Backdrop & Clips

stoney

I got a backdrop stand with white/green/black backdrops from http://www.ephotoinc.com at little over $100. But poor quality backdrops. Crazy wrinkles all over. It bothered me so much that I got backdrop clips. Top clips and side clips. Working great. Takes only a few mins to set it up.

Vitaliy_Kiselev

Try to invest in good backdrop.
This one looks too thin.

stoney

Yes they are thin... but I will use'em until ripped :)

BTW what do you recommend?

Mark_the_Harp

@stonebat I've seen someone recommend a water spray lightly all over, as that gets the wrinkles out. Worth a try?

brianluce

I get a lot of mileage from paper, like what B&H sells. Big roll of it.

stoney

@Mark_the_Harp I used a water steamer. It works but hassle to do it each time. The clips were easier.

@brianluce You mean a big roll of paper? How do you change color? Switch the rolls?

stoney

Tested out the backdrop with Z96 and CL-LED256. I need 3rd light source to bring out details in hair and brighten the background to remove some noise. But the noise looks fine. I'm using @kae's 65Mbps patch.

How does it look? I applied very little color grading. the latter two were fixed by lightroom.

brianluce

@stonebat Yes, those big rolls. No wrinkles. Cheap. And if you have a garage overhead for good storage, you can keep reusing them if you're careful -- I've had the same piece for 3 years.

To change color? I just use it for chroma key, so you can key in any color. A lot people buy the white rolls too. esp still photogs.

stoney

I see. Thanks for info. I've done the chroma keying in AE, but why did I use the white backdrop instead of green? Oh white balance... but I still got it wrong. Yeap white backdrop for photo.

filthy

Can anyone recommend what to look for in terms of thickness or a reputable source for good quality muslin backdrops? Just like stonebat, I too got some backdrops that were a tad on the thin side. Good news was they were 20 ft. in length, so I just doubled it up before stretching it and clamping it to the frame. Works good enough for now. The wrinkles aren't too bad with enough clamps (need at least 6-8 of them to keep proper tension). Just would be nice to hear of better quality options that wouldn't break the bank.

Mark_the_Harp

I can tell you one to avoid - anything with a slightly shiny surface. I've got a reversible blue / green chromakey cloth that's in one of those spring frame things and it's a real pain as the wrinkles really show on a non-matte surface.

Ideally you also want a slight backlight as that helps with getting rid of fringing by creating a slight surround to the subject. A battery LED backlight is a really good option as it's easy to rig without big stands and wiring getting in shot.

stoney

@Mark_the_Harp Have you tried clips? It's great. Whenever I see the wrinkle free backdrop, I have urge to shoot something. Finally... I don't feel like a hopeless shopaholic.

By the way... reversible backdrop sounds like some work to reverse back and forth.

Yes I'm planning to get 3rd light for the purpose.

Vitaliy_Kiselev

@stonebat

For beginners usual suggestion is to get main light, reflector, hair light and background light.
And hair and background could have some light quality compromises.

stoney

@Mark_the_Harp Have you tried clips? It's great. Whenever I see the wrinkle free backdrop, I have urge to shoot something. By the way... reversible backdrop sounds like some work to reverse back and forth.

Yes I'm planning to get 3rd light for the purpose. I'm just trying to nail the skin tone color... and some other things so that I do less post-processing work. That was from Lumix 14-45mm at 45mm. I'm gonna try Ai-s 50mm. There's a shotgun mic right above the top framing recording into a laptop.

stoney

@Vitaliy I had used a reflector with 2 lights, and it wasn't reflecting enough light. With 3 lights, the reflector would be more useful.

Z96 as key light. CL-LED256 as hair light. A reflector as fill light. One more light for background light.

I was hoping Fresnel would do it... but it's not. I need something I can adjust the power without worrying about color change. Maybe... another Comer copy... Haha.

Vitaliy_Kiselev

@stonebat

Look at Jam :
http://www.thec47.com/gearbox/

I think that you are too consumed by light numbers, instead you better learn how to use existing ones.
Most probably your main light is too directional and too weak, so reflector is not very useful.
Many times one light and proper reflector usage are enough.

stoney

Thanks. I will check out the video at home. Yes I tried one light and a reflector. The main light is strong enough on 1 person... but not large enough. So I dimmed it and placed it closer to make the light softer. Then the reflect didn't get enough light. I don't feel like spending big to get a large light source.

I have a couple of flash lights for photo and they can brighten a room instantly. Spotfree white background? No problem. Slow sync speed in a dark room setting? Not a problem. But video light... definitely different beast.

I got Z96 and CL-LED256 cuz they are portable and useful when there are enough ambient light. In my basement mini-tiny ghetto studio setup, there's no ambient light. Color keying might do it with black backdrop, but my hair is black. Also I want more natural looking tonal gradation on the white backdrop. Wouldn't it make sense to get one more light? Am I sounding like a shopaholic?

Vitaliy_Kiselev

@stonebat

In this case get 2x 5 bulb light with softbox.
Plus 10x 45W fluos.
For studio it is best approach.

stoney

That sounds cheap. I like. Thanks. Any book recommendation please?

Vitaliy_Kiselev

@stonebat

C&P from

Lighting for digital video and television by John Jackman. Quite good book, but I reccomend the next one if you need only one book for start.
Light - Science and Magic An Introduction to Photographic Lighting. I suggest to have this book with you :-)
Plus others cited below about portrait photography.
I don't know why, but photo books are generally much better than video oriented ones. They also have less fixed approach (ala three lights).

Portrait lighting (especially useful for interviews):
Master lighting guide for portrait photographers by Christopher Gray.
Studio lighting techniques for photography by Christopher Gray.
Both books are better used together.

You may start from Light - Science and Magic An Introduction to Photographic Lighting.

stoney

Thanks. I have the Science and Magic book and read about half way. Excellent book. Not boring at all.

brianluce

Having a good backlight is very good for washing away spill off the green or blue screen. It's especially critical if you have less than 8' of distance between subject and screen. DP's usually gel it with orange. Not sure why, maybe someone knows.

Vitaliy_Kiselev

@stonebat
>That sounds cheap. I like. Thanks.

This is what I mean:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Photography-Video-Studio-Portrait-Softbox-Lighting-Kit-/360123993523

stoney

20"x28" softbox... double kits... $169.99... free shipping... nice.

Vitaliy_Kiselev

May be this will be even cheaper:

http://cgi.ebay.com/2000w-VIDEO-PHOTO-STUDIO-CONTINUOUS-LIGHTING-LIGHT-KIT-/300584312760
http://cgi.ebay.com/2000w-VIDEO-PHOTO-STUDIO-CONTINUOUS-LIGHTING-LIGHT-KIT-/230655113939

But my understanding is that some difference in softbox and other things exist.

stoney

Super. I contacted the last seller.

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