place it is needed after the numbers already there


3
Now add a shape and open Tap Action, then open Run Script and paste the following code


var_zoom = (var_zoom + 1) % 2

if var_zoom == 1 then 

   zoom_out()

else

   zoom_in()

end


Make this shape invisible by reducing opacity to 0


4

Now check that it works.

If you find that the zoom is to much or too little, then go back to the main script and look at altering

var_scalefactor = 1.10

you need increase or decrease the .10 till you have have the zoom finishing at the right place.
Every watch is different and most times a little adjustment is necessary

So find a watch, add a zoom, experiment and learn !


As I've said elsewhere I am not a coder, all that I know I learned by trial and error and occasional tips from people more experienced than me. And also from exploring the watches that are generously left unlocked so that others can learn



If you like this or know someone who might like it, then please share it

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Simple Switching

Apart from adding a nice lume effect to a watch, I also like to make the occasional watch that has different faces. These are normally based around a theme, recently I have done British Gangster Films and Silver Screen Starlets. The theme can be whatever floats your boat, base it on your family or favourite hobby or collection - if you can get photos or images then you can make a watch from it.

I use a code from switching guru +Iain Fry

When you have decided on your theme, you will need to collect the images - either from the internet or your personal collection

Next open watchmaker and start a new watch, and add the main script code to script panel - If you can't see this tap the little watch icon to bottom left of your watch preview

For ease copy and paste everything below that is between the lines into aforementioned script panel
________________________

--main switching script

screenNo=1

var_opacity1=100

var_opacity2=0

var_opacity3=0

function change()

transitions = { }

transitionNo = 1

var_transition = transitions[transitionNo]

    screenNo = screenNo + 1

    if screenNo > 3 then screenNo = 1 end

    var_opacity1 = screenNo == 1 and 100 or 0

    var_opacity2 = screenNo == 2 and 100 or 0

    var_opacity3 = screenNo == 3 and 100 or 0

transitionNo = transitionNo + 1

    if transitionNo > table.getn(transitions) then transitionNo = 1 end

    var_transition = transitions[transitionNo]

    wm_transition('circle open')

end

_______________________________________

If you want to add more image layers, you will need to make alterations to the above. The process will become obvious as you experiment and gain experience - But don't worry to much yet

Now add your 1st picture resize and position as necessary, do the same with your second and third images too - you can have as many image layers as you like, but to start with - keep it simple

Highlight your 1st image layer and in opacity type var_opacity1
Highlight your 2nd image layer and in opacity type var_opacity2
Do the same for each image layer increasing the var_opacity by 1 for each image

Now add a shape and open Tap Action, then open Run Script and type change()
Make this shape invisible by reducing opacity to 0

Finally add watch hands as desired

Even easier than going through all the above, download a watch that already has the code in place and then change the image layers for your own images



Here is one of +Iain Fry's to look at, but beware it has many layers - one for every day of the month











And here is my recent British Gangster Films, available at +Terry Zahn's website WatchAwear.com











If you like this or knows someone who might like it, then please share it

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Grilled Sea Bass on Rocket and Sun dried Tomato Salad

Once along time ago I used to cook for a living, now I cook for enjoyment

So every now and then I will post up a recipe or cooking tips

Here's the first

Grilled Sea Bass on Rocket and Sun dried Tomato Salad

Nice and easy, but the beauty is in it's simplicity - fish should never in my opinion be served with complicated and heavy sauces, simply grilling brings out the natural flavours

Buy the fish whole, and always check for freshness, signs of a fish beyond it's best are sunken eyes, they should be full and wet looking, not dried and sunken, gills should be a pinky red colour and not dull grey the smell should be of the sea and not overly fishy

You can ask the fishmonger to fillet the fish and descale it for you, but once you get it home it is best to wash it again and with the back of a knife scrap the skin from tail end to head end to remove any scales that the fishmonger may have missed

Score the skin to assist with even cooking (need I say it - but wash hands after handling raw food!)

