Martin Guitar photo expedition
I have been a music fan for as long as I can remember. I played a couple different instruments throughout my school years, however the guitar was not one of them. I always wanted to play acoustic guitar so a few years ago I made my attempt to learn how to play. Upon searching for what acoustic guitar I would acquire I quickly learned by ear that nothing sounds like a Martin guitar. I was fortunate enough to be able to purchase a Martin DM to get me off an running. After a few years of lessons and playing, my enjoyment for the instrument grew and my appreciation for fine instruments like Martin also grew. Wanting to learn more about the amazing history of C.F. Martin guitars, I received a book for Christmas on the history of the company and was quickly amazed at the long standing legacy of the company that is the oldest guitar manufacturer in the world. My DM was eventually replaced by a Martin OM Marquis series, a guitar modeled after some of the best guitars that came out of the factory in the 1930′s.
Photography has been my profession for over 20 years now and for the last several years I have had some amazing experiences sharing my knowledge about photography through the wonderful and fun school of Dan’s Photo University. Back in February I was given an amazing opportunity to teach a class at the C.F. Martin guitar factory in Nazareth Pa. The class was designed to instruct students on how to photograph in a working factory and overcome challenges such as low light photography and mixed lighting that creates white balance issues. Since we are fortunate enough to have the oldest guitar manufacturer in the world located in our backyard of the Lehigh Valley, I also wanted to included journaling and composition into the class to help the students be able to tell a story of the craftsmanship behind these legendary instruments. The class included a 2 hour classroom lecture at Dan’s and then the students would have a couple days to practice techniques they learned before we were set to meet at CF Martin for a behind the scenes look at what makes them one of the finest acoustic guitar manufactures in the world for over 175 years.
The fine folks at Martin showed us a wonderful time. Since this was an instructional photography tour we were given extra time from the normal tour. I was there, along with another instructor to assist the students in taking advantage of their new techniques we discussed in the classroom just a few days ago. Below are a collection of images I photographed on our amazing expedition to C. F. Martin Guitar.
I love the fact the tour at the factory takes you through the actual working factory, standing over the shoulders of some of the most skilled craftsman in the industry. Besides the wonderful smell of rosewood, spruce & mahogany, there are so many beautiful pieces of wood that will make such fine instruments, but also make for great images of repeating shapes.
Any fine instrument can only be as good as the hands that create them. I wanted to show some of the quality craftsmanship and TLC that is put into these guitars by the staff at Martin. Years of hard work, pride and dedication shine through the moment you play or hear a Martin. The first image below is one of my favorites as it shows a craftsman hand fitting a dove tail neck joint, one of the most crucial stages in the process. As I understand, he has been doing this job for about 40 years.
When the tour and instructions were finished, Mr. Boak was so kind to help me set up a couple beautiful guitars for the students to take some close-up images.
After the fun experience everyone had, I am very excited about the possibility that we may do this again soon.
Jason
Awesome images!