How to store a velvet/cotton background?

I've got myself a black velvet background and now playing around with it.

It's stapled to a wooden plank and I just roll it up. The problem is that it doesn't roll evenly and will be wrinkled very soon.

It's not a big problem for me right now because it's black and doesn't show anyways the way I light up my subjects. But I want to know how you keep your cotton gray and white backgrounds from wrinkling when rolled up.

Thanks.

I wish I knew. I just roll mine up. They're wrinkled, but it usually doesn't have a big impact on the images. It'd be nice to keep them "Good", though.

DocFrankenstein wrote in post #2778579
I've got myself a black velvet background and now playing around with it.

It's stapled to a wooden plank and I just roll it up. The problem is that it doesn't roll evenly and will be wrinkled very soon.

It's not a big problem for me right now because it's black and doesn't show anyways the way I light up my subjects. But I want to know how you keep your cotton gray and white backgrounds from wrinkling when rolled up.

Thanks.

My advise is to go the other way, stop trying to inhibit the wrinkles and encourage in a grand manner. Stop fiddling with rolling them up, carefully folding them up, steaming them, ironing them, etc.

For storage, stuff all of your cloth backdrops into a tight cloth bag. Then you end up with an infinate number of random "micro wrinkles" that are easy to deal with.

This is sort of a "go with the force, Luke" deal.

If you must have very smooth and even backdrops, go with roll paper.

Enjoy! Lon

At least I'm not the only one who can't figure out how to fold a piece of fabric. lol

I'm with Lon all the way on this. I just wad it up and stick it in the cabinet. The last thing I want, is deep visible creases. This stuff soaks up light so, that creases probably won't show at -3 stops.

Lon is right.

charlesu wrote in post #2780567
Lon is right.

So you're not using cotton for white/gray backgrounds? It's all giant toilet paper rolls?

That should be expensive!

Seems an awful lot do use the huge seamless paper for white. It's just easier.

This topic came up a while back...when I mentioned that most of the shooters I know just stuff their backgrounds in a bag and don't worry about wrinkles at all, several people were shocked. Sounds like more and more are seeing it as trendy.

Actually seamless paper did just go up from like $45 to $60 at my local shop so yes, seamless is expensive. Probably a bit more than TP though. However, I do also have a number of other backdrops.

Woolburr wrote in post #2780744
This topic came up a while back...when I mentioned that most of the shooters I know just stuff their backgrounds in a bag and don't worry about wrinkles at all, several people were shocked. Sounds like more and more are seeing it as trendy.

It seems to me that most of the humans worring about wrinkles in cloth backdrops are mostly the inexperenced or those contemplating their first backdrop purchase (again realize that I have purposely inserted the word "mosty" in there, as I am positive there are exceptions).

I can assure you that just stuffing the cloth backdrop in a bag is not a trend. This is the prevailing way to deal with them by most humans that have been using them, not just contemplating using them, or just started using them.

There is a perception of a problem that is not really a problem.

If you can hang your backdrops up and leave them hanging, you have some reasonable ability for most of the wrinkles to to be gone, but if they have to be stored, just stuff them in a bag or other container (I use both bags and large poly bins).

Enjoy! Lon

Admittedly, the only cotton backdrops I have used is a black one.

londuck: Are you saying wrinkles won't show up in white/gray backdrops too?

Do you stretch it somehow or just light the background with two lights from both sides to make sure you're lighting "everything"?

You can get A clamps and stretch it on the support system (assuming you use one) to smooth some wrinkles. Very easy.

DocFrankenstein wrote in post #2781796
Admittedly, the only cotton backdrops I have used is a black one.

londuck: Are you saying wrinkles won't show up in white/gray backdrops too?

Do you stretch it somehow or just light the background with two lights from both sides to make sure you're lighting "everything"?

You are missing my point.

Carefully read my first post in this thread as it answers your follow up question before you asked it.

Enjoy! Lon

Sorry. I thought you were giving advice specifically on black backdrops. My bad.