Alphabravo2020

I am setting up for a portrait shoot and I'm wondering about hanging the backdrop. I see that there are rectangular frames for this but I'm wondering if I could use a couple of C stands. I think the backdrop roll is 8 or 10 ft wide.

Can I add horizontal bars to two C-stands to hang the backdrop? Can I use grip arms on the C stands and a horizontal bar to extend the backdrop out over and above the subjects?

Something like a pair of the following but with a horizontal bar at the top of the stand and at the end of the arms. This will put the backdrop under, behind, and over the subjects.

TIA.

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A tent roof above will interfere with lighting. Pretty much a cardinal sin. Rotsaruck widdat.

ecurb Loc: Metro Chicago Area

Any pair of heavy duty light stands will hold a roll of seamless background paper to make a sweep background. A pair of Bogen Super clamps on each side will hold a crossbar, I recommend a length of PVC pipe.
A standard roll of seamless is nine feet wide.
Trying to fly background overhead creates a whole new set of problems but you could make a flat covered with the same seamless and screw four pulleys in the ceiling to fly the flat overhead and adjust it as needed.
Suggest you hire an experienced studio assistant.

Steved3604

See above comment. Any HEAVY DUTY light stands. SAND BAGS (ETC) ARE NEEDED SO THE STANDS DON'T TIP OVER ON THEIR OWN OR WHEN BUMPED. Should work great. Recommend you set up background and lights, ETC and test everything way before the clients arrive.

E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada

If you don't have the stands and the required crossbar, check out this website:

https://dennymfg.com/collections/photography-equipment/products/10-ft-backdrop-stand

The DENNY Manufacturing CO. so specializes in backgrounds of many kinds and the necessary support equipment

If you already have 2 heavy-duty stands that are tall and sturdy enough to safely sport your backgrounds, all you need to do is rig up a crossbar I have used aluminum tubing or wooden dowels.

The safety and effectiveness of your background support system will depend on the load. A smaller background painted on a window shade of lighter canvas material will require less support that a larger one made of heavier material, thicker canvas, or one having a cyclorama floor extension. I large roll of seamless paper can be very heavy and unwieldy if not secured properly.

Monfrorro and other manufacturers make clamp-on weights. When attached to the stands' center columns, between the legs, these will provide additional stability.

If your home studio is in one place and permanently set up, you can get away with attaching the background to the wall or you may want to consider a motorized or manual chain-driven roller system that is attached to the wall or ceiling. These units accommodate multiple backgrounds.

There are also alternative ways of making a DYI support system using wooden studs or framing material (2x4) but it will not be easily collapsible and mobile. Safety, of course, is always important. If a heavy background accidentally unrolls or tips over it can cause personal injury and equipment damage. A C-stand or boom stand is not the best choice for background support.

Alphabravo2020

Please explain. I don't understand what you mean.

My thinking was that a screen overhead would reflect a cleaner light than the ceiling tiles.

Haydon

The Slanted Lens covers inexpensive DIY's but are solid considerations.

https://youtu.be/zX_KNiSVtjI

Lucian Loc: From Wales, living in Ohio

Why would you need the backdrop to be above and over the subjects? Standard backdrops are just behind the subject. To make it easy, just buy a length of PVC and drill holes on the underside only, at the points you want your stands to be placed and stick the top of each stand through the bottom hole you drilled. By not drilling all the way through the PVC tube, your tube should easily hold in place, for you to drape your chosen backdrop over that top PVC tube.

That way the background material can be clamped in place with a simple large clamp that you can buy at Harbour Freight, Home Depot or Lowe's for a few dollars each, say 3-4 clamps total, over the top of the PVC tube you have fitted on the C-stands supports. If you get 2 shorter pieces and an oversized piece that will allow those two shorter pieces to fit into, you can have that long top tube created from 3 pieces, broken down into shorter lengths for ease of transportation and storage.

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If your false ceiling is to be as high as your real ceiling then I retract my advice. I had pictured you boxing in the subject area, reducing the overhead clearance available for lighting.

FWIW I cannot imagine studio lighting by ceiling bounce. Its lacking in character and direction. IOW the color or tint of the tiles shouldnt matter ... unless you are shooting a chromed toaster or such that visually mirrors the ceiling in your image.

dougbev3 Loc: Pueblo, Colorado

I have picked up 3 backdrop stands at second hand stores. If you are not in a rush, look around.

cjc2 Loc: Hellertown PA

Do it properly, using the proper equipment, or don't do it at all. The set up for this, as shown above, is not expensive. IMHO. Best of luck.

montephoto

Any two light stands will work as support. However, a couple of people have responded with making a crossbar using PVC pipe. That will work fine IF you use a larger bore, or heavy duty PVC pipe. Smaller diameter PVC will sag in the middle and will cause your paper background, or any background to show the effects of the sagging. I agree with Mr. Shapiro, use a metal pipe (electrical conduit) or a wooden closet pole, as they are more rigid.

