A local fabric store is having a sale so I thought it would be a good time to pick up some for use as a drop cloth. I was thinking of getting some white fabric as well as some black (or very dark blue).
My question(s): What kind of fabric would you recommend? Does the fabric matter when it comes to light/dark backdrops?
If they have cotton velvet or "velveteen" is what I use. It's non reflective but it's a bear to remove lint from. I also tried black felt but it had a lot of shine to it. I wouldn't want a fabric that wrinkles a lot either. I think a wrinkled backdrop looks very tacky.
for white fabric or off white try to get muslin, it is very easy to use, its biggest pitfall is it wrinkles a lot but it does make fantastic backdrops and also works well for the floor.
Make sure you get tightly woven fabrics so that you don't have problems with light shining through. Cottons and polyesters make great backdrops cause if you have the edges of it serged on a sewing machince you can throw in the wash when they look a little dirty and be back up and going in 2 hours time with clean backdrops.
I have a few backdrops that are 3 1/2 yards of muslin I had the edges serged so they don't fray out and had hooks put in the top so I can do a head to floor shots. I haven't had a chance to try them out yet but I have some senior portraits I am doing next month so I am sure I will be trying them out then. But I had mine designed just like a friend of mines who does pageant and modeling portfolios for a living...figure his backdrops work for him they can work for me too.
when i do something that needs that big of a background, like people shots, i use one of three flat queen size sheets black, dark blue or white. basic cotton is good for me since i have animals that like to shed!:)
You may also want to pick up a remnant of some gauzy or lacy fabric specifically TO shine the light through, either as a diffuser/colorant or to create a pattern.
Clothespins (or those hangers with the two spring clips on them) are useful for temporary hanging if you don't want to affix hooks or rings to the fabric.
I forgot to mention earlier Wal Mart is a fantastic place to pick up material for backdrops they sale the ends of bolts when they get down to less than 10 yards they sale it for $2/yard and then when it gets down below 5 yards they sale it for $1/yard.
