making the floor white as seamless paper in photoshop

[Charliedelta]

Hello,

I am about to do a photoshoot with a model, I have a white collapsible backdrop (not the seamless paper, just the vertical piece of fabric). The final images I am trying to achieve would look like if the shoot was done with seamless paper in the background, with here standing on white, but my floor is wood floor. So I am trying to figure out a way in photoshop to make the floor match the color of the background , hopefully avoiding any horizontal lines where the background and the floor meet. Does anybody how to know it?

would selecting everything on the floor but her, and go "fill in selected" choosing with tohe color picker the thite from the background work?

thanks

 

[Buckster]

You'll need a GOOD working knowledge of masking your subject out of the background / floor, and blending her into a new one. The GOOD at blending part means there will be no ultra-sharp edges between her and the background/floor, which is not how photos look. That's where good masking and good use of feathering and so forth come into play. It also usually means that she will take on some of the color cast, especially along the edges, of whatever color she's against. On the original wood floor, her feet and maybe more will pick up some orange/brown tones. Those will need to be replaced with white tones if you replace the wood floor with white, for instance, or it won't look right.

Particularly difficult with floors is that unless you can really do believable shadows, which is a lot more difficult than it may sound, your model will look unnatural in relation to it, usually like she's floating above it, in space.

I have a white floor when I need it, made from two 4x8 foot sheets of white shower panels laying next to each other. They're REALLY inexpensive from a local big box home improvement store. They stay on the floor in my studio and are covered with a large ornate rug, so that I can use either. When needed, I just roll the rug out of the way, and I have my white floor.

I do that so that I have to fuss less with Photoshop to do what you're talking about, and I have a LOT of experience with masking and blending and shadow-making, as that's a REALLY big part of my particular portrait photo business, but it's just SO much easier to start with them on white in the first place, whether I want them to end up on white in the final image, or whether I want to use it to make masking them out a LOT easier, so that I can drop in virtually any other background and floor in post.

Edited to add: In your situation, even throwing a white sheet on the floor under her feet would probably help you immensely later, when trying to edit it in Photoshop. Just do all you can to straighten the wrinkles out of it. Taping down the corners and edges with it stretched works well.

 

[dennybeall]

You could do that. The background would look flat. You'll need to touch up the edges.
Difficult job to do well as buckster says above.

 

[Light Guru]

Go by a roll of butcher paper before your shoot. Its much easier to fix paper seems in photoshop then to fake a floor and background.

 

[KmH]

Where in New York are you? NYC?
You can have a white background & a white floor for $45.
If you prefer Adorama

 

[Charliedelta]

mmh... I would like to continue using the collapsible backdrop (it's a gift, and for taht reason I'd like to use it), I guess I could use the seamless paper on the floor? But at that point, wouldn't it be better to get a white panel from the arts and craft store? And also, wouldn't it be a problem being that it's probably difficult to get the same exact white on the backdrop and the "floor"?

 

[Charliedelta]

and how about using a white bed sheet for the floor?

 

[Light Guru]

mmh... I would like to continue using the collapsible backdrop (it's a gift, and for taht reason I'd like to use it), I guess I could use the seamless paper on the floor? But at that point, wouldn't it be better to get a white panel from the arts and craft store? And also, wouldn't it be a problem being that it's probably difficult to get the same exact white on the backdrop and the "floor"?

I'm sorry but plan the photo shoot based in the image you want to make not based in the your latest photo gift.

 

[Designer]

mmh... I would like to continue using the collapsible backdrop (it's a gift, and for taht reason I'd like to use it), I guess I could use the seamless paper on the floor? But at that point, wouldn't it be better to get a white panel from the arts and craft store? And also, wouldn't it be a problem being that it's probably difficult to get the same exact white on the backdrop and the "floor"?

There is a reason wide rolls of sturdy paper are sold in a variety of colors: It works.

A white panel from the art store will still show a seam, that is why seamless paper is called "seamless". If you pull it down far enough to have some on the floor, there is no seam to diddle with later, even if you are good at photoshop.

The exact same color will be on the backdrop and on the floor since the same paper is in both places. Seamless. Hasel-free. Easy. Cheap. No need to diddle for a couple of hours in photoshop.

 

[beachrat]

I would think that it's gotta be waaaayyy easier to buy a roll of paper.

 

[Buckster]

Yeah, even with my white panel floor, I'll often just roll out a seamless on top of it, depending on my needs for that particular shoot.

Maybe he just doesn't have the $45 bucks to spare right now for some seamless.

How big is the collapsible? I have a large reversible one with a train to turn it into a seamless wall to floor. You may have something intended for portraits that simply aren't full length though, and if that's the case, just use if for that, and you can tell whomever gave it to you that's what it's for, and thanks very much.

 

[KmH]

An advantage of using seamless paper pulled out to also cover the floor is that the paper curves where it transitions from vertical behind the subject to horizontal on the floor.
The curve of paper hides the line where the wall and the floor meet.
Some professional photographers and/or production companies go so far as to build a structure called a cyclorama wall to create the same kind of seamless background and floor.