Now add some salad and rocket leaves to a bowl, maybe some herb leaves perhaps dill or parsley - add a small handful of roughly chopped Sun Dried tomatoes and black olives. mix all together with a tablespoon or two of good Extra Virgin Olive Oil (Spanish is best) and a squeeze of lemon juice

Arrange the salad on plate in a good tall pile. Now heat a Griddle or Pan so it is hot but not smoking and place the fish skin side down and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, turn the fillet over and cook for the same amount of time on this side. Ensure it is cooked through, the flesh should be a creamy white colour all the way through, and no look of rawness

Now serve the Sea Bass on top of the salad and enjoy a lovely light summer evening meal with glass of white or rose wine

One fillet is usually enough for a portion, but I put two in this photo

If you like this or know someone who might, then please share it

These Are a Few Of My Favourite Dims

This is a Self Indulgent Post

Watchmaker has lots going for it - a complex, yet easy to use app, great and helpful community, great designers that share their work, a dedicated website in the form of WatchAwear.com
But after all this I love a good dim, and have learned so much through the desire to make a good lume

So as usual and in no particular order here are some of my favourite watches that have I have given the Bowmore dim treatment

1.
Speake-Marin London Chronograph Special Edition for Harrods by +Ram Mor

A request came to me for a dim/lume of this truely stunning creation by Ram. Its a lovely watch and I did not want to mess it up. Ram draws his watches fresh in Photo-Shop which means that one has a very few layers to work with, and my approach to the dim was different from my usual method.

Using an app called ERASER, which as the title suggests allows parts of images to be erased, I erased the hour marker numerals from the main face plate image, leaving a .png image with gaps where the numbers were.

Then in the watchmaker app I added this new image on the top of the original face plate image, ensuring they were the same size, gave it a darker colour and set to dim only.

Between these two layers I added a round shape 100% opacity, increased to 520x520 and turned it green, set to dim only
On top of this I added a smaller shape, red in colour to show under the number 12, set to dim only

For the hands I used one of Rams layers that had a nice white blurry texture, copied them, moved them to the top layer, changed the colour to blue and set to dim only

After adding some code so the user can choose when the watch dims I was satisfied, and I have to say very proud

Without great artists like +Ram Mor, The WatchMaker community would be a poorer place

Thank you RAM

Download it from WatchAwear



2.
GRAHAM Overlord MarkIII by +Dimitar Simitchiev




Another request came through for this lovely Graham

Still using the Eraser app, but this time erasing everything and leaving the highlights which I laid on top of the face and hands - a round shape with 60% opacity was added under these new layers

And added the dim choice so the user can have Auto dim, Normal dim or no dim at all

The end result, even though I say so myself, is very impressive

It's available at WatchAwear


3.
Tag Monaco by +Robert Pope 
One of my first attempts at dim, I have often gone back to this and updated with improvements as I've learned new tricks - probably because I think it's such a stunning watch in the first place.

So far it incorporates everything I've learnt - I think.
Shapes and layers as I've discussed before, the eraser app and this version has glow effect added to the dim.

Using the eraser app I erase everything except the hour markers, Then open the image in a picture editing app recommended to me by +Cyrille LE RAY - image editor get it here. Make the markers as white or light grey as possible using colour, hue or brightness as desired and then using the focus tab add a Gaussian blur. Save and add it to the watch, ensuring it is the same size and lines up with the original hour markers -  then tint it to the desired colour

Get it from WatchAwear






4.
INVICTA STINGRAY by +Mark Askey

Have a look at Marks work here

Just like me, Mark seams to have grown a designer as I have grown as a dimmer.

One of the first watches he asked me to work on was this motivational one requested for a chap celebrating one year dry, the result and the kind words this person had blew me away - I never knew our little hobby could help someone so much.



Since then I have been  privileged to work with Mark many times, usually on INVICTAS like this one

These complex watches with many layers have helped me perfect my dims

Muchas Gracias Amigo




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Dimming - The Ashley Way

I had an idea for a post and asked the very helpful +Ashley Hansgen for some input, the information he provided is worthy of it's own post - so here it is, a step by step guide to luming the Ashley way - Thankee !


