Fabric Backgrounds

[Aidan Briggs]

Does anyone know where to get fabric backgrounds for hummingbird photography? Preferably it would be realistic, not just a uniform green, but maybe a bit graduated.

Thanks in advance.

[Axel Hildebrandt]

I've never done this but maybe some kind of camouflage pattern might work.

[Alfred Forns]

I know Artie just came up with a hummingbird guide, I'm guessing there is lots of info there !!!

[Chad Griggs]

I'd also be interested in this. It might be good for those of us whose backyards have an unfortunate fence or house behind us =)

[Maxis Gamez]

A while ago I saw a spray painted canvas (dull light green). They were also using spray painted cardboard and setting it far back behind the set up. Easy to do and very affordable.

[Chris Ober]

Camo cloth is also fairly cheap from Wallyworld, or other hobby shops and usually comes in a variety of patterns.

Bamboo also grows pretty quick if you want something more natural :)

[Greg Basco]

Hi, Aidan. I use fabric backgrounds rather than OOF prints for a number of reasons for my hummingbird photography here in Costa Rica (cheaper, bigger, and more resistant to wrinkling and humidity), and I've learned a few things along the way.

First, spray paint works well on cheap polyester fabric but you need to paint sparingly. And always paint only after ironing the fabric first.

Second, camo or other pre-printed fabrics will probably be too busy unless you place them really far away from the setup. And then you are likely to run into problems triggering your background flash, be it via optical, radio, or IR method.

Third, a base color that approximates the subject's habitat is best rather than starting from scratch (say from a white sheet). So, I obviously use various shades of green for tropical rain forest and cloud forest hummingbirds.

Fourth, I use a homemade stretcher frame to get rid of any final wrinkles.

And fifth, even if you use a solid color background, you can achieve some interesting gradations just by positioning/angling the background flash in different ways.

I hope this helps.
Cheers,
Greg Basco

[Peter Hawrylyshyn]

Aidan -
Linda Robbins covers this topic in great detail in the Hummingbird Guide she prepared with Artie
If you PM or email her, she has also found a printer who can print your BG images in a matte finish onto a fabric if that's what you really want.

There are pro's and con's to using a fabric. Greg has covered a lot of the pro's. I tried creating some myself using spray paints last year and wasn't happy with the results.

I just got back from COsta Rica where i used BG's which i printed myself onto high quality matte paper using an EPson 3800 printer for <$2/BG. They worked great. What becomes another important deciding factor is how and where you will mount the BG's. Try mounting them on a Lastolite screen on a flash stand ( easy to pack , obviates any stretcher frames or styrofoam boards) and is highly portable.

Good luck
Peter

[Chris Hansen]

Aidan,

You can use most anything as long as you put it back far enough to be out of focus. One of my favorite things is to use mat board from the framing shop. It comes in hundreds of colors.

Have fun and god bless,

chris