What are a few good ways to make photography backdrops.?

Question

Hi all. I am trying to find a good way to make my own backdrops. I would like to paint them but do not know techniques. And not scenic paint...I have never painted in my life...LOL! Any suggestions?

Answer 1

I'm not sure about the painting, but I have found it's easier and cheaper to either use black or white, or the great outdoors.  In my photography, I'm finding a lot of people don't want all the fancy lighting and stuff.  Good luck and sorry I don't have painting answers.  

Answer 2

You can use Ritt dyes in spray bottles on raw muslin that has been washed once. If the muslin is wet, the colors will spread, if dry they will not, so you can go for different effects. If you don't like it, bleach it out and start again. Once brave, use HIGHLY diluted latex house paint on the muslin.

Answer 3

In my earlier and more ambitious days I found these 4 and 5 ft wide pull down curtains worked rather well. They were vinyl and came in colors if you wanted to order them special. However, the local store then had 3 useful colors. Black, white and a cream.

I would take the white or cream colored ones and hit them with paint from spray cans. The patterns and color combo's would be up to you, but I found if I used brush on paints, they cracked quicker because they were thicker when the shade was allowed to roll it's self back up.

I also bought painters canvas, still cheap today, however try to find seamless sheets only hemmed around the edged. Many of these canvases have grommet holes too, to make hanging easier if you don't have back ground stands.

Here too you may splatter paint, spray, clothing dyes, even tie die it if you game enuf to tackle a sheet that big, which brings us to yet another idea..

Bed sheets..! Many colors and MANY patterns...! Not too expensive either if you buy just the sheet kind and not fitted, pleated or has formed edges for the mattress.

A more hi tech way is to - green screen - your images. Find a image editing program that allows you to swap a green screen with whatever you want and take your models images if front of the green screen. Many Malls do it now and can have you on a surf board in Hawaii when actually your in a studio in Topeka....

Walls of buildings, barns, garages, sheds - all make impromptu but good backgrounds. Bushes, a grove of trees, all thrown out of focus because of your camera settings and lens (zoom) used to do such.

Many home improvement places sell sheets of styrofoam in 4x8 ft sizes and down to 1/2 inch thick. These make good but cheap backgrounds when covered with something (paint, cloth, things...) or left white.

From these ideas you may be able to expand now and think of others that may work in your case..

Have fun

Bob - Tucson

Answer 4

A painters drop cloth is a good cheap last forever cloth you can find them at places like Home Depot ~~A 6 by 10-12 feet drop cloth for less than $10~~You can dye paint etc. They last forever and have a nice crushed look if you open them and then just crumble together with your hands~~ If there's an art teacher in a high school near you you could get in touch and ask for help on painting on cloth ~~~~

            Enjoy "E"