One thing I learned many years ago, in my portrait studio, was to use a straight automotive steel exhaust pipe to hold backgrounds with my Bogen/Manfrotto expand-drive background holders. Cheap and they never sagged. (Or you can use Manfrotto pipes at about 3-4 times the cost.)

E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada

Just to clarify. For a portrat photograph, you do not need an overhead cyclorama. That was used for video production of food commercials where a low and seamless background is required.

For FULL-LENGTH portraits and full lengh groups, a cyclorama background may be employed. This is where the background material, usually seamless paper of painted canvas, extends to the the floor. A smooth cove is formed and the junction of the wall and floor and enough material is to cover all of the floor areas that are in the frame. Of course, this kind of background requre especially sturdy support due to their additional weight and the potential for stress caused but subjects standing on the floor's fabric or paper.


As for the bounce ligh in the studio. Aiming the main ligh directly at the ceiling will yield poor results, mainly because that lightg will not properly illuminate the eyes and the orbital area of the face. The negative effect is called "raccoon eyes". There are, however, bounce techniques and applications that can be used in studio portraiture. I use a fixed bounce fill system where a bank of lights is suspended behind the camer, aimed about 45 degrees to the ceiling about 15 feet for the background, and featured slightly downward so that's the of the beam ends just above the background. The ceiling must be white otherwise unwanted tints or color crossover will result.

Yet another MAIN LIGHT bounce method is called a partial bounce. The lamp head is tilted upward whereby someof the beam strikes the ceiling and the lower feather end of the beam strikes the subject. This yields a softer light than direct flash but enables illumination of the eyes.

Once your background is installed, the next step is to decide how to light it- there are at least a dozen background lighting treatments- NEXT TIME!

Alafoto Loc: Montgomery, AL

If you put clamps along the top of the roll, when it's time to trim off the used section of the roll and use a new section of the paper, you'll often find the part that's going to show damaged marks in the center. Much better to use the clamps (heartily agree that home depot or harbor freight are excellent sources of "photo" supplies) on each edge of the roll.

Since the OP seems to be looking for background help, a roll of white seamless and black or dark grey seamless (as wide as you can accommodate for more versatility) and a bunch of inexpensive gels over the background light gives a whole plethora of background colors. Dark with the black, pastel with the white.

elee950021 Loc: New York, NY

Alphabravo2020!

Before you begin, a few questions need to be asked! Are you shooting individual portraits or groups, head and shoulders, half-length or full lengths? One-time shoot or into the future with multiple shoots? Do you have the width and depth in terms of space to set up a 9-foot wide seamless backdrop with a few more feet along the sides
for the stands and shooting space in front of the backdrop?

Your answers would determine what to do, buy and set up.

If you're only doing head and shoulder portraits against a plain neutral background, you could just use a white-painted wall or black and white foam boards or even a white shower curtain! By varying the intensity of your lights, the background can be varied from white to medium grey to black. If you insist on backdrop paper or want colors, you can buy rolls of neutral and colored paper from leading brands such as Savage at photo and art supply stores or via online. Don't forget that the shipping could be as much as the backdrop!

If only doing heads against a backdrop, you might need only a 53-inch half roll of paper but groups would require the 9' wide roll. You can buy seamless paper stands and crossbars via eBay or Amazon and elsewhere at various price points, the studier the stands, the more costly. You would need stands that can extend upwards to approximately 8'. If you already have C-stands, you only need a crossbar and a clamp to keep the paper from unraveling due to inertia. As others have mentioned, no need to extend the backdrop up to the ceiling.

I suggested the following in a September 2021 reply to another UHHer who also needed a backdrop:

I highly recommend Savage Paper's: https://www.amazon.com/Savage-Travel-Backdrop-Kit-White/dp/B07SB2HNFL

I bought from B&H several years ago, 2 sets of the X-frame 5x7 backdrop kits which were half-priced as demo units. They were the full kit including the stand and 4 backdrops, white, grey, black and green in the original packing and I have used them at offices, hotels, galleries, etc and for impromptu portraits with setup in a corner or some other out-of-the-way place. Lightweight and easily relocatable. The kit comes in an easy-carry case.

You can use blue instead of green for dropping your subjects onto different backgrounds. Newer software has incorporated background replacement which makes things easier. Just throw the background a hair out of focus to replicate the shallower depth of field. You can also buy deeper 5x12' backdrops for full-length shots.

Wescott also has a similar kit: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/844695-REG/Westcott_578K_X_Drop_Kit_5_x.html/?ap=y&ap=y&smp=y&smp=y&lsft=BI%3A514&gclid=CjwKCAjwhOyJBhA4EiwAEcJdcZPRlYgXSN2LO_ik9SqUAEV-H-pG4tB3XAy5nquYFcL1dGP-g2_APxoC0hsQAvD_BwE

Be well! Ed