Thursday, July 16, 2015

Blue or green screen for background replacement?

If you're taking photos on which you intend to change or replace the background, you might think that a blue or green screen would be best to shoot against.  That's the "traditional" way, right?  But actually, it's a bad idea.  That colour bleeds into hair, and around edges, and it's a replacement nightmare.

This is the order of your options:

BEST: Shoot against the actual colour you want in the photo - no editing necessary.

NEXT BEST: Shoot against a colour which is very similar to the colour you eventually want - minimal editing necessary.

MIGHT BE OK: Shoot against a dark neutral colour if your subject has light hair, or a light neutral colour if your subject has dark hair - the natural contrast will help you replace the colour in editing, but can still be tricky.  (Example)

BAD: Shoot against green or blue (or any other bright colour, really).

VERY BAD: Shoot against a mixed/busy background.

Comments or Questions?

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