Muslin and Canvas Backgrounds in Photography

The right background can add movement and emotion to your portrait photography, wedding portraits, and homecoming images.

StudioHut uniquely hand-painted seamless canvas (8ft x 16ft) and muslin (10ft x 12ft or 10x 20ft.) backgrounds come in various color combinations and modern prints. These backgrounds are thick materials that allow for a better effect than lighter weight cotton materials—especially when using flashes or fill lighting. If you want to avoid wrinkles, stick with canvas backgrounds.

When shooting on muslin, position your subject at least three feet in front of the drop to keep tiny wrinkles out of focus. If you're shooting on a high key backdrop, use ample light to keep the backdrop from looking grimy or dull. Remember, if you fail to properly light up a backdrop, it will look darker than it actually is—which, in some cases, may be ideal for artistic portraits.

Finally, don't evaluate a new backdrop in its rolled-up form. Open it up, hang it and look at it through your camera's lens to get a realistic impression of its appearance on film. Keep in mind that your lighting, subject and prop placement, as well as camera settings will affect the final appearance of the backdrop. Backdrops have also been known to change due to final lab color settings.
And remember to use stable background stands.

A waving background can cause all sorts of distractions. StudioHut aluminum background support stand systems are adjustable from 6ft to 10ft and hold muslin, paper and canvas backgrounds. Ideal for in-studio or on-location shoots, they combine sheer strength with portability and easy set-up. The use of sandbags can add stability when using heavier paper roll backgrounds.

Posted in: background stands,canvas backgrounds,muslin backdrops,sandbags,wedding portrait photography