I’m a big fan of painted canvas backdrops. They’ve become quite a ‘thing’ now with photographers such as Felix Kunze promoting them on very popular Facebook pages and lighting classes, and YouTube has many examples of how to create your own, Oliphant being the gold standard, although there are many great options.

Personally I use backdrops painted by Michelle Barton at MCB Studio Backdrops. I’ve had a couple done by Michelle and I’m quite happy wth the results.

The latest drop I had done by Michelle is a 1.2x1.5m grey which I intend to use for headshots or tight 3/4 portraits. For my 2x2 drop I used a 40mm wooden dowel as a mounting post, secured to the drop with carpet tacks and to 2 light stands with super clamps. I did this to reduce the amount of time it takes to setup and mount the drop when doing location work, and I’ve found it to be effective.

However I wanted an even lighter option for this portrait drop, as in theory I could mount it to a single light stand. So, I came up with the idea of using an aluminium tube. The drop would be mounted with a Cardellini clamp, an idea which I got from a Felix Kunze video. After considering various options for securing the drop to the pole I decided on pop rivets. I chose rivets for a couple of reasons; they would be flush mounted so as not to cause damage to the drop when rolling it up, and they would very securely attach the drop to the pole.

So, here’s he shopping list:

Backdrop (obviously)
25mm x 1mm thick Aluminium tube (I used this one from Bunnings)
Rivet gun (again this one)
Rivets (I used 3.2mm)
Drill with a 3.2mm rivet bit
Ruler
Sharpie
Safety glasses
Hack saw
Filing bit to smooth the cut-edges

The process is pretty straight forward, but there are a few things to consider. Here is the process in summary:

Measure out the pole and cut it to length. For smaller drops where it will be centrally mounted (such as with a Cardellini clamp), the tube length can be the same as the drop. For larger drops which will be mounted on 2 stands (on on each side), make the tube 30-40 cm longer which will allow mounting with Super clamps as I’ve mentioned above, and the extra length will make it easier to roll the drop up after the shoot. For this drop I made the first cut to 135cm for a 120cm drop, thinking I would fine-tune it later. In hindsight I could have cut the length at 120 first-go, possibly leaving a small additional space to account for evening the pole edges after cutting.
Measure, mark and drill holes for the rivets. it is important to use the correct bit, as there should be a snug fit to allow the collar of the rivet to properly hold the drop. Be sure to check that the holes are aligned with each other, as this will make aligning the drop easier.
Place the tube into position on the drop. it will rest on the painted side of the drop to allow it to roll up with the unpainted side facing out. This will, of course, ensure the drop trails safely and the painted side does not get damaged or dirty. Carefully mark
The way I marked the holes on the drop was to carefully wrap the drop around the pole, leading around 5cm of space between the hole and the end of the drop. This was to minimise lost drop space, while providing a good amount of fabric to help secure the drop to the tube. Feel for the hole with you finger then mark the spot with a sharpie. This is the step which requires the most amount of care, as you’ll what to keep checking that the drop is pulled tight and that it is even across the tube. I had thought of drilling both the drop and the tube at the same time, and I tried it using A clamps to hold the drop but I felt that it required too much clamping pressure from the table I was using which may have creased the drop.
Drill the holes into the drop. For this I changed to a slightly smaller bit. I felt a smaller hole would leave more fabric, and hopefully create a better grip.
Insert the rivets. Again, constantly check the tension of the drop to make sure it is tight. I inserted the rivet by hand first, then placed the gun over the rivet. it takes quite a bit of force to secure the rivet, but it seemed to work very well. I took a great deal of time on this step.

That’s really the end of the process. I’ve put a little video together of this first attempt:

After it was all finished I mounted the drop using the following:

Manfrotto 1004BAC light stand, which is a good compromise between portability and support.
Avenger D500B 20” grip arm
Avenger D200B grip head
Cardellini clamp to hold the drop (note I use the longer clamp to allow the drop to clear the stand legs)
Sand bag as required

Here’s he final result:

Final drop rear-view mounting with Cardellini clap

Now, what will I do differently next time, here’s a few thoughts:

Possibly a thicker diameter tube would work better. This is really to ease the process of rolling the drop up. For stability, the 25mm is more than adequate. Plus, 25mm was the largest available unless I wanted to go to stainless steel which was out of the question weight-wise.
I’d use a 4mm rivet for larger drops, just for that extra grip. Again, the 3.2mm will be fine for this one.
I’ll add end caps to clean it up.
I’ll find a better way to drill both the drop and the tube. The way I’ve mentioned worked, but I’d like to find a way to drill both the drop and the tube at the same time. I could possibly use super clamps.

I’m happy with how it all came out, the drop is secure, easy to transport and lays evenly behind the subject.

Easy-to-transport portrait backdrop kit.