Paper or vinyl backdrops?

FlyTVR

FlyTVR

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Thinking of dumping my cloth backdrops in favour of vinyl or paper.

Is vinyl worth the extra cost? What are the pros and cons of each?

Cheers.

TeaVR
 
Paper and vinyl are heavier than cloth, and are on rolls that are quite long, so transport and storage can be a bit more of an issue (3m wide roll... it won't even fit in some cars.) This also increases the price because of postage to you.

Paper you can just use a bit, and then cut off the bottom bit that got dirty / creased with the person standing on it. Works well, though you use about a meter every time you use it in any sort of anger...

Vinyl you can wash or rub off marks using a large eraser or similar, it's thicker, tougher and even less likely to crease than paper.

Either paper or vinyl you need to put a weight on the front corners, or gaffer tape it to the floor to stop it reeling back in.

My new vinyl should arrive tomorrow, so I'll post something in reviews :)
 
I use vinyl, it doesn't reel back so no need to tape down the corners. It just lays where its rolled out to. Easy and quick to clean it was an ideal choice. Both vinyls I have are on wall mounted rolls, easy and quick to clean so an ideal choice.

I used paper on one occasion earlier this year and hated it, footprints all over the place!
 
Vinyl shouldn't tear. I use a hilight with a vinyl floor. Works well and is very robust. You do get scuff marks but easilycleaned or removed in Ps.
 
Got all three types and the vinyl is good but quite heavy. I find myself using paper because it's cut down to a more managemable size (1.7m) and will be purchasing some semi-thick acrylic to avoid foot prints and potentially even use it on carpet as the weight should be spread evenly, although don't qutoe me on that till I've tried it! lol
 
i have vinyl on a thin carpet and have had stilletos on it not a problem but soft thick carpet might be,
it cleans very well and even after around 150 studio shoots its still fine, oh and it does not curl back.
It is heavey i have mine on a aloy pole .
Rob.
 
I have a large sheet of MDF that I keep handy so I can lay it down over the carpet to help avoid any nasty holes
 
I have a wooden floor right enough :) yes you would need a solid base - no matter what you use. Muslin looks poor too with a soft base
 
interesting comments, I do a lot of work in peoples houses and therefore never know what the floor will be.
The cloth trains are great, but if a child spills Ribena on it in the first 5 mins of the shoot, i get more than a bit peeved to say the least.
Paper seems to attract the kids to jump up and down on it to see how quickly they can tear it.
So thinking a really thick Vinyl might be the solution.
Sorry, hope this is not considered hijacking a thread, more adding to the discussion.
 
munchycarrot said:
interesting comments, I do a lot of work in peoples houses and therefore never know what the floor will be.
The cloth trains are great, but if a child spills Ribena on it in the first 5 mins of the shoot, i get more than a bit peeved to say the least.
Paper seems to attract the kids to jump up and down on it to see how quickly they can tear it.
So thinking a really thick Vinyl might be the solution.
Sorry, hope this is not considered hijacking a thread, more adding to the discussion.
Click to expand...

I carry a upvc sheet that can go down to provide a hard standing area, also works great over the background to catch spillage (mainly new borns and babies doing what they can't help!) :)
 
I have a black & white chequered tile floor in the studio so anything can be put on that, the vinyl b/g's roll out and likewise anything can go on that, the whole lot is a joy to clean (never thought I'd hear myself saying that now):lol::lol: I also have a much smaller vinyl white b/g which I can lug about on location.
 
I use the paper rolls. They are 2.72m long. I have a laminate floor and put mdf on top of it (stuck down with double sided carpet tape so not to damage the floor). The mdf is only 3mm thick, painted white and when I want to do high key shots I roll the paper down, make a curve and stick it to the mdf. I only waste around a couple of inch each time I use it and the floor cleans very easily with a bit of flash. Also no kinks or wrinkles on the floor and you can wear what you want.
 
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