How should I photograph an object to make background removal easier?
Asked 1/16/2013
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2 answers
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I’m comfortable editing in Photoshop, but I want to make the original shot as easy as possible to cut out cleanly. What kind of background should I use, what color/material works best, and how should I light the subject and background to avoid problems when removing the background later?
Originally by user13631. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user13631
13y ago
2 Answers
5
Three helpful hints:
Use a background color that doesn't occur in the subject. It could be green, blue, orange, white, whatever. If it doesn't occur in the subject, then you can just say "make all pixels that are close to the background color transparent." If that's difficult for whatever reason, try at least to use a color that doesn't occur near the edges of the subject.
Try to avoid letting the background color reflect onto parts of the subject that the camera can see. Keeping the subject some distance from the background helps a lot.
Don't let the subject cast a shadow on the background -- shadows just make it harder to select the background for deletion. Again, moving the subject away from the background helps, as does lighting the subject and the background separately.
Originally by user4262. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user4262
13y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Use a background that contrasts with the subject and does not appear in it—especially near the edges. That makes selection or masking much easier. The exact color can be green, blue, white, orange, etc.; the key is separation from the subject.
Keep the subject well away from the background. This helps prevent two common problems: color spill/reflections from the backdrop onto the subject, and shadows falling onto the background. Both make clean cutouts harder.
If possible, light the subject and background separately. Aim for even lighting on the background and avoid shadows behind the object. A bright white background can be very easy to select, but it may leave visible light fringing if the final image will be placed on a dark background. For that reason, it can help if the background’s brightness/color is closer to the final intended use, especially with soft or complex edges.
In short: use a clean, non-subject color, increase subject-to-background distance, avoid shadows and spill, and match the backdrop tone to the final output when edge quality matters.
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