DIY: Make A Custom-Dyed Muslin Portrait Photography Backdrop

Many amateur photographers want to experiment with professional photography techniques, such as taking family portraits at home. However, professional photography equipment can be very expensive if purchased from the standard suppliers that the professionals use.

But there's an alternative for the amateur photographer when it comes to custom-dyed muslin portrait backdrops. The supplies you'll need are readily available at any craft store, and the steps are easy to follow. Within an hour, you'll have a beautiful portrait backdrop to use in your home photography studio.

Supplies you'll need:

Muslin fabric

Fabric dye

Twine or string

Tools you'll need

Large plastic or metal container to hold water

Wooden spoon or stick

Plastic protective gloves (optional)

You can purchase muslin fabric at any local fabric store such as JoAnn's or Hancock Fabric. Muslin comes in a variety of standard widths and you can choose whichever width will best suit your needs. Most standard backdrops sold to professional photographers are about 10" wide. Purchase the muslin that is 120" wide. You'll need about 3 or 4 yards of fabric for a backdrop, or more if you want your backdrop to extend onto the floor in front of the portrait setting.

You can purchase standard fabric dye at any local fabric or discount department store. I used the brand Rit - the liquid type that comes in a bottle. You could also use the powder variety that comes in a box, if you choose.

You'll also need to purchase some cheap twine or string. You can often find this at the Dollar Store or other discount retailer.

Let's begin.

First you'll need to wash your fabric. You can either do this in the washing machine or by hand in your plastic container with a bit of detergent. If you're washing your fabric by hand, make sure all soapy residue is rinsed out before proceeding to the next step. This step is important because fabric directly from the fabric store is treated with a sizing agent - washing this chemical out will ensure that the dye will be fully absorbed by the fabric.

While your fabric is still wet spread it out on a clean surface and begin to bunch up the fabric into small sections. I just grabbed a handful of fabric near the center and piled it together, then grabbed another handful of fabric, continuing to pull the little piles together toward the center. When you're finished you'll have a lumpy ball of fabric. Be careful not to create any patterns or symmetrical designs... you want this ball of fabric to have completely random wrinkles and bunches in it.

Gather your lumpy ball of fabric in your hands and begin to wrap the ball of fabric several times with the twine or string. Continue to wrap the twine around the ball of fabric as if you were wrapping a ball of yarn. A dozen or so times around the ball of fabric will do the trick. The tighter you wrap the twine, the more "white" spots you'll have in your finished backdrop because it will be harder for the dye to get to the center of the ball of fabric. The looser you wrap, the more saturated the color will be throughout the portrait backdrop you're creating. Either way is perfectly fine - it's a personal preference. This method of bunching up fabric and tying it with twine is much like making a tie-dye t-shirt except we are striving for a pattern that is not as prominent or defined as the circles you find on tie-dye t-shirts.

Now prepare your plastic or metal container with hot water and add your fabric dye according to the package directions. The hotter the water the more effective the dye will be - but you should still be able to put your hands in the water, so you don't want it too hot. Be sure you have placed your dying container in a place that you don't mind getting some splatters from the fabric dye - outside is a good choice.

Place your tied up ball of fabric into the tub of water and dye. To protect your hands from getting dyed the color of your backdrop you may want to wear plastic or rubber gloves. The fabric ball should soak in the dye bath for at least 30 minutes. Use your wooden spoon or stick to turn the fabric periodically (every 10 minutes or so) while it is soaking in the water. This will ensure even coverage of your fabric. Once your fabric has achieved the depth of color you desire, remove it from the water and wring out as much excess water as possible.

Cut off your twine or string and spread out your fabric to dry. Hanging your fabric over a clothes line to dry outside is best - but if you don't have the room outdoors, you can use a clothes dryer to dry your fabric if necessary.

Once you've opened your fabric backdrop you might find that the color isn't exactly what you wanted in some spots. Because you tied the ball of fabric together with twine, it will naturally have lighter or white spots within the backdrop that you might want to be darker. You can "over-dye' the fabric by dipping it back into the dye bath after you've released it from the twine. This will allow the darker spots of the backdrop to become a bit darker and the lighter spots to receive some more color saturation as well.

Storing your backdrop is easy. Wad it up in a ball and stuff it into a box or bag. Avoid folding it for storage because the fold marks will become distracting during your portrait setting. By storing it in a wadded ball you'll have subtle, random wrinkles that will enhance the texture of your photographs.

Once you've created your first backdrop, you'll want to make another and another. Experiment with color combinations and saturation levels and expand your collection over time.