Of the dim work I've done, I would say I'm most pleased with the dim version of +Robert Pope's "Graham Chronofighter" . I think this design best reflects my style and the techniques I use for dimming. 

I'm a big fan of gradient radial shading on lumes because it looks more natural and adds some character to the overall look. 

To achieve this, I need to incorporate a number of elements, markers, numbers, etc. into a single layer or image so I can add the shading.

I do this by first duplicating the face and renaming it "for parts".

Then I create a 512 diameter black circle to use as a background.

I can then move all the elements to be shaded above the background via the display order, making sure I change the color of all elements to white (ffffff) .

Now I'm ready to export/share the "black & white" image to my device.

Once saved, I import the image to the Eraser app (a free Android app that allows you to remove backgrounds and/or portions of images).

By using the Auto-Removal feature, I can select on the black background and automatically remove the entire background from the image, leaving behind only the white markers, text, etc to be lumed. 

Finally, I import this new image into my design and apply the gradient radial shading.

I change the "Start" color to black (000000) and the "End" to the desired lume color, adjusting the scale to the desired gradient and brightness.

The same technique is used on the hands and rotating star.

This seems like a lot of trouble to go through to add the effect, but once you do it a few times, it's quick and easy.

For more of Ashley's dim work and original designs too take a look at his profile here 

If you like what you see or think some one you know might like it, please share it

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The Glow Effect

For some time I have been fascinated by the lovely glow effect some designers get on their watches +Cyrille LE RAY and +Chris Chastain immediately spring to mind. (check them both out - very impressive stuff !)

And I wanted to add the glow to my dim/lumes to add that little bit of reality. But my attempt to develop my own glow technique had been poor at best. I had tried to keep it all within the watchmaker app, trying to use the shader and opacity tools to get the effect, but it was not to my liking

I also tried PhotoShop Touch, but even though it's meant to be easy, I just couldn't work it out.

It wasn't until Cyrille put me onto this image editor app, with easy to use Focus tools that I got my first real success.

Simply open the image in Image Editor, and make the image as white or light coloured as you can.

Then using the Focus tab add a Gaussian effect - there are several strengths to choose from. Don't forget to save it ! I did first time...

For adding extra circumference to the glow open the same image a second time and use a Blur effect under the Focus tab. Again don't forget to save it !

Back in WatchMaker lay these two new images where you need them for that really nice glowy effect.

You may have to use the ERASER app first to get rid of extra elements you don't want to glow


Below my recent glow on a my own Chronos b10 - you can get it on +Terry Zahn's WatchAwear site

If you like this or know someone who might like it, then please share it

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Some Dimming Basics

This is how I do a basic dim :

1
At the end of the layer line add a circle shape and increase to 520x520 turn it black, reduce opacity to 50% (you may want it darker, it depends on the watch face) and set display to dimmed only. This will allow your highlighted layers to pop more.

2
The most important things to highlight for dimming are the hands and hour markers.

If the hour makers already in the watch can be duplicated, then do so and move to the end of the layer line on top of the black circle. Choose a colour tint and set display to dimmed only.

If the hour markers do not have their own layer, then I add free-form hour markers instead. I hardly ever have success using all 12 markers in one layer. This can be for numerous reasons, but boils down to not being able to line all the new layer markers with original layer markers perfectly. It is best to use a layer of four markers, or two or even one marker at a time. You will have to rotate each of these layers to line up correctly.
Once you're happy with the markers lining up, choose your dim colour tint and set display to dimmed only.

3
I always copy hands and move to the end of the layer line so they are on top of the dimmed dark circle and change their tint to make them more shaded, but slightly more visible - set display to dimmed only.

You can add a square shape to the hands for a good lume effect, set rotation to minute{drm} or hour{drh}, set alignment to bottom centre and reduce the width and height to desired dimensions. You will probable have to use the progress shader to help with length of the lume too.

