John Golberger is sitting on a veranda with a Leica beside him and a Leica ZM 12 on his wrist

The Uniqueness of Collecting

Watch Collector John Goldberger on the move between Bologna and Wetzlar with the Leica ZM 12

23/04/2026

The Art of Collecting Watches

John Goldberger is a collector guided by instinct, taste, and tradition, not by trends. For him, collecting means thinking outside the box, collecting high-quality timepieces, and preserving rare timepieces for future generations.

Together with us, he embarks on a journey from his hometown of Bologna to Wetzlar, the home of Leica watches. Following the traces of tradition, craftsmanship, and a passion for collecting, we gain a sense of his love for photography, time, and timelessness.
John Golberger is making a picture with a Leica and a Leica ZM 12 on his wrist

“For me collecting is a very interesting journey where I try to collect nice timepieces with a great quality.”

John Goldberger

Leica ZM 12 and other watches

The Roots of a His Passion for Collecting

John’s passion for collecting began at the age of 18, inspired by his father and a family deeply rooted in the world of art. While accompanying them to exhibitions across Europe, he developed an early appreciation for craftsmanship. His true interest emerged when his father encouraged him to explore mechanical watches, which, at the time, were still affordable. His first acquisition, a $500 watch from an antique shop in Bologna, was purchased with his own pocket money after his mother phoned to tell him about the discovery. It became the starting point of a lifelong dedication to collecting.

John Goldberger stands there, dressed in a light-coloured, elegant suit, leaning against a pillar

A New Timepiece for John’s Collection: The Leica ZM 12

John’s admiration for the Leica Watch Collection is driven by his appreciation for reduced, clean, and timeless design paired with the precision of German engineering. He is particularly drawn to the Leica ZM 12 Blue Orange. The vibrant, summery orange rubber strap, paired with the unique dual-layered dial that shifts in colour from orange to blue depending on the light, adds a sense of refinement and distinct character. The interplay between the dial and the simplicity of the case, the clean lines of the design, and the quality of the mechanics all resonate with him as a collector. An automatic watch with a timeless aesthetic, it remains highly wearable while earning its own distinctive place within John Goldberger’s collection.

A Longstanding Affinity with Leica

“I don't know why, but I love photography.”

John Goldberger

photographs Wetzlar’s old town with his Leica camera

Beyond his passion for exceptional watches, Goldberger’s life has long been shaped by a deep love of photography that began in his childhood. At the age of 12, his father gifted him his first camera, a Leicaflex, which soon became his creative outlet. Years later, in the 1970s, he purchased his first camera with his own money, once again a Leica, drawn to the exceptional quality of its lenses and optics.

When he moved to California in his mid-twenties, photography remained at the centre of his life alongside collecting. Street photography and architectural subjects came to define his visual language. Now wandering through Wetzlar with us, he finds himself drawn to the wooden facades of the houses, capturing their textures and details, fascinated by the sense of tradition, design, and quiet timelessness they embody.

To this day, John Goldberger’s perspective is shaped by the interplay of form, function and design always guided by a focus on the essentials, the fine details and the timelessness.

Woman setting up ZM11

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Leica Blog Highlights: Watches