Easy Backgrounds for Portraits

[pageta]

I'm wanting to see if I can do some simple portraits of my children at home. I want a simple, plain background - either black or white - that I can use to take candid shots of my kids like my favorite photographers do. I don't mind going to the fabric store and buying some fabric - I'm just not sure what to get. I am on a budget so I can't just order the stuff that the pro's use for $200 per backdrop.

Do I want something that reflects light or absorbs it? Silky fabrics would be more "reflective"; a straight cotton weave (like a bed sheet) would be more matte. I just want a plain background so you see the kids, not the backdrop. Could I just buy bed sheets (like a king-size flat) and use them (at least for the white one)?

Then when I take the pictures, I'm thinking I'll hang the backdrop behind the kids and have it come out onto the floor far enough that I can take pictures of them at least three feet in front of the hanging portion of the backdrop. Does that sound about right? I want to use a large aperature so the background is not focused, even though it is plain white (or black).

Suggestions anyone?

[alissasanderson]

I use bedsheets all the time! Granted, I'm no pro, but it works for me. I keep mine wadded up in a sack, though, so they're nice and crinkly--I don't know how simple it would be to make it look flat and smooth. Probably lots of ironing:D

Something I have learned, though, is that bedsheets are pretty sheer if there's any light source at all behind them. If it's not going to be flat on a wall I'd double up, or even triple the layers.

I took this with 2 white sheets draped over a clothes drying rack. I set it up facing a large picture window for the natural light:

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/alissaspics/394526119/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/156/394526119_8d8f67ee01.jpg" width="500" height="347" alt="Drew 2" /></a>

Several others from this setup on Flickr, right around this one in my photostream.

[Saralonde]

Here are a few threads that may help you
http://digital-photography-school.com/forum/showthread.php?t=950
http://digital-photography-school.com/forum/showthread.php?t=133&highlight=backdrop
and this site http://www.diyphotography.net/homestudio/chaep-diy-muslin-photography-background

[Darren Rowse]

nice one alissasanderson :-)

cute shot too.

[Ptollemy]

I'm also a big fan of bed sheets. We have a home made stand rigged up in the studio, with four bed sheets hanging from it (white, blue, scarlet, black). When we want to move from one colour to another, we simply flip the sheet over the top of the stand. The extra layers also counter-balance the thinness of the material.

Because the sheets are haning up all the time, most of the creases have long since dropped out.

Hope this helps,
kind regards
Ptollemy :)

[chris]

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/18834464@N00/412028571/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/130/412028571_1a83d85fec_m.jpg" width="160" height="240" alt="gina party (36 of 65)" /></a>

hi this is 1 i have taken of my wife this is just some material from the shop
with a lamp behind her and the bounsing my flash off the all

as i just got a new Flash the nikon SB-600 and i would never go back to the on bored flash again ..lol

plz take a look on my flickr and have a look at some of the photo's i have taken of my wife and tell me what u think

[Christa]

I just had my 1st digital camera for a couple of days when i played around and got this.

The backgrounds are black towels
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d14/mom2natenty/tynakedlyingdown.jpg

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d14/mom2natenty/tyupclose.jpg

I just wanted to say that look around your home and you'd be surprised at what might give a good background.