Backdrops
- Thread starter John P
- Start date
Make your own! For cloth backdrops, use some appropriately coloured sheets. I had a black sheet and a gray sheet sewn together, back to back, to give me two options when doing portraits. You could type this into your browser:
DIY photography backdrops
You'll be amazed at how many YouTube videos there are on the subject. Pick the one you like and go from there.
Just-Clayton
Senior Member
I am starting with the basic black and white drops. I have been doing Christmas shoots with a green screen. I bought a digital backdrop cd for Christmas. I might look into traditional backdrop cd also.
Robert Mitchell
Senior Member
I'll throw in my 2 cents here.
Mottled backgrounds, while some are nice, tend to give portraits a somewhat dated look. It depends on the type and style but they can be pricey and unless you're prepared to have many different backgrounds, you'll tire of them and the look fairly quickly.
More and more people want that urban, fashion-type look to their portraits and don't want those backgrounds that tend to scream "Hey, the 80's called. They want their backgrounds back."
There are some nice alternatives that are a solid color with slight wisps of white and minute gradations. Not only are they usable for more types of work but because they are neutral they are easily colored with gels and by controlling the amount of light that hits the background you can render anything from black to white with little effort.
Colors and mottled backgrounds tend to pull the eye away from the subject and unless you're going to use knitted backgrounds you'll get frustrated by muslin and other fabrics because they wrinkle and have creases which are a pain in the arse to get out. You'll be steaming or ironing constantly if the background won't be hung permanently.
I'm speaking from experience, as I used to have many muslin backgrounds and they're all long gone for all the reasons mentioned above.
Robert Mitchell
Senior Member
Other than one Lastolite knitted background that I use about once a year, I no longer use any fabric backgrounds. I really dislike them and I do tire of even the coolest ones so quickly.
If you're producing work for clients then you could use one background and it's fine, but if you're going to have a portfolio or image gallery to show potential clients, you don't want to be the guy that uses the same background all the time.
I use large rolls of seamless paper, in black, gray and white. I can use gels and project patterns all day long and never have the same background. I also use a faux stucco white wall and have a textured concrete wall outside my studio.
The other thing I do is to have 4 ft. x 8 ft. sheets of tile board or masonite that I paint and create abstracts or textured surfaces. When I'm tired of it I paint it again and after it's been used and used, I chop it up, toss it and get a few new panels. This gives me the greatest flexibility and lets me explore all my ideas for color, texture, color wash, etc.
When I do things like family and family location portraits (about once a year.... it's just not my thing) where I couldn't work outside or had to work in someone's home, I use the simplest knitted background I could find with the softest look and none of the color mottling that I hate so much.
Lastolite has a line of knitted backgrounds that are large enough to put behind a group and whether it's in focus or out of focus it's not distracting and doesn't introduce anything other than a very light bluish, sky-like wash behind them. It's 10 ft. x 24 ft. and I only have one. Denny Manufacturing also have a line of knitted, wrinkle free backgrounds in a wider variety of styles and color but they are also much more expensive.
It should also be noted that wrinkle free backgrounds don't pop out of the bag with no wrinkles. The concept is that once you stretch it tight and clamp it off to light stands, there are no visible wrinkles, whereas if you did that with a muslin background you'd still have creases and wrinkles. The knitted backgrounds are outstanding for working quickly and not worrying about how close you are or what aperture you shoot to get rid of wrinkles.
If you're producing work for clients then you could use one background and it's fine, but if you're going to have a portfolio or image gallery to show potential clients, you don't want to be the guy that uses the same background all the time.
I use large rolls of seamless paper, in black, gray and white. I can use gels and project patterns all day long and never have the same background. I also use a faux stucco white wall and have a textured concrete wall outside my studio.
The other thing I do is to have 4 ft. x 8 ft. sheets of tile board or masonite that I paint and create abstracts or textured surfaces. When I'm tired of it I paint it again and after it's been used and used, I chop it up, toss it and get a few new panels. This gives me the greatest flexibility and lets me explore all my ideas for color, texture, color wash, etc.
When I do things like family and family location portraits (about once a year.... it's just not my thing) where I couldn't work outside or had to work in someone's home, I use the simplest knitted background I could find with the softest look and none of the color mottling that I hate so much.
