How to create black background?

[dumbledoresnipples]

I want to capture a full body portrait and light the whole body up but I'd like to have a very dark background. I want it to be completely black, but I'd also like to hang stuff in the background and dimly light them up without exposing the background.

Here is an example:

Please do not post images to which you do not hold rights. You may post a link.

However I'd like to hang stuff on the background.

I have a D3200, no lighting hardware (willing to purchase) with a 35mm lens and the 18-55mm lens.

 

[AKUK]

All you have to do is keep the light off the background. You will have an easier time of this using flash, because you can kill ambient light with a combination of shutter and aperture. If you want to hang stuff in the background, then you will need the space to do this and again, keep the light off of the backdrop. If you are shooting against an already black backdrop it will be easier. You can also darken it in Photoshop, should some light spill upon it.

 

[photoguy99]

Making the background out of black stuff, or at least dark, will help obviously.

Less obvious is that the farther back it is (and therefore the bigger you have to make it) the easier it is to keep light off it, and therefore keep it looking black.

 

[tirediron]

Keep the light as close to the subject, and the subject as far from the background as possible (inverse square law). Use a dark/black background, and aim the light parallel to rather than at the background. In this example, the lighting was a single speedlight driving a large (22") gridded beauty-dish. The client is sitting in his easy chair, and there's a very light yellow/green wall about 4' behind him. The beauty dish was close enough that the edge of it was actually cropped out of the the image.

 

[JoeW]

You can shoot even in broad daylight and if you follow Tireiron's comments (light close to subject, subject far from backdrop) then you'll get a black background. That's why it sometimes makes sense to use a speed light during daylight (when you have enough ambient light to shoot without it)...the speed light up close (and the subject far from the wall) will produce a black background as the camera adjusts to the blast of light. The primarily points here are about light fall-off (the further the distance from the backdrop, the darker it becomes)

Here's a brief tutorial by Bryan Peterson about it: http://www.adorama.com/alc/0014214/...t-And-Replace-It-With-Flash-In-Broad-Daylight

 

[Christabel]

You can use a black velvet background, keep the light off the background.

some photographers artists work and used the black velvet and polarizers. The polarizers on the lens and the lights gave a deep black. Not sure how it will work with portraits, but it's worth a try.

 

[dumbledoresnipples]

What flash should I be using and where can I get it? What else would I need other than the flash?

 

[tirediron]

Pretty much any speedlight compatible with your camera as long as it gives you the option to manually control the output;

Craig's List, Amazon, eBay, any one of a half-dozen large mail-order photo-supply dealers or your local bricks-and-mortar camera store; and

A light stand, light-stand speedlight bracket and a trigger.

 

[astroNikon]

Might as well through this out there ... you'll want to read this book too ==> Light Science and Magic An Introduction to Photographic Lighting Fil Hunter Steven Biver Paul Fuqua 9780240812250 Amazon.com Books

I started with 1 flash too .. ended up with about 4 or 5 .. 3 backgrounds .. modifiers ... maybe will be adding a couple strobes ... it's a sickness I tell 'ya !!

 

[dumbledoresnipples]

Amazon.com Altura Photo Flash Kit for NIKON DSLR D7100 D7000 D5300 D5200 D5100 D5000 D3300 D3200 D3100 - Includes Altura Photo I-TTL Auto-Focus Dedicated Speedlite Flash Wireless Camera Flash Trigger and Camera Remote Control Function Cable-M Cord for Remote Control Protective Pouch Hard Flash Diffuser MagicFiber Microfiber Camera Photo

Is this Altura flash a good flash for my 3200?
Also are there different types of mounts for flash? Anything I need to look for specifically in the stands. Should I get an umbrella stand? I saw some stands without the umbrellas.

 

[Derrel]

Looks okay to me for $99, for what it has. Stands today have typically, a 5/8 inch "spigot" fitting on top; as part of the spigot on top is a ,ale 1/4" x 20 National Coarse thread: this is **the** North American standard threaded, male size for tripods, light stands, and many other small light-holding device, which are often called "grip gear". So...almost any lightstand you buy will have the 5/8 top with then 1/4x20 male threads on it.

One question I have, and cannot see from the pictures, if whether the Altura flash trigger's receiver has a 1/4 x 20 female socket on the underside of it!!!! if it DOES, then you could just thread it onto the lightstand, and put the flash onto the hotshoe on top of the receiver, and aim the flash using the tilting head of the flash, as long as you don;t need to angle the flash downward...

Most people would use what is called an umbrella swivel mount, which gives a LOT more flexibility as to how the flash can be aimed. The less-expensive, plastic umbrella swivel mounts, in the $12.99-$17.99 range are adequate in my experience...the metal ones are not worth the money, IMHO. An added bonus: the umbrella swivel mount allows you to slide in an umbrella, and shoot the flash into that, or through that umbrella!!!

I think a decent light stand from 8 to 13 foot in height and an umbrella swivel mount and a 32-40 inch umbrella are must-haves, just must-have gear. For "most" shoots, an 8-footer is adequate.

 

[Dave442]

Just wondering if you purchased the flash.
Just to add that what I often do when I want a black background while using flash is to first make sure that a shot taken without flash my camera setting are such that the background, even if it is a light color, is black. Then turn on the flash (on higher camera bodies you just hold on of the function buttons to keep the flash from firing) and see that you do not have light from the flash reaching the background. This is much easier to do with the flash off the camera where it can be placed closer to the subject than the camera.