Review: Photo Backdrop Secrets - DIY!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 04 1, 2013
I was about 60% into the book before I saw the part the title lead me to expect!  There was a lot of general review and Dan does not draw a distinction between background and backdrop, which may be appropriate for the beginner who does not have a backdrop stand.  The title lead me to expect some discussion about backdrop stands, choice of fabric, possibly choice of paint for fabric, green screen, seamless papers,... It does address replacing backgrounds using digital imaging techniques at a high level.  He mentions Photoshop (which is expensive), and Gimp (which is free but has a steep learning curve), but does not mention Photoshop Elements (which is more reasonably priced and very suitable for a beginner).A couple of things I don't recall seeing mentioned are lighting a plain white or coloured backdrop from the back and the effect of strong light on gels.  I find colour from gels washes out if the light behind the gel is too bright or the other lights are too bright, so when using gels, I turn the light's power down considerably compared to what I would use when not using gels and frequently switch to softboxes instead of umbrellas to keep more of the key and fill lights off the backdrop.The book is a good starting point for those who want to get deeper into their photography but may be disappointing for photographers who have reached or passed the intermediate level.