The Importance of Backgrounds- How to Use Backdrops to Improve Your Photography

Professional photographers know that setting up a shot and concentrating on the subject is crucial, but the importance of backgrounds should not be overlooked.  This is a problem among amateurs, who set-up spectacular landscape or portrait shots, just to find out something in their background ruined the photograph to begin with. What you capture behind your subject can often make or break your photographs. Generally speaking, there are two approaches to developing an appealing background in your photographs:

This image was shot upward to avoid a potentially cluttered background and allow for the monochromatic sky to be used to emphasize the person's character.

-Clean and Simple-  With straightforward, uncomplicated backdrops you can isolate the true topic of your image and accentuate the details of your subject. By keeping your backdrops uncluttered, you identify the central theme of your photograph for the viewer. Make sure that whatever background you choose complements the story you're trying to tell.

Here it's not clear where the background starts or ends, and creates a visually interesting shot in one sense.

-Intricate and Complicated- Intricate backgrounds are potentially beneficial because they can tell a story all their own. Try not to have backgrounds that detract from the overall meaning of the photograph.  Instead, they should add a sense of place.

How Can I Improve the Backdrops in my Images?

1. Survey the scene and approach accordingly. For example, when photographing a landscape you want to maintain the integrity of the atmosphere you're trying to capture. Therefore, cropping out or removing any Coca-Cola cans, car bumpers, or extraneous visuals from your shot is in your best interest. If you can plan your photographs ahead of time, you can ensure that the background is clean. But, if any issues arise you can change your perspective, move your subject,adjust your depth of field via aperture or lens selection, remove superfluous objects, adjust lighting, or add motion blurs, among other things.

2. Avoid distracting elements. Distracting objects take away from your photograph's message, unless of course that's part of your message. This means don't have objects protruding out of your subject's heads. 

3. Look for contrasts. Contrasts help to make elements stand out and seem more appealing. 

I find this to be a good balance between the space devoted to the foreground and the background while the backdrop successfully adds character and a sense of place to the subject.

4. Use your foreground and background space strategically. All elements in your photograph are important, but consider which you want to stand out most. Amateur and beginner photographers are generally advised to fill the frame with their main subject, and by doing so you're emphasizing the foreground and minimizing the background.  This means that you'll have less opportunity to utilize a background to its fullest extent.  If your background establishes a sense of place or has some importance, than filling most of the frame with your subject may not benefit your photos, as you may be sacrificing potential background "real estate."   If, however, your background is visually intrusive or difficult to work with, then minimizing this real estate could work to the photograph's advantage.

Posted by Chase Guttman Photography at 10:56 PM