Best Practices for Backgrounds

Often overlooked but never unnoticed, choosing a good background for an interview or livestream is critical for a quality production. The scene behind your on-screen talent sets the mood and can either distract or help direct the audience’s attention to the main event. In our behind-the-scenes video, we show off several of the backdrops that we have in our studio. But, backdrop or not, what makes a good background for a video?

#ProTip: A good background helps focus attention

The background shouldn’t be boring or your audience quickly tires of looking at it - placing your subject in front of a blank, flat-colored wall, for example, will lead to wandering eyes and wandering attention. It also can’t be too busy or contain distracting elements like trailing cords, wall plugs, or blank TV screens, or your audience will look at the background rather than the subject. A good space would have a few aesthetic elements to look at—like a lamp, a bouquet of flowers, or a few small pictures—that are out of focus and/or darker than the subject. If you don’t have a space like this, a backdrop can both mask unsightly spaces and add interest through creative lighting. See how, in our behind-the-scenes video, the blue color is not uniform, but appears darker around the corners like a natural vignette? The lighting effect both makes the color interesting and draws your attention to the subject in the center. For a good backdrop setup, we just need a clear space at least 10’ x 15’ or larger; an empty conference room typically works great for this. With a little planning, any space can be transformed into the perfect background for your beautiful video.