Backdrops...

[fadingaway1986]

Hey there,
i am hoping to grab my cousins in the next couple of months and do some photos of them. I have been looking around for backdrops for a while now - and I think I may have found it...

I was looking for a pillow case for my bed at work today - and the person working in that area told me to follow - and she showed me a Double Bed Quilt Cover set... (DB Quilt cover & 2 pillowcases)... for $7. (Plus we have a 25% off manchester sale - so this set cost me $5.25)... I also bought a flat sheet for a single bed... cost me $7... I was already thinking about using a flat sheet - but wasnt sure if it would be too thin.. Anyway - I got home and opened them up - the sheet is pretty thin - however the quilt cover seems perfect to me! the front of it is sort of satiny... and has embossed flowers on it - but the back of it is a flat cream colour...

Just wanted to check with you guys what you thought about this - do you think that will do the job? It doesnt come out across the floor too far - but I figure I could always stick the sheet under it that comes out the rest of the way. The colours are slightly different - do you think that will matter?


Thanks for any help..

 

[Varthlokkur]

You wont know until you try. I would think it might be too thin but you will have to test and see. Good Luck.

 

[LizM]

I've made my own backdrops in the past. Get some unbleached Muslin. Sew a seam around the edge then wash it to get the sizing out. Then use the "wad it up and dunk it in dye" method several times with several different colors - rinsing between each.

They came out looking like those "old master" style backgrounds.

 

[fadingaway1986]

Oh cool. thanks for that

 

[LizM]

Oh, if you use Rit brand dye - DON'T forget the salt! Have to add lots of salt to make vivid colors!!!

 

[Shutterbug]

Errrr... In my experiance cloth doesnt make a very good backdrop at all, unless you want the (In my opinion, ugly) texture of the highlights on the texture of the cloth.

For 30 bucks, you can get a 4 foot white paper seamless, which is cool for doing upper body/head stuff, and for 20 more you can get an 8 foot one, which is great for full body stuff. If you have the proper lighting, you can just add a colored filter to the light to change the color of the background. If you don't, then you might have to deal with the texture.

Also, if you could find a fairly simple colored wall, and overexpose by one stop, it might get the effect that you are looking for.

 

[fadingaway1986]

I think the paper is out of the question at the moment... I assume thats $30US? so that would be around $60 AU... Or $20US more for the 8foot - therefore $100...

And I'm not sure I trust kids with paper...

I'm not sure what you mean by highlights on the texture of the cloth?

Here is a quick photo i took with my teddy bear... I need to iron the cloth - but you get the idea...

 

[LizM]

I've used my home-made backdrops for paying jobs and everyone has loved them. Here's one I just snapped (with a subject that would rather be playing Spyro) without setting up studio lights or anything.

The texture he was talking about is probably the wrinkles - like you said - iron! Oh, a tension rod (one of those expandible shower curtain rods with a spring in it to hold it tight - not sure what they are called down under) works wonders in the shower to put the freshly dyed cloth over for rinsing if you have one of those hand-held shower heads. The rod also works great for putting up in a doorway to hang the finished backdrop over!

Best of luck to you!!!

 

[Alison]

Liz, details please on how you made that backdrop!!! We pay A LOT for backdrops that look just like yours and I would much rather make them myself.

 

[LizM]

It starts out as unbleached muslin (like you can get at any fabric store or Wal-Mart). Sew a hem around the edge - nothing fancy, just something to keep it from unraveling mericlessly when you wash it. If you want, you can sew a rod pocket but I fastened mine with clamps. Anyway, sew the hem and then wash it. No point in drying it - it needs to be damp for dying anyway. I use Rit dye - the liquid kind. Follow the directions on the box as far as how much salt and laundry soap to use. Heat the dye, salt, and soap on the stovetop (use a pot you don't want to use for anything else). While its heating wad up the fabric and tie it with white yarn in several places. No particular pattern to the tying - just the places you see will get the most dye. Pour the heated dye into a bucket set in the bathtub and fill most of the rest of the way with hot water out of the tap. Put the fabric in the bucket and occasionally stir, poke, and prod with a wooden dowel (about 1" diameter - available at local hardware and/or craft store) - of course, an old broomstick works too. After about 15-20 minutes -depending on how dark you want the dye - remove from the bucket and hang over a tensioner rod in tub and rinse (a hand held shower head works wonders at this point) until the water runs clear or mostly clear. Repeat with as many colors as you want, rewading and tying the fabric so that previously undyed spots get the dye. Start with the lightest color and finish with the darkest. The one in the pic I posted actually has 7 colors!!! Don't forget to follow the directions on the dye package at the end of all the colors to set the dye. They will fade over time as you wash it more and more but if you use something like Woolite and don't wash it very often (after all, how dirty can a hanging backdrop get) it'll last a long time!

Hope that made sense.