INDOOR BACKGROUNDS as the Pro's do it.

Sooner or later most who are serious about photography want to take photos indoors, and that means you have to find a suitable background.

Your needs can vary greatly of course, depending on whether you want to photograph a matchbox-sized item or a whole family gathering; needless to say your own tastes also have a substantial influence.

This little tutorial gives hints on types of backgrounds and how to support them.

We've all seen indoor photos taken against backgrounds which were totally unsuitable - dirty walls, ghastly wallpaper, creased sheets, folded drapes - all look very amateurish and often ruin an otherwise-good photograph.

The size of background you can use is often limited by available space, which in a home setup may be pretty tight. The examples in this tutorial were all done using no more than 180cm (~6') of wall and a similar-length table. You can make yours larger or smaller; the principles remain the same.

BACKGROUND MATERIALS

Almost anything can be used as a background, but some things are vastly superior to others. Various types of commonly available material are often pressed into service, including bed-sheets and cloth - velvet being quite popular. The usefulness of these (for photographic purposes) can range from extremely good down to zero depending on the situation. There are such a wide range of materials available that it's impossible to categorise them and say, "This will work; that won't work"; it often comes down to simply trying it out on a case-by-case basis.

A background that's nearly always excellent for most photo jobs is Seamless Background Paper; most pros and many good amateurs use it, but a lot of new-to-photography amateurs may not even know it exists.

Seamless Background Paper is heavy paper (or thin cardboard if you prefer) which comes in black, white, various greys and a wide range of colours. It's commonly supplied in rolls of two sizes - 1.3m wide x 11m long (53"x36') and 2.7m wide x 11m long (107"x36'). It comes packed in a solid cardboard box-tube slightly longer than the width of the roll, and about 8cm x 8cm at the ends, which means it's pretty easy to store and protect when not in use.

Why do most professional photographers use Seamless Background Paper and why should you? Simply because it gives you a large area of a suitable colour which is completely seamless, has no ripples, folds, stitches or creases (unless you damage it), can be quickly un-rolled for use and then rolled up for storage, can be used over and over (provided you look after it), and is VERY MATT. This last attribute is a huge advantage to the photographer. The non-shiny, matt surface of the paper is superb for photographic purposes, showing virtually no "texture" even at close distances.

OK, let's say you've decided to use Seamless Background Paper: How do you suspend this 1.3m or 2.7m (yes, that's about 4 1/2 ft and 9 ft!) long roll so you can conveniently use it.

The roll of paper is hollow and needs a support running through it; any pole or tube about an inch or so in diameter is usually suitable - wood or metal. Just make sure the support pole is about 30cm (1ft) longer than the roll width so it sticks out a bit each end.