Paper/vinyl background.. reference shot guesses?

[fxt1]

<p>I'm just about to go and stock up on some paper roll backgrounds, and came across this in some out-takes of a shoot.. it's got a lovely, almost metalic sort of shine to it.. and I want to hunt down something similar. I normally work with material or canvas backgrounds, so I don't really have a point of reference to compare it to.</p>

<p>Wondering if anyone can hazard a guess at the colour/material? </p>

<p>It looks black in the second shot but is reflecting gorgeous dark blue tones.. any ideas? Might it be a matt black vinyl sheet.. or is it some shade of charcoal paper? If so, what do you reckon is most likely shade out of the 100 or so options on calumet? <a href="http://www.calumetphoto.co.uk/eng/browse/categories/studio-lighting/backgrounds-support/paper-backgrounds">http://www.calumetphoto.co.uk/eng/browse/categories/studio-lighting/backgrounds-support/paper-backgrounds</a></p>

<p>Thanks in advance!</p>

<p><img src="http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/228210_10150186897586299_12614086298_7195083_7233359_n.jpg" alt="" width="720" height="516" /><img src="http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/183595_10150107304636299_12614086298_6666230_2736912_n.jpg" alt="" width="720" height="540" /></p>

[Matt Laur]

<p>Looks like grubby black seamless, to me. Well used, and awkwardly stored (not well rolled). The way the bottom edge is turned up and shows small dimples is what tells me it's likely paper. The sheen is a result of that <em>very</em> strong side-light (window, sun) that's bouncing off of it at such a low angle. <br /><br />That's my take on it, anyway!</p>

[craig_shearman1]

<p>That's definitely standard black seamless paper in a standard 9-foot-wide roll. The fact that it looks gray and mottled in the first couple of shots is a combination of the light coming in from the window and you can see the pattern where instead of being perfectly rolled it has been allowed to lay in a kind of oval shape making not quite a crease but a clear pattern. Footprints all over the front end of it on the floor. Don't let the colors fool you. The first two shots are so washed out to tell anything -- they look like a color print that has been out in the sun for 20 years. And you can make black nearly white if you dump enough light on it just as you can make white black if you keep the light off of it.</p>

[fxt1]

cheers guys, very helpful.

[fxt1]

Also, after looking at the top shot for a while.. I'm wondering about the lighting in the finished shot? A larger

version of the main shot can be seen here: http://500px.com/photo/1435870 - do you think it's entirely

natural light or has she used a soft box for fill, as in the shot of the set up.. or maybe she's bouncing flash

off a large white reflector at the front? Hmm... thoughts?

[tim_ludwig2]

<p>The others are totally right. The pattern of lines across the background are defects due to the paper being stored flat on the floor or a shelf rather than around a core or standing on end.</p>

[tim_ludwig2]

<p> </p>