Product photography is all about making your subject stand out, and the right backdrop can make or break your shot. Karl Taylor knows this better than most. Over the years, he’s experimented with countless materials and techniques to create stunning, high-end backgrounds for his product shoots.
In this video, Karl explains a few budget-friendly ideas for creating professional backdrops, from affordable DIY solutions to custom-made acrylic sets. Whether you’re shooting jewellery, cosmetics, or beverages, these tips will help make your images more memorable.
Acrylic Sheets
Acrylic (also known as plexiglass or Perspex) is one of Karl’s favourite materials for product photography. It’s durable, comes in various finishes (gloss, matte, frosted), and can be cut into any shape. It also has great reflective properties if you want a perfect mirror reflection.
How Karl Uses Acrylic:
- Custom Blocks & Shapes – For a high-end Apple Watch shoot, Karl used matte black acrylic blocks glued together and vinyl-wrapped for a seamless look.
- Transparent Layers – A Fahrenheit perfume campaign featured triangular acrylic pieces arranged in a geometric pattern.
- Frosted Backlighting – A vodka bottle was shot against frosted acrylic with light shining through, creating a soft glow.
Pro Tip: Sign-making companies can laser-cut acrylic to your exact specifications much cheaper than buying pre-made studio props.
Painted MDF & Hardboard
If acrylic is too pricey, Karl recommends MDF (medium-density fiberboard) or hardboard, smooth on one side and perfect for painting.
How Karl Uses Painted Boards:
- Matte Finish – A matte-painted hardboard was used for a whiskey bottle shoot, giving a clean, professional look.
- Curved Backgrounds – Thin hardboard can be bent into a seamless curve for beauty and fashion products.
- Textured Effects – For food photography, wooden planks stained and assembled create rustic, organic backdrops.
Pro Tip: Use interior matte emulsion paint to avoid unwanted reflections.
Repurposed Furniture & Secondhand Finds
Why build from scratch when you can upcycle? Karl often scours secondhand stores for wooden tabletops, which he repurposes as shooting surfaces.
Examples:
- A coffee table top became the base for a Coca-Cola bottle shoot.
- An old dining table was transformed into a whiskey bar setup.
Pro Tip: Look for distressed wood. Imperfections add character to food and beverage shots.
Water & Liquid Effects
For dynamic, high-end beauty and beverage shots, Karl incorporates water in creative ways:
- Shallow Trays – A Tom Ford perfume bottle was placed in a water-filled tray, with waves created using a ruler.
- Floating Layers – In a product shoot, small acrylic sheets were submerged to create a layered effect.
Pro Tip: Use acrylic blocks to angle products slightly above water for better control.
AI & Digital Backgrounds
Sometimes, the perfect backdrop doesn’t exist, so Karl creates it digitally.
- MidJourney AI – For an underwater watch shoot, Karl generated a bubble-filled background in AI and composited the product in post-production.
- Stock Images – A Remy Martin cognac bottle was placed on black acrylic, with a desert landscape added from Adobe Stock.
Pro Tip: Use TV screens as backdrops for realistic environmental reflections (like a desert scene for a Hugo Boss shoot).
Unconventional Materials
Karl proves that even the simplest items can become high-end props:
- Spray-Painted Ping Pong Balls – Matte black balls were used as a futuristic backdrop for a cosmetics shoot.
- Mount Board Curves – A bent piece of framing card created a seamless arch for sunglasses.
- Black Paper Tubes – Rolled-up paper formed an abstract jewellery backdrop.
Pro Tip: Don’t overthink it—sometimes the best solutions are the simplest.
Build a Backdrop Library
Karl’s key advice is to keep your backdrops. Store them properly, and they’ll serve you for years. Whether it’s a custom acrylic block, a painted MDF sheet, or a repurposed tabletop, having a variety of backdrops on hand ensures you’re always ready for the next shoot.
By experimenting with these techniques, you can create professional product images without a Hollywood budget. As Karl shows, sometimes the best backdrops come from the most unexpected places. Watch the whole video below:
