Why is this pic better?

GAD

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This pic makes me happy(ish):
Guild-1984-X80-Maple-TopFull.jpg






This pic does not:

Guild-1999-X170T-Mars-FullTop1.jpg



First one to figure out why get's a free cookie (Grot's buyin'!) It has nothing to do with the guitars themselves - this is a photography thing.
 

walrus

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Two things: They may not be what you are thinking, but I think the "shadow" of the whammy bar on the first one is very cool! The "shadow" on the second photo just seems to cover the finish up.

Also, the "white" on the back of the neck of the second photo is too prominent.

walrus
 

Zelja

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The X-170 has an artifact/light reflection (near the pickguard bracket) whilst the other one is free of such things?
 

fronobulax

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The X-170 has an artifact/light reflection (near the pickguard bracket) whilst the other one is free of such things?

That's what I was thinking since I seem to recall a prior comment about being frustrated by reflections. Curiously I would have referenced the artifact as near the "waist". Is that because I have some disorder that makes me assign human characteristics to guitars or is it because a pickguard is irrelevant to a bass player who uses fingers?
 

Bonneville88

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Gad, your pics are generally awesome... even the bad ones are!

Shadows look unnatural on the 2nd pic - most noticeable where the binding on the back looks like
it has another dark outline on it vs a shadow transitioning from dark to light.
The shadow under the neck is ambiguous - almost making it
look like the guitar has a really thick neck. The transition between the shadow around the lower binding
as it transitions to the shadow of the neck looks odd...

Edit: The second pic is shot at slightly more of an angle, the resulting perspective isn't as pleasing
as the first photo.

I could pick some more but gotta get to work!
 
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rampside

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The top one was a little more pop and definition. Most notably in the headstock, tuning pegs and strings. Also, the angle of view is a little better.
 

dreadnut

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The angle of the top one makes for no reflections.
 

GAD

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The X-170 has an artifact/light reflection (near the pickguard bracket) whilst the other one is free of such things?

Though all of you had great observations, this is the one that bothers me. There are specular highlights on the strings right at the neck pickup on the X170T. If you look at any of my pics where the guitar is head on, this reflection is there, though it will vary in position based on where I was standing.

1988-Guild-Liberator-Elite-TopFull.jpg


Guild-1977-S60-FullTop.jpg


It is an especially obnoxious problem on pics like this where the lighting is uneven with there being a hotspot on the fretboard.

1988-Guild-Liberator-Elite-Inlays.jpg



This is me working with what I had.

The X-80 pic was taken with the flash off the camera and onto the side. That led to a whole host of other problems, though, most notably odd shadows. This is a version of the X80 pic before I processed it. Note the extreme shadows:

5D3_3131_1600.jpg



I finally got so fed up with all of this that I bought a new set of lights. Instead of trying to manipulate a single light (which is a great exersize BTW), I'll now have three lights that should allow me a lot more control over everything. My crutch has always been Photoshop. Since I'm reasonably good at post-production, I generally just fix any problems I see in post. Take the dirty footprint on the white background in that last pic - the one to the left of the knobs. That's in the original X-80 pic as well. I just removed it along with the goofy shadow.

Cookies for everyone!
 

mavuser

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have to say GAD, I haven't a clue what you are talking about or how to find it in the photos, but those are some gorgeous guitars and fantastic pictures of said gorgeous guitars!
 

GAD

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have to say GAD, I haven't a clue what you are talking about or how to find it in the photos, but those are some gorgeous guitars and fantastic pictures of said gorgeous guitars!


Thanks!

A "specular" highlight is basically one that directly reflects the lighting source. The strings are shiny in a spot because the flash source has been reflected right off of the strings back into the camera lens. To use my favorite technical term, it's icky.

Photography is a lot like writing in that if you get the basics right people will like it but there are little things that make a world of difference. I once wrote a story and gave it to my wife to read. She said, "I like it." Hmm. I took it back and edited it with an eye for something called cadence and when she read it again she said, "Wow! This is much better!" When I asked why, she couldn't tell me and said, "I don't know; it just is."

Lighting is like that. When it's terrible people notice. When it's good people don't notice (which is good because then they focus on the subject). When it's amazing people say, "wow!", but most can't tell you why.
 

mavuser

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ahh yes I see what you are talking about. i have that same issue when i take (amateur) photos of my guitar. the effect on your X-170T is quite minimal, though. man the camera teally likes that X-80 Swan. so do I!
 
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