BUDGET PHOTO SECRETS
Budget backdrops
By James Booth
They say, "Necessity is the mother of invention." I disagree. I think that photographers are the "mother" of invention.
Do you think you need to spend hundreds of dollars on seamless muslin backgrounds to have studio-quality portraits? Well you don't, and I'll show you a few methods that work well for me and yield rather nice results for very little money.
Harvesting household items
One of the cheapest and most readily available household items that can be used as a backdrop is that big blanket you have folded up in the closet. Blankets, quilts, and bedspreads make readily accessible backdrops and come in a variety of sizes, colors, and patterns. My father, also a photographer, once told me "the blue blanket is the photographer's best friend." In Figure A, you can see he was right, as a blue blanket makes an excellent backdrop.
FIGURE A
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Don't let your backdrop make you blue. Get a blue blankey. Click picture for a larger image.
Patchwork quilts will give a nice, homey, country feel. Character or cartoon-based children's bedspreads or comforters make good backdrops for children's portraits. [Do be aware, however, that if you do use a character or cartoon-based backdrop, and you plan to have your image published, there may be licensing or copyright issues involved. -- DG]
Look around your house; there are a lot of things that have unique textures, coloring, or patterns. In Figure B, I used my patio umbrella as a backdrop by laying it on its side.
FIGURE B
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Be creative. Feel free to use found objects. Click picture for a larger image.
Don't discount things like area rugs, tapestries, or drapes either. Anything with interesting color, texture, or patterning can be a backdrop.
To learn all you need to know to make your own great, budget backdrops, tap your mouse right here.
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