Taiwanese opera performer from the Xin Ing Feng Opera Group

When shooting portraits, the background is all important. One of the worst “looks” is when you have a tree growing out of somebody’s head. Paying attention to what is behind your subject can help take you photos to the next level.

If you’re outdoors taking photos of your friends and family, before you set up take a look around for a decent background. Something plain and nondescript is good, such as a wall or some bushes. You want the attention to be on the subject of the photograph, not what’s behind them, so position them as necessary to eliminate distractions. During occasions where it’s simply not possible to place your subject in front of something non-distracting, shoot at wide apertures. Selecting an aperture of f2.8 or wider will help blur the distractions out nicely, leaving the viewers attention solely on the subject.

In travel situations, one useful method is to position yourself across form a suitable background and simply wait for people to walk by. Ask the person if you can take their picture and position them in the desired place. If you’ve set yourself up correctly, you can do all of this is less than a minute. Do remember though that if you offer to send them a copy of the photo, make sure you follow through on it. Even better, consider taking along a portable PoGo printer on your travels and making a quick print on the spot.

When shooting indoors, possibly in a living room or other empty space, it’s usually much easier to control the background. Have your subject pose in front of a plain wall, which in a living room are often white or some other neutral color. If necessary, hang a white bedsheet behind them. Stepping up from there is the seamless background. At its most basic, this is a long roll of paper, 11m long and a couple of meters wide. More expensive options include canvas or muslin backgrounds, and there are also some vinyl options made by Lastolite that are very durable. Seamless backgrounds are available in a variety of colors but if you buy just one, white is by far the most versatile. Zack Arias has a good, multi-part tutorial on seamless on his blog.

Careful lighting techniques can make white seamless into any other color. Place 1-2 lights behind the subject and the background will be white. Take them away and get a shade of gray. Gel them and make it red or blue or green. Restrict all ambient and make it black.

Remember to pay attention to your background the next time you are photographing people. Move, reposition and arrange your subjects and the background to suit.

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