Photos SharpByCoop's Gallery of Handmade Knives

BTW: Who am I? (an unanswerable query)

Many of you know me personally or have even seen my image somewhere. I asked my mother-in-law to take a photo of myself, my charming wife Susan, and my 9-yr-old son Trevor this past month at a family dinner. I wanted to have a single snapshot of this point in our lives.

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I have knife images to post real soon, but this is a little sidebar of the treasured humans involved in MY household.

Coop
 
Beautiful family Jim...... :thumbup::cool:

Thanks for all the great photos. - :thumbup:

TA
 
I'm interested,
I'm pretty sure I have all of Darom's books would love to have yours too.

Of course his prices usually eventually fall in the 20 ish range.

As I understand it, he takes fees for makers to be included in his books

I like the idea of you controlling the process & would be willing to pay somewhat more for a book where I know
the decision to be included is based on quality, or theme rather than subscription fees.

My suggestions

In reference to the pages shown above like this one
http://www.fototime.com/0A7263CB64B6C9E/orig.jpg


The photos are pretty small, the black background borders and margins pretty large.

I suggest keeping the pics as large as possible; after all that's the point.

I prefer white pages and black text
It usually has a better text quality that the reverse.

I also strongly agree with maker/contribution credits on the same page.




I checked the pricing and such on the publishing page
maybe you can get better pricing elsewhere, perhaps ask Darom?
the prices seem high, especially when you look at the low page count.







and
I also got a kick out of watching your bike race youtube videos.
 
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GREAT family photo Coop. You, Susan and Trevor make a nice family, and I would say Trevor has some AWESOME parents!

Knowing you, i'm sure your selections of what to include in the book will be done in a fair, logical way.

Peter
 
SharpByCoop said:
I've been giving the book project more thought. As expected, it's not going to be nearly as easy as constructing a single version to show the local acquaintances.

I am hesitant to make a book that is fairly short and vibrant. That's what I want.

The hesitancy I am having will surprise you--but it's VERY real to me: Who's work am I going to alienate by NOT including it. I have 6700 knife images and about 3000 of those were paid for by specific clients.

Imagine you've been working with me over many years and, of the 100 images I choose, your work isn't included. Hmmmmm.....

Because, of course, art is subjective, and if I am the editor of my own book, then I have my own sense of what appeals to me visually. That said, I have a business to monitor, which is a responsibility to my clients. All of them.

I'd like advice on this one, please.

Coop
Click to expand...

advice?

It's your book - make it like you want it to be......
And once you have done one and it's a success - Make another one to include some stuff you may have left out of the first one?

I know you probably do not have any images of my knives yet? (some day?:):thumbup:)
And that don't matter right now.

What I think is great - is that you are going to try and put a book out...
I would more than likely pick one up.......:D

TA
 
T.A.DAVISON said:
advice?

It's your book - make it like you want it to be......
And once you have done one and it's a success - Make another one to include some stuff you may have left out of the first one?
TA
Click to expand...

That's great advice.

The fact is, knowing you, I think you'd do your absolute best to choose a broad sampling of images that well represents the rich diversity of the custom knife world - everything from highly embellished art daggers to ultra clean slipjoints to rustic frontier style knives to hard-use tacticals. You'd select photos that, for whatever reason, really came together for you, and you'd do it in a way that all your customers would truly respect and appreciate.

Most importantly, I think every one of your customers would be grateful for the wonderful homage your book would pay to their craft. Indeed, every time someone new is introduced to the world of custom knives through your book, each of us - makers and collectors alike - will benefit in some way. That should enough to make us all happy.
 
Peter, 1234567890, Todd, Derrick: Thanks for this input. It's validating. There was a point last week where I thought I was CRAZY to do such a thing. I felt I would shoot myself in the foot. (I may do that anyway. ;))

I need to study the selections and format even more. No way, even with 100 images, can I hope to capture all I'd like to show.

Derrick: Yes, a representative example of some of the best of the genre's, is a good start.

Coop
 
If you decide to stick with that low page count, perhaps you can plan out several editions.

with the collector mentality, we are going to buy all the books you publish anyway.

Maybe very very narrow scope for each edition.

daggers

Folders
- slipjoints
---specific makers, or handle material - or pattern


engraving
-bank note
- wildlide


bowie
-wood
-stag
- ?


fighter
chute

loveless style makers
western stye bowies



It's endless
just start with a list of classifications and put out a book or 2 each year for the next 20 years

maybe offer maker specific cutom editions, you do the layouts for a specific maker ?


I'm willing to be you could almost fill a book with Bruce Bump cut and shoots alone.



40 pages, 2 books per year, 20 years
40 editions & 40 pages is 1,600 images total


bigger pics - the collectors and folks with funds, all seem to be of a certain age and eyesight.
 
Too much talk and a lot more action...

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Continued....
 
Charles Vestal and Mark Knapp had standalone threads on these fantastic knives:

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But no one here has seen these beauties from R.J. Martin. This trio was made especially for his VERY successful 2012 Tactical Invitational showing in Las Vegas. All sold.

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Let me see what else I can bring to the table.

Coop
 
SharpByCoop said:
BTW: Who am I? (an unanswerable query)

Many of you know me personally or have even seen my image somewhere. I asked my mother-in-law to take a photo of myself, my charming wife Susan, and my 9-yr-old son Trevor this past month at a family dinner. I wanted to have a single snapshot of this point in our lives.

orig.jpg


I have knife images to post real soon, but this is a little sidebar of the treasured humans involved in MY household.

Coop
Click to expand...

Great family photo Jim, you have a beautiful family, and after all is said and done, family is what matters most.

This thread is my source of the cutting edge. Not only the best of the best in custom knives, but also the field leader in photography.

Thanks Jim!

tomboy
 
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SharpByCoop said:
Because, of course, art is subjective, and if I am the editor of my own book, then I have my own sense of what appeals to me visually. That said, I have a business to monitor, which is a responsibility to my clients. All of them.

I'd like advice on this one, please.

Coop
Click to expand...
Make your book into a series of volumes based on artists' last name. A - E, F - J, K - O, P - T, U - Z as an example. Break down the volumes as you see fit. Maybe A - E would make for a super short book, or F - J might make for a super large book. Break it down to make a decent length for each volume.
 
Just saw the picture of the family. Good looking family and happy new year.

Scott
 
^^^ Same model, different knife. The pattern is different.

Jim
 
...Goodness GRACIOUS these are stunning!

Barry Davis considers the late Jim Schmidt as his most endearing personal friend and mentor. After ten years, he's decided to start paying him tribute, with knives styled in Jim's fashion.
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Tore Fogarizzu never disappoints. This is an auto.
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I really like this pair. Ricardo Velarde is back in the game!
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Traditional done to perfection, by John Young.
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Coop
 
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