How to avoid glare in macro photography?

Question

I am attempting to take pictures of antique pocket watches, when I use my flash, even with a diffuser or farther away, I get glare from the curved elements within the watch. Are there any sites with tips and tricks to try to avoid this?

Answer 1

For macro of reflecting things you need a as big as possible lightsource.
Best would be a macro tent, but you can improvise with a few pieces of paper and light sources. Just cut one piece of paper in half, form a ring from the two pieces, put them on some other papers and put light sources outside the paper:

If the stuff is really reflective, put another piece of paper on top and leave just a small opening to take the photo through:

(My own pictures, taken from my own blog entry about macro tents)

[Update] Strobist just posted a nice explanation for a small macro tent, too.

Answer 2

Have you tried a polarising filter? They reduce glare and reflections generally, so it might well help in your case.