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  2. Patrick Nagle



    Making a Backdrop Stand

    Hello everybody, I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and are enjoying the start to holiday shopping. When you do get a break and have time to yourselves, I have another great DIY for you to get into. Today we’ll be making a backdrop stand. With this setup you can also use it as a light stand with a little modification for the mount. For today, we will make it for a backdrop. Many of us put all of our pennies towards cameras, lenses, lights, etc. The list goes on and on, so it can be difficult to pull the wallet out for a name branded backdrop setup. Of course we can go outside and use the natural environment as our background, but what about when we want that real studio look? Having something that is inexpensive and easily collapsible allows us to shoot where and when we want. Let’s jump right into it…


  3. Materials needed:
    (3) 10 ft. 1 inch PVC pipe
    (2) 90-degree PVC pipe (no threads)
    (8) T-shape PVC connectors
    (8) PVC end caps
    Hack saw or pipe cutting tool

    Ok now that we have got everything, it is time to start making some cuts.

    (2) Five-foot lengths
    (2) Three-foot lengths
    (2) Two-foot lengths
    (4) 18-inch lengths
    (8) 6-inch lengths

    Everything is cut..now it is time to piece it all together. The two 5 foot pipes will be the crossbars; one at the top and one at mid-level. Attach elbows on each end to one of the 5 foot pipes. The 2-footers will be connected next followed by the T-shaped pieces. The 3 foot pipes continue down to connect to the feet and the other 5-foot pipe gets connected to the other part of the T-joint to become the mid-level crossbar that I had mentioned earlier. Ok great, the whole frame is together now we need to make the feet. Each leg consists of (4) 6-inch pieces, (2) 8-inch pieces, and (3) T-shape pieces. Put it all together and finish it off by putting the end caps on. That’s it, you’re done!

    If you’re a portrait photographer or want to get into it, this is a great project for you. This backdrop stand is light, portable, and best of all…cheap! For about $20, I was able to pick up all the supplies needed and start shooting immediately. The image shown here was shot with my Tamron 85mm f/1.8 VC USD while using the backdrop stand I had just made. Having a professional looking background can fool someone into thinking that it was shot in a studio when it was actually in your garage. Have fun everyone and happy shooting!