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DIY Photography Backdrops

· Aimee Reatherford

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Creating beautiful product and food photography doesn’t need to be challenging; all you need is soft and even lighting with a lovely photography backdrop. Of course, having different backgrounds can get expensive and take up a lot of space, especially for those working in their kitchen or living room with limited space. These DIY photography backdrops made with foam board and contact paper are perfect for taking your photography to the next level.

The best thing about creating your own photography backgrounds is that you can pick and choose which type of contact paper fits your style and aesthetic, allowing you to continue to develop a cohesive body of work.

DIY Photography Backdrops

DIY Photography Backdrops

Materials needed for photography backdrops:

How To Make Your Own Photography Backdrops

Before you start adding your contact paper to your foam boards, determine if you have the space or plan on needing the full-size foam board. I realized that I’m never photographing with a wide lens, so I felt that I could cut down my foam board in half and still get the results I wanted. You may want to make your boards larger.

Measuring tape on top of a piece of foam board with a mark at the center point of the board.

Now, you’ll see in the following two images that I’m measuring my board to cut in half. If you can cut in a straight line, that’s amazing, but my edges didn’t come out perfectly straight.

Pro Tip: Use a kitchen knife. Your edges will come out cleaner than scissors. 

Foam board with a line drawn down the middle.
Piece of foam board cut in half.

Once my boards were cut down to the size I wanted, I rolled out the contact paper over the top and cut it to fit the foam board. I recommend that you give yourself some extra contact paper on the ends. 

Piece of foam board with black, wood-grain contact paper on top to make a photography backdrop.

Depending on the size of your contact paper, you might have to cut a smaller piece to cover the whole board. I had a few rolls that were larger than the board itself, so it made for an easy application.

Black, wood-grain contact paper and pair of scissors on top of a foam board.

After completely covering your board, begin to smooth out the contact paper to eliminate any air bubbles. Flip your board over to the back and cut the edges of your contact paper to allow the paper to fold nicely. 

Backside of DIY photography backdrops, with contact paper edges folded over.

Flip the foam board back over, and you have your finished product!

DIY Photography Backdrops with different patterns layered on top of one another.

You can make as many of these boards as you need. I did keep one white as that can be interchangeable with the other boards I made.

Cupcake on a white plate in front of a black photography background.

Additional Recommendations for Photography Backdrops

If contact paper isn’t your jam, which is understandable, it can be tricky to apply; you can paint or pin fabric to your boards for added texture to your images. The options are endless. Never underestimate the foam board’s potential. This will give you a great start to creating beautiful photography!

More Photography Tips

About Aimee Reatherford

Aimee Reatherford graduated from Columbia College Chicago with a Bachelors degree in Photography. She has a sweet spot for vintage cars and rocking the latest sneakers. You can find her strolling the aisle of her local craft store for her next DIY project and working on her fitness in her spare time.

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