{"id":438,"date":"2017-05-06T17:20:09","date_gmt":"2017-05-06T21:20:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/coolskill.org\/site\/?p=438"},"modified":"2017-05-06T23:34:03","modified_gmt":"2017-05-07T03:34:03","slug":"the-portable-windbreak-backdrop","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/coolskill.org\/site\/2017\/05\/06\/the-portable-windbreak-backdrop\/","title":{"rendered":"The Portable Windbreak Backdrop"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of the common mistakes in photography is not taking the background into account when composing pictures. \u00a0There are many examples of this; a search for “examples of bad photography composition” turns up many examples. \u00a0A common problem with backgrounds is that they are often times too visually cluttered; it can be difficult for the eye to clearly see the subject. \u00a0Other times, objects in the background appear to be growing out of the subject’s head. \u00a0While this can be amusing (I have see examples of this in newspapers, where the recipient of some award or another was standing right in front of a mounted deer or moose head, resulting in the antlers growing out of the subject’s head), most times this is not wanted.<\/p>\n

There are, of course, various strategies to deal with cleaning up a poor background. \u00a0The easiest is to simply move the subject or the camera or perhaps both. \u00a0Find an angle where the background is simple and clean: \u00a0a blank wall, looking up at the sky, looking down on the ground; there are a lot of options. \u00a0Failing that, the next easiest is to physically clean up the background. \u00a0Remove distracting clutter – frames from walls, piles of leaves, whatever is in the background that can draw your eye’s attention away from the subject. \u00a0If you can’t do that, you can blur the background. \u00a0Open up the aperture on the camera as much as possible, increase the distance from the subject to the background as much as possible, shoot with a telephoto lens: these are all techniques for blurring the background. \u00a0With a background blurred and the subject in focus, the eye usually has no problems picking out the subject.<\/p>\n

Sometimes, however, none of these tricks work. \u00a0Shooting a wildflower in the middle of an open field is such an example. \u00a0Sometimes you can make changing the angle work – get down real low, for example, and shoot the flower against the sky. \u00a0But many – if not most – of the time, the flower wants to be shot from a particular angle, and there are various background elements that get in the way. \u00a0Perhaps it’s a horizon line. \u00a0Perhaps its a fence. \u00a0Perhaps it’s a parking lot or a house. \u00a0Whatever it is, it’s something you don’t want in the shot, even with a real soft focus.<\/p>\n

Studio photographers use backdrops. \u00a0I myself have a portable studio backdrop system. \u00a0Portable, however, is a relative term. \u00a0It is large, unwieldy, and takes some time to set up. \u00a0It is not something easily moved once set up. \u00a0It serves its purpose and it serves its purpose well, but it is not a panacea for all backdrop needs. \u00a0This led me to creating my portable windbreak backdrop.<\/p>\n

Why windbreak? \u00a0The idea came from a video on photography I was watching, where the photographer brought an old fish tank with him into the field to take pictures of flowers. \u00a0The fish tank had an end removed, so you could set it upright on the ground over a flower. \u00a0The tank was lined on three sides with black velvet. \u00a0What used to be the top of the tank was positioned facing the photographer; this allowed him to reach in with the camera he was using and take close-up pictures of the flower.<\/p>\n

An aquarium used like this has several advantages: \u00a0you can get a nice, crisp background; you can put a diffuser or even a white bed sheet over the top to soften\u00a0harsh sunlight; and the aquarium works as a windbreak, helping to keep the subject still in slight breezes. \u00a0There are a few drawbacks, however. \u00a0Aquariums tend to be both heavy and bulky. \u00a0They also run the risk of having their glass break, which is problematic for many reasons. \u00a0Additionally, a tool like this is a single-purpose tool; combined with the bulk and weight, it is the first thing I would leave at home when planning a photo shoot with unknown parameters (the “go-there-and-see-what-there-is-to-take-pictures-of” type photo shoot).<\/p>\n

I liked the idea, though, and set out to try to improve on it. \u00a0What I wound up with was something that is lighter and less bulky, and can serve several purposes. \u00a0It is not as heavy, meaning it can’t stand up to as strong a breeze as an aquarium can, but it can still serve as a windbreak for light breezes.<\/p>\n

Here are step-by-step instructions for building your own. \u00a0First, gather the materials. \u00a0Here’s the\u00a0material list I used:<\/p>\n