How does Sideshow do their backgrounds?

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Adam Scott Photography

Adam Scott Photography

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Ive been wondering this for a while. I want to use a similar style in my work.

For pics where you don't see the feet, I suspect it could just be a screen of some kind. But on pics like this, the background image - usually a blurry-er still frame from the film, merges perfectly with the seamless gray backdrop. up_8.jpg

Is the background image printed out on a gray backdrop or what the hecks going on here.
 
Adam Scott Photography said:
Ive been wondering this for a while.
Click to expand...

How long have you been in the industry? Do you have any backdrops and lighting equipment? You're most of the way there if so.

Those images are chroma-keyed or otherwise matted. Shoot the figure lit against a green or blue background (they key color - depending on the colors in the subject) and then replace the key color with an image using Photoshop or similar software. You can do it without plugins, but there are a number of them out there that provide much quicker and more versatile UI than dealing with Photoshop alone.
 
Pixelpiper said:
How long have you been in the industry? Do you have any backdrops and lighting equipment? You're most of the way there if so.

Those images are chroma-keyed or otherwise matted. Shoot the figure lit against a green or blue background (they key color - depending on the colors in the subject) and then replace the key color with an image using Photoshop or similar software. You can do it without plugins, but there are a number of them out there that provide much quicker and more versatile UI than dealing with Photoshop alone.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I would like to know in even greater detail. Im getting really close in my efforts and I want the backgrounds to be as efficient as possible. tumblr_mj82qrGP3B1rhqiplo1_r1_1280.jpg
 
Ok, exactly what you did there, except instead of shooting against a background that's complimentary to your subject, shoot it against something flat/even that's not featured in your subject at all. Like a flat blue or green. Honestly, you should just web search and you'll find a wealth of information. "chromakey photography" for example.

You should check out this thread for some (excellent) 1/6 figure examples (that are all a LOT more complicated than anything Hot Toys shoots): https://www.sideshowcollectors.com/...quot-Dark-Lord-s-Galactic-Empire-quot-page-32
 
Pixelpiper said:
Ok, exactly what you did there, except instead of shooting against a background that's complimentary to your subject, shoot it against something flat/even that's not featured in your subject at all. Like a flat blue or green. Honestly, you should just web search and you'll find a wealth of information. "chromakey photography" for example.

You should check out this thread for some (excellent) 1/6 figure examples (that are all a LOT more complicated than anything Hot Toys shoots): https://www.sideshowcollectors.com/...quot-Dark-Lord-s-Galactic-Empire-quot-page-32
Click to expand...
Ok thanks I will. I kinda thought the way the background image fades to neutral gray they were shooting on a gray backdrop and photoshopping it in that way. I havent had much luck using green screen/chromakey in the past (green light bounce) so I was hoping to avoid it.
 
Adam Scott Photography said:
Ok thanks I will. I kinda thought the way the background image fades to neutral gray they were shooting on a gray backdrop and photoshopping it in that way. I havent had much luck using green screen/chromakey in the past (green light bounce) so I was hoping to avoid it.
Click to expand...

You should be able to lift/correct any the green light cast - it's also important to set up your lights to minimize that. I'm sure the author of the thread I linked would give you some practical advice based on his experience at this scale.

You *could* also shoot against any background you want and then cut the object from the photo using a path tool - I prefer to use Illustrator rather than Photoshop's built-in path tool. But this is only suitable for outlines - you could never use it to grab something that's translucent (like a veil or smoke) or for things that have a ton of detail, like blowing hair.
 
Pixelpiper said:
You should be able to lift/correct any the green light cast - it's also important to set up your lights to minimize that. I'm sure the author of the thread I linked would give you some practical advice based on his experience at this scale.

You *could* also shoot against any background you want and then cut the object from the photo using a path tool - I prefer to use Illustrator rather than Photoshop's built-in path tool. But this is only suitable for outlines - you could never use it to grab something that's translucent (like a veil or smoke) or for things that have a ton of detail, like blowing hair.
Click to expand...

Right. I havent tried it in a few years. Im a lot better at selecting color ranges and the like now than back then.
 
Adam Scott Photography said:
Right. I havent tried it in a few years. Im a lot better at selecting color ranges and the like now than back then.
Click to expand...

You should use a plugin or Photoshop's newest tools for the job. Chromakey can be done in real-time (and is every night on the news :) ) so it's also going to be a lot quicker than creating a perfect path manually.
 
I think the last one I used was Mask Pro some (probably many now) years ago and I believe it's called Perfect Mask now. There are bound to be some better alternatives out there. I have never used PhotoKey but it looks promising and has a nice up to date UI, also check out Primatte Chromakey as well.
 
Pixelpiper said:
I think the last one I used was Mask Pro some (probably many now) years ago and I believe it's called Perfect Mask now. There are bound to be some better alternatives out there. I have never used PhotoKey but it looks promising and has a nice up to date UI, also check out Primatte Chromakey as well.
Click to expand...

Hmm Ill look into it, thanks. I prefer shooting toys but its really all part of a larger category of commercial product photography. I think that's where I wanna be as a photographer.
 
Well, your shots look great!! I think with a little photoshop, you can easily add some great backgrounds...
Batman.jpg
 

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