Suggestions
for good background paper or background cloth to improve your photography
Like
many students, I began with felt as a backdrop. Trouble with felt
is that the material holds and shows wrinkles. Also, the wispy hair-like
portions of felt tend to stick up off the surface and be visible
in close-up shots of artifacts.
Also
as typical of students, I used the basic Savage background papers.
I have also seen other kinds of cloth, especially velvet for black,
used by many professional photographs. I like Superior Specialties
paper, especially an off white which does not tear or crumble easily.
I found this only in Japan. The company of the same name in the
USA did not have the same plastic-like material.
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Nenil
backdrop material for photography
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Usually
it is appalling how often background
material is reused (to save money). The results are spots, stains,
scuff marks, even tear holes--all the same problems I had when a
student, when I could not afford to change my backdrop often enough.
Now I do not have any more money, but my standards of excellence
have gone up (even if I cannot always satisfy these standards, at
least I do my best to search out improved gear). I have literally
crisscrossed the world to track down better backdrop material.
While
photographing in Germany, I went to every professional camera supply
company in Munich, trying out one material after another. Finally
I happened by chance to find a kind of material named Nenil, it
was just the kind of material I like. Nenil is made by Paul Teufel
& Cie, Rosenbergstr. 113, 70042 Stuttgart. Tel 011 49 711 63
83 37 or -39. Fax is 63 42 06.
This
material is so good that I order it even for use in the USA, Mexico,
Guatemala, and I fly it all the way to Japan. Nenil has all the
advantages of cloth and of paper simultaneously, but does not scuff
or get soiled as easily as paper or have frizzes as felt. The colors
are limited but I have found several that I like. Their black is
really black.
How
do I hold up my background material when I land in a new location?
Again I found the answer in Foto Dinkel, where I get all my professional
supplies when working in Germany. Foto Dinkel is in Munich, a few
blocks from the main train station. They sell the Multitube System
35, in the USA known as Alu-Tube (or some similar name). The actual
company is Alu-Forma, part of the Manfrotto photographic conglomerate,
Via M. Pertica, 15, I-36061 Bassano del Grappa.
Tel.
(424) 512040, fax (424) 36550.
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Where
and how to store your digital images? RAID,
DVD,
or CD-R?
lots
of links to information on desktop
publishing hardware/software, www.laser-printer-reviews.org
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