Lastolite has a line of knitted backgrounds that are large enough to put behind a group and whether it's in focus or out of focus it's not distracting and doesn't introduce anything other than a very light bluish, sky-like wash behind them. It's 10 ft. x 24 ft. and I only have one. Denny Manufacturing also have a line of knitted, wrinkle free backgrounds in a wider variety of styles and color but they are also much more expensive.
It should also be noted that wrinkle free backgrounds don't pop out of the bag with no wrinkles. The concept is that once you stretch it tight and clamp it off to light stands, there are no visible wrinkles, whereas if you did that with a muslin background you'd still have creases and wrinkles. The knitted backgrounds are outstanding for working quickly and not worrying about how close you are or what aperture you shoot to get rid of wrinkles.
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Tie dye
Robert Mitchell
Senior Member
I hope you're kidding. That's the exact look you don't want.
you can use coloured lights on a backdrop to alter it
http://www.webexhibits.org/causesofcolor/1BE.html
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aahy5YIz8VE
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http://www.webexhibits.org/causesofcolor/1BE.html
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aahy5YIz8VE
[/URL]
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Each to their own...I'm offering suggestions to the poster...
Robert Mitchell
Senior Member
Absolutely. As I always say, preference is a wonderful thing. I can only speak from my own experience and the reactions I've gotten and have seen when those types of backgrounds are used. They seem cool and interesting and fun and in the end no one really wants to see them. They're amazingly distracting in portraits where the subject(s) should where the eye is drawn. Backgrounds that cause the eye to wander or that introduce conflicting or bright colors can pull the eye.
In portraiture, it's really important to understand the psychology of the viewer and what science tells us that the viewer will like.
I'm offering suggestions based on that and not simply offering an alternative or a preference.
Too many people are caught up in exciting and colorful backgrounds and don't seem to have the same interest in making the subject of the portrait more interesting though the use of wardrobe, composition and lighting.
My nickel's worth.
In portraiture, it's really important to understand the psychology of the viewer and what science tells us that the viewer will like.
I'm offering suggestions based on that and not simply offering an alternative or a preference.
Too many people are caught up in exciting and colorful backgrounds and don't seem to have the same interest in making the subject of the portrait more interesting though the use of wardrobe, composition and lighting.
My nickel's worth.
Robert Mitchell
Senior Member
Random, soft patterns are ok but I'd stay away from anything with a repeating background.
I don't travel with seamless or work on location with it, so in the studio it holds up really well, especially when you're just using it as a background and not on the floor. Once it's rolled out on to the floor it will get dirty and shoes and heels will eat it up quickly. If it never has to touch the floor then it lasts a very long time.
If you roll the paper up in between uses and don't have it in an environment where temperature and humidity change a lot then it's a great solution. If you can't control climate and such then it can be frustrating and a bit of a pain when it buckles or warps from those changes in temp and humidity.
Another option, if it's truly an option for you, is to have a wall painted either gray or white and that works great. Paint it white and render it any shade of gray or white very easily. Paint it gray and render it as anything from black to white. Of course, you do need the right lighting and control over the light to do so but it's a great way to go.
I don't travel with seamless or work on location with it, so in the studio it holds up really well, especially when you're just using it as a background and not on the floor. Once it's rolled out on to the floor it will get dirty and shoes and heels will eat it up quickly. If it never has to touch the floor then it lasts a very long time.
If you roll the paper up in between uses and don't have it in an environment where temperature and humidity change a lot then it's a great solution. If you can't control climate and such then it can be frustrating and a bit of a pain when it buckles or warps from those changes in temp and humidity.
Another option, if it's truly an option for you, is to have a wall painted either gray or white and that works great. Paint it white and render it any shade of gray or white very easily. Paint it gray and render it as anything from black to white. Of course, you do need the right lighting and control over the light to do so but it's a great way to go.
Robert Mitchell
Senior Member
Then either a collapsible background or large knitted background will work well. I believe that Lastolite offers the same knitted backgrounds in collapsible versions.
Trying to work with seamless on location is too much of a hassle, so I'd skip it.
Trying to work with seamless on location is too much of a hassle, so I'd skip it.