Official Luthiers Forum!

Sorry to duplicate this post here....I'm more or less documenting my builds with this forum so I wanted it over here too.

I'm messing around with photography techniques. This worked out well. It's a composition I saw in a Carvin catalog. Two vertical light columns along side the shot really highlights the face curvature.

I'm thinking a back lighted, white back drop would be better than Photoshopping out the background....it will make a more natural shot. I re-arranged things in the studio to get a black textured back drop for another try at the black one. Getting a good outline with Photoshop is SO tedious...it would be far better to just get the shot right in the first place.

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I read Emerson on the can. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...true...but a consistent reading of Emerson has its uses nevertheless.

StuMusic

Beautiful!

Thanks, Kent.

If anyone has an opinion as to which background color they like better I certainly like to hear it....although I'm thinking different colored guitars will each have a preferred background. I'm hoping to limit this to three choices...a white, backlit background, and a black or tan leather textured background.

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I read Emerson on the can. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...true...but a consistent reading of Emerson has its uses nevertheless.

StuMusic

I don't know if it's just me, but the images don't show up anymore.

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-Marcus
http://www.bailieguitars.com
Instagram | YouTube

Same here..

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wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

Probably now they are back?

Lance was messing with the "thumbnail" size and in the process the address references were probably lost.

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I read Emerson on the can. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...true...but a consistent reading of Emerson has its uses nevertheless.

StuMusic

yep, they are back now!

I prefer the black.

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-Marcus
http://www.bailieguitars.com
Instagram | YouTube

This has been on my mind lately, how to set up good stock photographs. I think the black background looks much better. In the white one the guitar appears too dark, looks as if the colors aren't true. What kind of lighting do you use?

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http://www.tinyhouseandland.com

The color is actually pretty darn close in both photos. The brown one is baked Myrtlewood and it really is that dark.

The vertical fixtures use daylight tubes. There are also six daylight conventional type bulbs (if you can call those squiggly screw-in kind conventional) being bounced off the ceiling and walls. No flash.

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I read Emerson on the can. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...true...but a consistent reading of Emerson has its uses nevertheless.

StuMusic

I like the black, but I would like to see the tan. However, the tan may match the wood color a bit too closely and not offer enough contrast.

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http://www.CostaGuitars.com
PMoMC

I didn't think this guitar would look good with a black background but this didn't turn out too bad. I guess a black guitar wouldn't work here but this had more contrast than I would have thought.

The idea is to have these frontal shots also be turned into thumbnails. With a black background in the individual shots and a black background on the web page, the guitars will pop out nicely. That would only work out with a solid black color created in Photoshop. To Photoshop the background to black is MUCH easier when the photo is taken on a white background because the "magic wand" tool can select the whole thing at once. There is a tiny bit of editing involved after using the magic wand but it's far easier than doing it manually.

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I read Emerson on the can. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...true...but a consistent reading of Emerson has its uses nevertheless.

StuMusic

Stu, maybe try an off-white or an off-black?

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-Marcus
http://www.bailieguitars.com
Instagram | YouTube

Maybe one of these....but the background has to match the ones available through the web design software or else the frame edge will be noticeable...that's what I'm hoping to avoid.


Anyway...I'm getting a little tired of looking at this shot...

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I read Emerson on the can. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...true...but a consistent reading of Emerson has its uses nevertheless.

StuMusic

They seem to be floating a little too much.

Since you are sick of these, i took the liberty of doing a few edits. Forgive me, they had to be quick. I'll get a stern look from my boss if I have guitars up on my screen for too long.

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-Marcus
http://www.bailieguitars.com
Instagram | YouTube

Hey, something went wrong! I posted earlier today and it disappeared!

Anyway...

First off, Stuart, you make awesome looking guitars!

Secondly, I prefer the black, as all other backgroud colors shout out "I was Photoshoped!!!!".

One thing you may want to try is to take a picture of some drapes, or large fabric of some sort, without any guitar but with the same lights, and put that picture as a background using Photoshop.

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Alain Moisan
Former full time builder of Acoustics, Classicals and Flamencos.
(Now building just for fun!)

Wow Stuart,
These are amazing!
Do these have your hand-made bridges?
Are the pickup rings custom made?
Truly beautiful axes.
Dan

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wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

Beautiful work!! Simply stunning.

My 2 pennies on the background, I like the dark gray. I use a lighter Gray back cloth when I take my photos. I find that most woods look good against a color that does not naturally occur in wood.

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Brian

You never know what you are capable of until you actually try.

https://www.howardguitarsdelaware.com/

Thank you all for the nice comments.

Yes, those are my bridges, rings, knobs, truss cover.

Heh...I'm making little three way switch knobs out of aluminum and ebony. The plastic ones are unacceptable...

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I read Emerson on the can. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...true...but a consistent reading of Emerson has its uses nevertheless.

StuMusic

It may be a moot point now, but I prefer the white background. For me, with the white, all I see is guitar...which I think is the point.

As a 40+ year career art director, I'll say that I have ALWAYS thought that each photo set-up deserves its own best background. You won't find universal acceptance of my design philosophy, but my philosophy has never failed me, and my clients keep coming back. I'll admit I always had the blessing of professional photographers with a choice of seamless background colors available to showcase my clients' products. I understand that most people don't have those options.

I think your darker instrument looks best on the darker background. I don't see your lighter instrument displayed on two different backgrounds, so I can't comment on that one.

You are absolutely correct that it's always best to get the shot right in the first place. But it seems to me that if you spend all this time building beautiful guitars, you should not grouse too much about the problem of laying in backgrounds with Photoshop. If you don't have the means to choose the perfectly-colored background sweep for your shot, just use a high contrast background sweep. (Dark for light guitars, light for dark guitars) And place it far behind your instrument when shooting. This will make it SO much easier to select that background in Photoshop and then change it to your ideal color.

Or...just go buy a few square yards of black velvet material, hang it about five feet behind where you instrument is hanging, and shoot away. I'll guaranty that the velvet texture will swallow up the light and remain invisible as long as you don't direct a beam of light straight onto it.

Patrick

How 'bout some close-ups of the hardware you fabricated?
I can't zoom in on the pics.
These are mind-blowing. Nice work!
Dan

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wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

Check out Beauregard. Light grey seems to do the trick for him.

http://beauregardguitars.com/

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Alain Moisan
Former full time builder of Acoustics, Classicals and Flamencos.
(Now building just for fun!)

Incredible looking Stu. My hat is off to you sir, these are wonderful!

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"Talking about music is like dancing over architecture".
See the most insane first guitar build: http://www.virgilguitar.com
http://www.youtube.com/VirgilGuitar

Nice guitars!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
As usual.
Anyway, I like black the most.
To my neurotic eye,
they all seem too cold to me.
Have you ever tried hanging them up on an old barn?
Ya know, old wood, lichens, rust?
Might be a nice juxtaposition to your modern geetars!
Alan

Thanks Alan and Virg.

I must say....I'm about to admit that good photographers are worth the money they are paid.

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I read Emerson on the can. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...true...but a consistent reading of Emerson has its uses nevertheless.

StuMusic