Backdrops for photography

[Huscarl]

Does anyone here know where I could find backdrops for photographing my miniatures? If not, how would I go about making one? I can't seem to find any tips on the internet. Thanks.

[Etranger]

Try model railway backscenes, old calendars, if you've got access to a decent printer then scenic photos from the internet.

[has.been]

For Sci-Fi I have a coffee table book of posters, I find that useful.
The internet has lots of photographic back drops for sale.
Sky also works, if you can get outside & get down low. The angle will help
remove distracting things.
For a demo game (many years ago) we wanted to show off our pride & joy,
an enormous Aztec temple at one end of the table. I got a sheet of hardboard,
the largest we could fit into a car (had to get it to the show).  Three cans of
spray paint, two blues & a white, and 10 minutes in the garden (on a nice day)
resulted in a believable 'Sky'. Be careful, I nearly ruined it by trying to add too
much paint. It will run & splatter. If it does, do what I did...
1) Sit down & cry.  2) let it FULLY dry.  3) Spray over the 'ruined' bits. 

[Ragnar]

I thinkm I just searched for scenic photos on ebay.  Ended up with something that looked like the Scottish highlands.  (At least to someone who has never been there.)

[Ultravanillasmurf]

Try model railway backscenes, old calendars, if you've got access to a decent printer then scenic photos from the internet.

I have to agree about model railway sources, there are a number of companies who offer high quality backscenes of various sizes and periods.

An alternative is if you have a suitable photograph, there are companies that can print it for you (it used to be that you could get it done at a print shop, but they are becoming rarer and even if there is one locally it is unlikely to be "essential" at this time).

Home printing is fine if your backscene is A4, A3 printers are a lot more expensive. You also need suitable paper. Again, model railway fora or knowing a railway modeller who can find a suitable magazine article is useful.

[fred]

I’ve used an image directly on the computer screen as a backdrop for photographing miniatures.

This is very flexible as you can easily search for a different background to give a different feel.

I’m sure I have a picture of the setup somewhere, so will have a rummage for that.

[Billchuck]

I taped together a couple pieces of grey paper from the scrapbook aisle at Michael’s and put it in the back of my light box. You can see it in this picture of the light box:


And in use here:

[Ragnar]

I’ve used an image directly on the computer screen as a backdrop for photographing miniatures.

I did this for some sci-fi figures once.  Something I'd like to experiment with a bit more.

[Huscarl]

Wow, thanks for all the replies!

[Hu Rhu]

I taped together a couple pieces of grey paper from the scrapbook aisle at Michael’s and put it in the back of my light box. You can see it in this picture of the light box:

Can you describe the set up of your light box please.   Size, lighting etc

[Billchuck]

Can you describe the set up of your light box please.   Size, lighting etc

It’s about a 12” cube made of foamcore. The lights are those adhesive LED strip lights. I made some 45 degree mounts from foamcore, cut the lights to length and stuck them on; some soldering was required to connect everything together.

[YPU]

I’ve used an image directly on the computer screen as a backdrop for photographing miniatures.

This is very flexible as you can easily search for a different background to give a different feel.

I’m sure I have a picture of the setup somewhere, so will have a rummage for that.

This has a couple of ups and downs, its self lit which can be handy, it won't play tricks with focal depth etc which might be good or not depending. Most modern screens tend to be pretty glare free so that works either way.


I personally have a great looking desert backdrop that was a gift from a friend.



It is thich paint over canvas, with some texture worked into the lower half. Having it curve up into the backdrop works great.

[Ragnar]

I thinkm I just searched for scenic photos on ebay.  Ended up with something that looked like the Scottish highlands.  (At least to someone who has never been there.)

Here is my best example of using the the backdrop

[Hammers]

Very nice!

[Hu Rhu]

That's a great backdrop.