Dr Doom

What happens when WIRED asks you to photograph “how the dark side spends its downtime?”

You build a world where a metal gauntlet reaches for an iced coffee, and a Rolex GMT-Master II becomes part of the armour.

This shoot sat at the intersection of luxury, sci-fi and tongue-in-cheek storytelling — a bold concept where every detail needed to feel intentional and believable.

One of the key challenges was safely attaching a £40k Rolex to an oversized industrial metal arm. The solution had to be secure, visually seamless, and achieved entirely in camera. No digital shortcuts. Designing a bespoke mounting approach that protected the watch while allowing it to sit naturally as part of the character was a crucial part of the process — and something I think adds real integrity to the final image.

Rather than treating the watch purely as a product, we approached it as a character detail: something worn by a villain who obsesses over their gear as much as their downtime. Clean, controlled lighting, tight composition and a carefully built prop world helped ground the fantasy in something tactile and real.

Big thanks to the team at WIRED for the trust — always a pleasure collaborating on projects where craft and problem-solving matter.