learning the trade @ Mirecourt Photo

Photographer’s Note

(!!! IMHO, this photo is far too serious and there is something missing, difficult to explain - ***hesitated to post a crop of this one, more dynamic but it was too dark*** - but still interesting as a large view to see the workplace.

Guillaume, 17 years old, is doing his apprenticeship in his father's famous workshop in Mirecourt (Vosges, east France), a small town famous for his luthiers (making and repairing string instruments) since centuries.

Other youngsters, less priviledged, go to professional training lasting for 2 years if I remember well and will need to do "stages" afterwards.

Guillaume loves his job and his future is easy to guess, but he will have to fight fierce competition as there are lots of workplaces in the same town doing the same thing and unfortunately, the practice of a musical instrument is not compulsory in the schools in France, unlike in other countries - not in mine either... So there are not many violin, cello etc. players and not a big demand for new instruments.

Meet his father M. Jean-Pierre Voinson, a famous luthier here and here.

chiaretta, rigoletto, marion44, CMJC, g_panakia, papon, MiguelP, delkoo, DINOZOR, Floydian, daddo, tehanu_f, ALIRIZA, quillo, thea0211, faubry, broglia, holmertz, salvator, Vasa trouve(nt) cette note utile

Critiques | Translate

ruhmann (119) 2008-10-10 2:41

very beautiful light

chiaretta (1935) 2008-10-10 2:45

Hi Catherine,
a wonderful portrait, with a soft and charming light... very intimate.
TFS
Chiara

rigoletto (26704) 2008-10-10 2:51

so many elements come together to make a very appealing photo. great natural+artificial light compo, and the way that compo of light caresses each element in a different way, is breathtaking. i like the tight square crop. it sums up essentail elements and forbids the dissipation of the beholder's attention. furthermore, i like the subject a lot, and find it very interesting. as far as i've seen, there is no such "strings atelier" photo in TE.

marion44 (4284) 2008-10-10 2:58

Bonjour Catherine,
J'aime beaucoup ton recadrage qui évite que le jeune luthier heurte sa tête sur la bordure ! Même si l'arrière plan était en effet intéressant. Quelle concentration et quelle minutie. La luminosité accentue le côté intimiste et minutieux. Une photo belle et intéressante. Tous les liens le sont aussi d'ailleurs !
Marion

CMJC (3166) 2008-10-10 3:00

une très belle photo en clair obscur qui met bien en valeur l'application du jeune apprenti
qui plus est elle met en valeur l'apprentissage des métiers d'art et l'école de Mirecourt est réputée pour cette noble tâche

papon (857) 2008-10-10 3:05

Hi Catherine!!
Lovely shot...
Good expression of the daily life..I like the concentration of the man and this small but effective note to describe this image..

Have a nice day!!
Sunandan.

g_panakia (4004) 2008-10-10 3:15

hello Catherine,
really beautiful composition with stunning colours!!!
every detail stands in right place and you captured pretty well the expression of the figure working with devotion on the string of the instrument...
rgds,
georgia

MiguelP (14336) 2008-10-10 3:25

Oh Cath! I love this moment you bring us today. The perfect light and environment to portrait the art of handcraft. So elegant, so balance... Thanks.

mesutilgim (37200) 2008-10-10 3:52

Hi dear Cath,
Where shall I start ? Everything is such perfect ; pov, light, colors and cadrage.
A real masterpiece, quite different than your (wellknown) style. Very good notes makes it a perfect TE entry.
TFS and have a nice weekend
Best regards
MESUT ILGIM

delkoo (34652) 2008-10-10 4:15

bonjour catherine,
lumière d"exception pour un portrait bien maîtrisé, la concentration du jeune artisan est réellement bien rendue et l'éclairage artificiel, tel un spot, met l'accent sur le violon en phase de réalisation.

superbe
didier

faubry (32407) 2008-10-10 4:27

Bonjour cath, je préfère celle-ci à l'autre, plus intime, nous pouvons voir la concentration de l'artisan, tua s profité d'une belle lumière, pas facile à gérer.
bonne journée
bises
francine

MichaelTrezzi (3170) 2008-10-10 4:30

Hello Catherine, great environmental portrait - like the soft lighting and the very sparsely illuminated face of the young boy. Thanks for sharing. Rgds, Michael

Floydian (30970) 2008-10-10 6:19

Hello Catherine,
Missing...something, in here? I don't think so, i think it's perfect. The other larger version shows the violins on the wall, that's maybe the only thing in there what's better. But here it's the focus, the light, the work of art, the tools and the naked violin on the table what makes it to a great great photo. This is really good...high class documentary work...well done..!!!
Have a nice weekend, Henk

DINOZOR (6669) 2008-10-10 6:20

Hello Catherine,
Bravo j'aime beaucoup ce clair obscur sans faux pittoresque. Le choix judicieux du format carré densifie l'intérêt du sujet.Une belle prise pleine de sens.
Cordialement.

daddo (11511) 2008-10-10 6:30

Hi Catherine. Your lovely use of light reminds me of Caravaggio and his wonderful use of chiaroscuro. beautiful and intense work. Regards. Klaudio.

bantonbuju (48796) 2008-10-10 7:24

one of those classical "industrial" portraits that one cannot resist!... a masterpiece, in my opinion!
in every inch!
best, j.

tehanu_f (6874) 2008-10-10 7:49

look at the light! it's totally beautiful. I love the way it highlights his features. but most of all, the strongest light on the violin is awesome. I am really jealous of this shot, cath.

