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  #106  
Old 02-11-2016, 05:22 AM
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That is really pretty Mark. Such an organic look to all the appointments and as you say the details make such a difference when they all fit, as your certainly do.
I wish you would share some of your photo secretes. All your pics look professionally done. Do you have a dedicated photo booth? If so would you take pics of that sometime?
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  #107  
Old 02-11-2016, 06:37 AM
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That is really pretty Mark. Such an organic look to all the appointments and as you say the details make such a difference when they all fit, as your certainly do.
I wish you would share some of your photo secretes. All your pics look professionally done. Do you have a dedicated photo booth? If so would you take pics of that sometime?
Thanks John,

The trick with photography is to spend your time building guitars and minimize the time it takes to take and post pictures. Here is a look "behind the curtains" at what I do;



In a back corner of my shop I have hung a black bed sheet (from Walmart) and there are 3 LED photo lamps; a backlight, a diffusing umbrella, and a more direct light. I have an old oak table with a green towel from Bed Bath and Beyond.
My camera is already on a tripod and it has wifi. It talks to my i-phone so I can control it remotely and grab the pictures. My i-phone talks to Flickr so the pictures are there waiting for me to post.

Another thing is I always do everything on this workbench:



You will notice it has wheels. At any point while building that I wish to have a guitar in process picture I simply roll it over to the corner and shoot it quick.
I've thought of devoting a thread somewhere to this work bench.
It also is a down draft table, it has a 100lb granite machinist's block in it which helps keep it steady and is my flat reference. It holds a ton of clamps or I can pull it over to where the tool I need is without letting go of whatever it is I can't let go of. It is also small so I have to clean up after each step before I start the next (that's a big deal).

So if that sparks any better ideas let me know!

Mark
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  #108  
Old 02-11-2016, 07:09 AM
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Thanks Mark

Very nice setup indeed. Looks like lighting is the thing. It also looks like you have a very nice camera. That must give you a lot of control over exposure.

That portable table is very clever indeed and it does give me some ideas.

Thanks again

John
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  #109  
Old 02-11-2016, 08:47 AM
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Thanks Mark

Very nice setup indeed. Looks like lighting is the thing. It also looks like you have a very nice camera. That must give you a lot of control over exposure.

That portable table is very clever indeed and it does give me some ideas.

Thanks again

John
You're welcome and you're right, the lighting is most important. With good lights you can get passable pictures with your phone.
I should mention that when you turn on the photo lights you turn off all of the other lights.

Many years ago I made my second guitar in a builder's class by Frank Finocchio.
Frank has his shop in Easton PA and had been an engineer for Martin Guitars for many years. Frank is a bigger than life Italian guy and a great teacher. I did not forget when he said, "You build guitars on a table, you repair guitars on a bench". I have found, having taken his advice, he's absolutely right.

Mark
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Last edited by Mark Hatcher; 02-11-2016 at 05:33 PM.
  #110  
Old 02-11-2016, 05:31 PM
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Default More Neck Wood

Just got this Honduran Mahogany board in the shop today. It has been in a local woodworker's shop for over 30 years. You don't come across big mahogany boards like this too often anymore.

I'll be all set with neck wood for awhile!



Mark
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  #111  
Old 02-11-2016, 09:37 PM
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Wow! Nice find!
  #112  
Old 02-12-2016, 06:35 AM
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Thanks guys!



Thanks Tom. You started it when you were in the shop and said "Oh, that live edge would look nice".

Hmmm, great, will I be getting any titles with this like, "design consultant" perhaps or maybe "guitar dreamer", or possibly "lucky stiff who came to my shop and blindly fumbled upon a cool idea that the luthier than took to the nth degree and made it really really cool?"

The last one is probably most accurate, but might be a little long for cards or letterhead!!!
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  #113  
Old 02-13-2016, 09:06 AM
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Hmmm, great, will I be getting any titles with this like, "design consultant" perhaps or maybe "guitar dreamer", or possibly "lucky stiff who came to my shop and blindly fumbled upon a cool idea that the luthier than took to the nth degree and made it really really cool?"

The last one is probably most accurate, but might be a little long for cards or letterhead!!!
Well that last idea is hard to top. We'll be starting up your guitar in two weeks and suspect this will be a fun ride!

Mark
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  #114  
Old 02-14-2016, 11:08 AM
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That is certainly a work of art. The use of fossils is fascinating. Are there are conservation considerations? I'm neophyte in that area.
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There are no customs restrictions on mammoth ivory and there is an increasing supply of these fragments coming up out of the ice. There have been concerns that regular elephant ivory has been sold as mammoth but there is an easy way to identify the difference. Ivory, whether elephant or mammoth is very similar to wood in that it has growth rings and radial lines similar to medullary rays. Elephant ivory rays run 90 degrees to the growth rings similar to wood. Mammoth ivory's rings run at about 120 degrees. Additionally, I just don't think there is an elephant equivalent to the partially fossilized outer bark.
I have some additional information I just found about restrictions on mammoth ivory; in 2014 both New York and New Jersey passed legislation against the sale of mammoth tusk and ivory. It's is my understanding there is not an issue owning it there but it cannot be sold there including sales through e-bay or e-mail etc. from out of state. It appears the reasoning behind this is that the bulk of illegal ivory that comes into our country comes through the NY and NJ ports and it's an enforcement issue that they feel they are not able to handle.
So this means if I were to do the Woodstock NY show I would not be bringing my Greta guitar with it's mammoth ivory embellishments.

If someone from NY or NJ were to drive up to my shop in New Hampshire to buy this guitar I would be free to sell it to them but, they would need to know that if they were ever wanting to resell the guitar in their state it would be a problem.

These are the only states I am aware of that due to their limited abilities to control illegal trafficking of ivory, have put this restriction in place. It does not affect the other 48 states or sales to any other country in the world.

If someone knows more about these legal issues than what I am saying please PM me

Looks like California has also passed similar restrictions to NY and NJs'.

Thanks
Mark
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Last edited by Mark Hatcher; 02-15-2016 at 04:32 PM.
  #115  
Old 02-14-2016, 11:35 AM
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Nothing more fun than wood prospecting
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  #116  
Old 02-15-2016, 04:10 PM
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Default Time to burn some wood!

I have access to a laser engraver now and was considering using that to create the "H" logo on the wood chip I glue inside the guitar but, the branding iron I use has become a ritual and I guess I'm just not ready to give up this 17th century technology yet!







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  #117  
Old 02-16-2016, 03:23 AM
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Did you try one with the laser just to see what it looks like? I'd be curious.
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  #118  
Old 02-16-2016, 08:59 AM
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Did you try one with the laser just to see what it looks like? I'd be curious.
I haven't yet but, will. I am also going to try the whole round logo that I have with Hatcher Guitaea on it. The laser can cut different depths and textures for each of the colors.
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  #119  
Old 02-16-2016, 11:33 AM
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Mark, I've always appreciated your burned-in logo. Not to say I wouldn't appreciate what a laser could do. But in all of our modernity, with its technical sophistication, it's refreshing to see at least a nod to the past.

Steve
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  #120  
Old 02-16-2016, 11:50 AM
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Mark, I've always appreciated your burned-in logo. Not to say I wouldn't appreciate what a laser could do. But in all of our modernity, with its technical sophistication, it's refreshing to see at least a nod to the past.
+1...Well put, Steve--my sentiments exactly!
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