How can I replace a photo background and still make the composite look realistic?
Asked 12/27/2012
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2 answers
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I’m compositing people from one photo onto a different background, but the result looks obviously fake. I have many images to process like this, so I’m looking for the key things to check when replacing or improving a background while keeping the scene believable.
What should I match between the subject photo and the background so the final image looks realistic? In my examples, I tried adjusting levels and color, but it still doesn’t feel natural.
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
13y ago
2 Answers
8
Perspective and settings - like Darkcat Studio said.
Direction of the light - in the second background, the side of the tree branches facing the camera near the couple are in shadow while the couple is lit from the front - you have to choose a background that has the same light direction has the foreground picture.
Quality of the light - hard light vs. soft light, this was one of the problems with the first background (but a pretty minor one compered to the perspective)
Amount of light - you have to match the lighting of the background and foreground, in your example the couple has way more light on them than the tree just a few inches away (that doesn't mean the background and foreground has to have the same amount of light but you need a realistic ratio)
Color of the light - your background has a very "cold" blue light while the couple looks "warm" with a lot of red tones - if you have the raw files you can just change the color temperature, if not you can use RGB curves, to warm the photo bump the red channel up a little bit and the channel blue down, to cool do the opposite (but you can only change the color by a tiny amount before they start looking weird, especially with skin tones)
The funny thing is that those also "work" if you don't change the background - one of my favorite photos is a picture of my son in front of storm clouds where I exposed for the sky and used a flash to light my son - I have the completely unedited jpeg out of the camera and it looks as fake as your switched background pictures (really, no one believes me this is unedited) because the setting is unusual (when was the last time you've seen a person in front of storm clouds) my son is lit by hard light from the side on an overcast day (where there should have been soft light from above) the light difference between foreground and background isn't natural and the white balance of the flash and overcast sky doesn't match.
Originally by user2481. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user2481
13y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
For a realistic composite, the biggest factor is choosing a background that already matches the subject photo.
Key things to match:
- perspective/camera position: If the people were shot at eye level and close to the camera, the background should look like it was shot from a similar height and distance. A wide scenic view taken from far above will look wrong.
- setting/grounding: The subjects need to appear to be standing on something that fits the background.
- light direction: The light on the subjects and the background must come from the same side.
- light quality: Hard sunlight vs. soft light should be consistent.
- light amount: Brightness should be believable between foreground and background.
- light color / white balance: If one image is warm and the other is very blue, it will look fake.
After that, do global adjustments to help blend everything: white balance, brightness/contrast, channels or color correction, and possibly sharpening. It often works better to first correct the foreground subject, then combine, then fine-tune the whole image together.
In short: your main issue is the background choice. If perspective and lighting don’t match, editing alone usually won’t fully fix it.
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