When I first started dimming, I would simply change the tint of the entire hand, but this looks and feels wrong - after all in traditional watches a lume is only part of the hand, not the entire hand

4
Don't forget to get the layers in the right order - minute lume on top minute hand, hour lume under minute hand but on top of hour hand


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My WatchMaker Journey

I first got my smart watch, a Moto 360 v1, back in December 2015
It was a Christmas present, so I've had it just over 6 months.

My wife was getting a FitBit, and I had thought a smart watch could do similar while still looking like a watch. I had no idea of the mild addiction that was about to begin.

I quickly found the Watchmaker app and associated G+ community (after a few false starts with other watch apps).
I tried the free version first, and tried my hand at making my first watch - what joy, at seeing my simple creation on my own wrist.

As my confidence grew so did my ambition. I wanted to fit it all on the watch face (battery level, weather, steps, heart rate, stopwatch etc) the more the better.
I look back now on those crowded faces with a little embarrassment, but realise it was a learning stage I had to go through. I see many newbies coming into the G+ community doing the same thing.

It was after I found +Terry Zahn's watchawear.com that I started to scale back the information on the watch, I picked up many tips and and started to incorporate the hands, face-plates and shadows that are available there.

I learned that watch hands need layers to give the illusion of depth and that a shadow hand is absolutely compulsory. It was slow going, but mostly my watches were still on the amateurish side. I began to loose faith in my ability to make a watch as good as some of the great artist out there.

In all this time I had also gathered a huge collection (close to 1000) of watches mainly replicas, that I had to organise on my Dropbox account. I'm glad I did as every now and then you need to delete the app and associated folders from your phone. This is because even when you delete a watch the app still keeps the images, and eventually clogs up your phone.

Around March I started to see if I could modify some of the many watches I had collected, this was another learning process, and I got an insight to the codes that some designers use. It was evident that complicated coding was not going to be my area (although I learned some basics).

The easiest thing for me to try was to add a dim or lume, as I had seen +Jim L do this with great success and I was very impressed when +Rob van Rheenen dimmed one of my humble creations.

I was inspired, and quickly realised that watches made entirely in watchmaker were the easiest for me to dim - this is because the layers can be duplicated and moved easily, and I dimmed many dozens of +artur r's work.

With some basic coding I added auto-dims to the watches, so the dim layer only shows after sunset and never after sunrise.

I was once heavily criticise for ruining work by "adding awful dims!"

That hurt. Naturally I thought about trying to please everyone, the idea to give an option to choose if you want dim or not appealed to me. After much searching I found a code I could understand on a watch by +DJ CellFace that I could incorporate into my dim work.

I was pleased with the way the watches were looking and thanks to +Ashley Hansgen, (another respected Dim Artist) I was able to give the user the option to change the dim colour.

Now, I sometimes get requests to add my dim technique to other watches, and have struck up good working relationship with +Mark Askey who has a love for INVICTAS and other big bold watches

The Watchmaker app is truely impressive, so much can be done and learned with patience and a willingness to explore the Watchawear and Watchmaker communities

When I look back over my first 6 months, I realise just how far I've come. I've learned so much and have made many good friends across the globe - Who'd a thunk it !



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The Master Magicians of Watchmaker Watch Making

The magicians...

The masters of the dark arts ...

The Wizards that perform little miracles that we can all wear on our wrists.

These chaps put loads of effort into the behind the scenes code usually producing watches with multi choice options allowing the wearer to alter many aspects of the design of the watch usually from a menu that opens with a centre tap

So in no particular order


+Bob George
Anonochron Watchworks

Bobs watches usually allow the wearer to choose from a huge array of colour themes for both night and day. As well as choosing dim themes for day and night too, you can determine the level of brightness and decide to have burn in protection on or off.
A massive supporter of unlocked watches he lets anyone tinker with the code further for their own unique tastes.