ALIRIZA (16197) 2008-10-10 8:56

Hi Catherine,
Great POV of the working man. I like composition, light and the concentration of the man a lot. Well done my dear friend...
All the best...
Ali Rıza

jonathan_hart (22607) 2008-10-10 9:21

par rapport à la photo sur TL, sur cette version, la lumière sur le bras est un plus, le fait de couper la partie à droite est une option classique pour recentrer l'attention mais la laisser n'était pas sans intérêt non plus
amicalement
jc

quillo (7266) 2008-10-10 9:53

-

Hola amiga Catherine:

This image is a small jewel, the light that it illuminates to the violin in construction, the hands of the young craftsman and his profile in full concentration in the work do of your composition an excellent work, congratulations.

Un abrazo y que tengas un feliz fin de semana.

-

thea0211 (1355) 2008-10-10 10:00

hi cath,
yet another living proof that a good photographer doesn't need exotic places or people to prove his/her skills ;o)
beside the 'action' (which i always like, i'm a fan of "people involved in activities" photography) i believe the soft, warm light makes this one a winner. love the concentration on the boy's face and in his gestures. interesting story, as always!
well done!
dora

Ber (7576) 2008-10-10 10:17

Hi Catherine!!
A real masterpiece! Everything is such perfect
congratulations
Ber

Polonaise (5638) 2008-10-10 14:34

Charmingly great...

Seductive and captivating…
A small miniature with the human touch…
Like a Pinocchio working for Geppetto…
And the Red violin somewhere in between…
And the light…!
The light !!!

A scherzo for violin and Ixus 90 IS…

))))

………………
Both WS's… A great addition to the main motive…

chris04stop (2495) 2008-10-10 17:29

Ma che bella, intelligente foto. Con quella luce così calda. E il violino... il violino che aspetta solo qualcuno che lo suoni, meravigliosamente. Sai...nella mia fantasia, gli strumenti aspettano solo il loro grande artista. Ti abbraccio forte, sei bravissima,
Anna Paola

Greyfinn (32) 2008-10-11 1:11

Wow !
VERY wonderful portrait. Great POV and soft light - like on fameous flamish master canvas...
Light remaind me Jan Vermeer's "Woman with a Lute" - really your pic is a masterpiece
Piotr

nirvana73 (8826) 2008-10-11 1:37

Merhaba Catherine,
harika ışık
harika renkler
güzel kompozisyon
paylaşım için teşekkürler
selamlarımla
Özhan GÜRSOY

horatiuTT (4566) 2008-10-11 3:10

Hi Cath,
wonderful portrait during the art work,I like the angle used
and the light,it's a wonderful scene.
Horatiu

bostankorkulugu (33924) 2008-10-11 3:18

poetic use of light... loved the tight framing increasing the rate of concentration on what he is doing... a fisrt class portrait that is catherine, my compliments...

broglia (3351) 2008-10-11 4:39

This is beautiful Cath - I love the mixture of natural & artificial light. The tones are wonderfully warm - the composition perfect.

Best regards, Roberto

MarcT (21103) 2008-10-11 6:29

Salut Cath,
J'aime beaucoup cette lumière intimiste.
L'éclairage du violon fonctionne à merveille.
Amitiés
Marc

holmertz (9913) 2008-10-11 12:20

Hello Catherine,
Except for the modern lamp, this could have been a painting by some Dutch master. The light is excellent and there are so many interesting details to watch.
Greetings,
Gert

emka (22177) 2008-10-11 16:24

Hi Catherine,

Fantastic photo of this young violin maker. Lovely portrait in splendid light. It looks like a painting of the old master. It is wonderful that he continue a long family tradition even if the demand is not so big.

Warm regards

Małgorzata

salvator (18855) 2008-10-12 16:38

Bonsoir Catherine,
Wonderful sharpness and a very nice pov. The use of light and colors look wonderful.
Amities. Salvator.

Vasa (6170) 2008-10-13 15:00

Bonsoir chere Catherine,

encore une photo dont j'aimerais etre l'auteur, ou bien, j'aimerais le faire comme tu le fais avec facilite, spontaneite, engagement mantal et habilement. Tu trouves facilement le theme, souvent la ou il est dificile a le decouvrir et tu habilles le sujet en coulerurs seduisantes. C'est le cas de cette photo aussi, dans laquelle tu as utilise la lumiere comme un merveilleux util. Je suis tres fier de cette photo et de notre amitie.

Si je reste a Belgrade les jours suivants, je me regalerais dans ta gallerie ou beaucoup de photos m'ont echapees pendant que je faisais le photo-safari dans la region danubienne.

Grandes amities et tout mon encouregement!

Branko

didemay (2435) 2008-10-24 1:37

Cath,
This photo really attracted me...Because I loveeee luthiers. When I went to a meeting in Strasbourg, my friend who lived there wanted to buy a Baroque bow..and I begged her to go together... It was perfect...to see the old, ancient, valuable instruments played by precious fingers...That's why I envy you now:)
Great POV, perfect light. A beautiful frame.
Best Regards,
D:)
Unfortunately, during that time did not have a camera like this...

wolf38 (13061) 2008-11-09 1:53

Hello Catherine. A photo from the world of the work and the handicraft. The close frameworks is ideal, because it shows only the really important. Very beautiful light. Altogether perfectly. Regards, Wolfgang.