Background materials.

Johnny Thunder

Johnny Thunder

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Could you guys please give me your opinions on your choice of background material?
I have noticed that the ones that appear to be the most popular are paper and muslin/cotton. I have also found a few links to a vinyl material but I cannot find any reviews. The vinyl is much more expensive, but does the life of the product reflect in the price?

Thank you.
 
What are you looking to use the background for?
How long do you want ti to last?
WHat kind of setup do you have?

if you let us know we can recommend what is best for you.

I have recently used a white door to create hilight shots, and a window blind as a background. ALthough they don't look like a professional kit when shooting, the kids don;t mind and the photos are ok
 
Cheers for the reply Lawrie.

I have no equipment as yet. I am still doing lots of reading on the subject of lighting. I am considering setting up a small studio at home. Hence all the questions.:)
 
nib1980 said:
I Have a vynil background and it wasn't expensive, £7 per meter (in 2.5m wide strip)

I'll find a link in a minute

http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=192100

I like vynil as it's more hard wearing and you can clean it rather than just throwing it away each time and having to constantly buy paper

but each to there own
Click to expand...

It was actually your thread that started me looking into the various materials.
Yours is a cracking job.;)

Are the paper backgrounds reuseable, or is it a case of cut it off and throw it away?
 
http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=194592

paper backgrounds are 'sort of' reusable...the end that the subject stands on can get dirty and pretty creased up pretty quickly, but as long as you're careful you don't get through it too quickly and don't have to cut much off.

Vinyl, you just wipe off the dirt with a cloth... but it is a lot heavier than paper.

I was shooting in a studio with the proper lastolite vinyl on Sunday, it's not even half as thick as the stuff that Tony Beal supply for less than half the price :)
 
itsdavedotnet said:
http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=194592

paper backgrounds are 'sort of' reusable...the end that the subject stands on can get dirty and pretty creased up pretty quickly, but as long as you're careful you don't get through it too quickly and don't have to cut much off.

Vinyl, you just wipe off the dirt with a cloth... but it is a lot heavier than paper.

I was shooting in a studio with the proper lastolite vinyl on Sunday, it's not even half as thick as the stuff that Tony Beal supply for less than half the price :)
Click to expand...



Cheers for that. I think vinyl does sound the way to go.:thumbs:
 
Yeah, just be careful with your mounting though, it does need some pretty hench stands to hold it up ;) :) Think my stands were just under £60 each at full price from calumet (which means that they're actually rebadged £100ish manfrotto stands most likely...), and I wouldn't trust anything less to hold it really.
 
I bought my vinyl HERE.

It's not as flat as paper which doesn't really matter if you're blowing out the white but it does show up ridges, lumps and bumps on the grey... nothing serious though and still worth it for the longevity. Worth mentioning that it's a lot heavier than paper too. The black is a waste of time, doesn't absorb enough light... I scrapped it and bought a long roll of black cotton velvet (which is loads better than the blackest of black papers).

The white is good, it won't last forever but will last a lot longer than paper if well maintained. I use magic erasers to clean scuffs off it and it's still good after a few shoots with just a few deep scuffs that I can't shift. I bought the longest roll (8m) so I can cut the end off like I would with paper when it gets too bad.

Now all I've got to do is work out what to do with a huge roll of black(ish) vinyl! :thinking:
 
itsdavedotnet said:
Yeah, just be careful with your mounting though, it does need some pretty hench stands to hold it up ;) :) Think my stands were just under £60 each at full price from calumet (which means that they're actually rebadged £100ish manfrotto stands most likely...), and I wouldn't trust anything less to hold it really.
Click to expand...


Do you have a link for the background beam please?:thumbs:
 
Flashman said:
I bought my vinyl HERE.

It's not as flat as paper which doesn't really matter if you're blowing out the white but it does show up ridges, lumps and bumps on the grey... nothing serious though and still worth it for the longevity. Worth mentioning that it's a lot heavier than paper too. The black is a waste of time, doesn't absorb enough light... I scrapped it and bought a long roll of black cotton velvet (which is loads better than the blackest of black papers).

The white is good, it won't last forever but will last a lot longer than paper if well maintained. I use magic erasers to clean scuffs off it and it's still good after a few shoots with just a few deep scuffs that I can't shift. I bought the longest roll (8m) so I can cut the end off like I would with paper when it gets too bad.

Now all I've got to do is work out what to do with a huge roll of black(ish) vinyl! :thinking:
Click to expand...


Cheers for that Keith. They have a decent stand on there which is rated for vinyl rolls.
 
Johnny Thunder said:
It was actually your thread that started me looking into the various materials.
Yours is a cracking job.;)

Are the paper backgrounds reuseable, or is it a case of cut it off and throw it away?
Click to expand...

cheers, if you ever have any questions let me know
 
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