Hello, Mr Blue Sky: how a cheap backdrop gave me a ‘blue-sky thinking’ moment

Lights, camera, action! Well, I’ve got lights (studio flash, LED lighting panels, flashguns and more besides) not that I need them so much nowadays, thanks to the stellar high-ISO performance of most digital cameras. And yes, I’ve got the camera, too.

But when it comes to the ‘action’ part of the process, things go downhill fast. If you’re like me, friends, family, neighbors and people I don’t even remember meeting ever before beat a path to your door.

They somehow find out that you’ve got a ‘proper’ camera and it’s all, "Please could you take a nice photo of my fiancée, spouse, child, grandchild (maybe even in that order), cat, dog, fluffy bunny, parrot, antique carriage clock."

Okay, I made the last one up. But I definitely won’t be surprised when said timepiece turns up on my doorstep, wanting its portrait taken.

I have the requisite kit to do all of this subject matter proud. There’s just one problem: I trudge around the house with growing grumpiness, looking for somewhere to actually take the request-fulfilling shot.

Everywhere I try, there’s a problem. A chair leg or entire sofa here, a dining table there, an immovable fitted kitchen out back. Even the most conducive plain white wall is ruined by a large, corrugated radiator that’s intent on ruining the shot. I’d rip the darned thing off the wall but don’t want to put my plumbing skills to the test for the sake of an imaginary carriage clock.

Long story short, great subject matter is easy to come by; it’s the background that’s the problem. No worries, or so I thought. I used to have a sky blue pop-up background that stood tall and proud, without any kind of erectile dysfunction.

Folding it down again to get it back into its carrying bag was the only problem, a bit like wrestling with two octopuses (octopi?) one in each hand. And don’t even get me started on pup-up light cubes. It killed the joy, and went the way of eBay. I just hope that whoever bought it had a more rewarding and stress-free experience.

Every problem has a solution, or so I’d hope. In this case, I have to thank Kate. Or at least, Kate’s Backdrops. The clue’s in the tagline… "Style your moment, prepare for amazement!" How could I resist?

I’ve got a bunch of top-ranking light stands in the under-stairs cupboard. I’ve also got a telescoping crossbar that can join two of them together, ideal for hanging a backdrop roll from, be it textile or paper. All I need is something to hang off it.

And that’s where Kate’s Backdrops came in royally handy. On theme, it’s available in royal blue, as well as a whole bunch of other colors and patterns. It’s generously proportioned at 1.5x2.2m / 5x7ft in size (many other sizes available) and extremely affordable at $22.99 / £25.99 / AU$67.80 from Amazon, or from the company’s own website.

My subjects now look royally good, standing proud against a beautiful backdrop. So if you’ve got generations of family members, pets or even a carriage clock to shoot, just try it, you might like it. I’d recommend blue, the sky’s the limit.

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