Bobs Watches

  

+Frank Dufaux 
Opulance

Some of the most beautiful watches you will see - a must have for people who love to tweak

Franks watches

+Olaf Habbes
IWD

Everything from unique creations to replicas with a twist

www.habbes.eu/asnns.html

+Sean Grondin 

Highly prolific and with loads of great options - game themes, movie themes, replicas, replicas with twists - you name it Sean's tried it and if he hasn't he probably will

Seans Watches

+Cyrille LE RAY
Inferno

Extremely detailed, beautiful watches and menus - everyone should have one of Cyrille's creations.
A big supporter of +Terry Zahn's WatchAwear site - not only can you find his watches there, but also some of his hands to put on your own creations

Cyrille's watches

   

If I've missed anyone, I apologise - but please do let me know and then I can add them to my "must see" list (after I've thrashed myself for missing them in first place !)



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England Football Fan Watch

Ahead of England's big game against Wales, I wanted to say a bit about the watch I made for the Euros 2016. 

I wanted to focus on the greats, the legends and heroes from our footballing past. 

Not that the current bunch of lads aren't fabulous - it's just that they are so young (youngest average age at the tournament), and mostly unproven at this level

Here's a brief overview of the process I took to make the watch

• First I made the basic watch face with white background and used the shape tool to add two red stripes (a simple St George's flag)

• Then I decided on the players I wanted in my ultimate 11, and found the best images of them online, downloaded and started the editing process

• Each picture had the background erased in an app called ERASER, a cool and easy to use app that would allow me to pop the new image on top of the Saint George cross watch face.

• Each of these new images was then edited again in another app that transforms it into a sketch or line drawing. The app is called SKETCH DRAW and was very easy to use - I was quite surprised at the results

• The new images were placed on the watchmaker app and given an opacity script so that they show one at time with tap on the centre of the screen, this switcher code I got from +Iain Fry - the king of switcher watches

Here it is - All done on mobile phone, no photo shop or special skills required
Born in England - Fan Watch

More watches here
Davie Bowmore watches

And now the players

1. Gordon Banks

England's world cup winning goalkeeper in 1966 - that should be enough but he made one of the greatest saves in football history against the very best player of the 20th century - Pele. He was named the 2nd best goalkeeper of the 20th century by the  International Federation of Football History & Statistics. 

The best goalkeeper England ever had

2. Bobby Moore

Captain 1966 world cup winning team, 108 caps, and 90 of those as captain - a true icon of British Football

3. Stuart Pearce (physco)

For such a hard man he carries so much emotion - It's his passion that puts him in my list, and being part of the the 96 team too

4. Steven Gerrard

One of the greatest ever midfielders, Pele considered Gerrard to be the best footballer in the world. 34 awards and honours from the footballing world

5. Tony Adams

An outstanding defender who did marvels for Arsenal in his younger days, he made no secret about his addiction to alcohol and went through a long and arduous recovery only to come out the other side an even better footballer. The only England player to make tournament appearances in three separate decades

6. Tom Finney

A mainstay of the England in the 1950's Finney is considered one the top English footballers of the 20th century, an attacking midfielder with a very impressive international record. To quote Tommy Docherty "Messi is Tom Finney reborn"

7. David Beckham

Do I have to say any more ?

8.Paul Gascoigne

Gaza = Genius.

The Greatest footballer of his generation. Not one footballer who played with or against him has a bad word to say - It's all positive. He'll always be remembered for the tears he shed in 1990 and that goal against Scotland in 1996

9. Alan Shearer

A Super talented striker, 30 goals in 63 games

10. Gary Lineker

No other England player has scored more goals at World Cup finals (10). 

80 caps and a total of 48 goals with no yellow or red cards (club or country), he was one of the most clinical finishers ever to wear the 3 lions

11. Geoff Hurst

The only player ever to score a hat trick at world cup finals

"...Some people are on the pitch, they think it's all over! [Hurst shoots and scores] ... It is now! ..."

BBC commentator Kenneth Wolstenholme

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