How you can make a “canvas style” backdrop for £20!

Guys! Check this out! I own a fair few Gravity Backdrops and absolutely love them to pieces, but the problem I have is time. Sometimes I don’t have the time or the space to setup the canvas backdrop, 2 stands, cross bar, and multiple clips.

So when I’m looking for a quick access but still believable test shot, I needed a cheap alternative to go to.

Check out the result! (I know it’s dark, that’s just my style :D).

The epic thing is, it cost me only £20 + Duct Tape to make per color, including the ability to flip it for a “white” backdrop (with tape healing in PS).

I went to my local craft store in the UK and picked up 4 “A1” size pieces of mount board (£5 each in store) and taped them together on the back with Duct Tape in order to make one huge “A0 x2” size backdrop. (Non UK folks may know them as foam boards, they come in multiple colors like red, green, blue and other colors)

Pro’s: It’s cheap, it’s easy to make, it’s light, portable and it rocks!

The downsides: Easy to damage, not waterproof, more time to get a flat surface when shooting, easy to topple/move.

If you want to take it up a level too you can even add textures in PS for that hand-painted canvas look. I am using those, but you can get any others as well. Here is a quick phone snap/edit to give you an idea:

Here is a tutorial on how to add those textures:

Here’s the collection I made for £60 (all full size like the green one):

Simple as hell right! Cheap and awesome! Lots of color choices and easy to replace should you need to, AND it only takes one clip to hold it up!