How to choose a background roll colour for headshots

Background rolls come in a rainbow of colours. Just like people. But how do you decide which colour is for you?

I wrote this blog post for my Photoform* clients, and every colour here I have available. We can also use any colour you can think of by dropping the colour in Photoshop.

Step 1. Think about branding before you start.

If you are building a business or a brand, think about brand design, colour palette and general vibe before you get photos done.

Why? You might get a suite of photos done and you are wearing hot pink against a hot pink background and then you decide your website will be minimal in black and white. Oh babe.

I’m super passionate about branding. When I started my business I knew I wanted to build not just a business but a brand.

Why? I could tell a story of my business and the client experience using branding. People have emotional connections with brands they love. And down the track I can develop other products and services other than my initial offering with a strong brand.

Step 2. Think about what you are going to wear.

If your background is a neutral like white, grey or black, it doesn’t matter so much. But if you’re going for something like pink or yellow, make sure the colours you wear don’t clash.

Step 3. Check out these options.

Neutrals:

As the name implies neutrals are any greyscale shades from pure white through grey to pure black. An colour will go with these so let your freak flag fly baby. A neutral background is also going to tie in with whatever colour palette you have on your website.

Grey.

Classic grey. Probably my most used background roll colour. It goes with everything and has a bit of contrast against skin tones. There’s a range of tones, from dark grey to light grey which you can see in the background roll infographic below.

White.

A nice clean look great for websites. There’s two versions of white – pure white and off white. Pure white is great if you want a super clean modern look. It’s also good for keeping consistency with headshots over time. The background will remain exactly the same if you make it pure white. As you can see above, even if you stick to light grey, variations in the shade will creep in. Nobody got time for creeps!

Issues with using pure white? If your website background is also pure white you will end up with ‘floating heads’. Test a shot with pure white and see how it’s going to look. If the floating heads is an issue, go with off white or another colour.

As you can see in the examples below, the off white can look like a very light grey. Which is what it is really.

Colours:

Biege.

This has become something of a Photoform* signature. I love it because it looks contemporary and it flatters skin tones. Any warmer background colours will make skin tones look good. Think pink, brown, beige, sand etc.

Think about the background colour when choosing outfits though. You wouldn’t want to go with neon green for example. It goes great with navy, black, white, soft pink.

I think some clients get scared off by the word beige. Let’s call it sand then haha.

Pink.

I loves me a bit of pink. You only need to check out the Photoform* website to see how obsessed I am with it. Fun fact: my website was decked out in pink long before that Barbie movie.

Have a look at the examples below for tickle me pink backgrounds.

What’s some colours to go with pink you ask? Glad you asked. Here’s some faves: orange (see above), denim, red, pink on pink. Orrr, check out below for pink inspo.

Olive.

This is a new colour in the Photoform* background roll arsenal. And it’s hot hot hot. Colours to pair with it? Think reds, brown, white, black, orange, pink, navy, denim, light blue. Here’s an example with my client Kimberly and some ideas after.

Light Blue.

Forrest Green.

Like a walk in the mountains. Just avoid wearing red with this background all you’ll look like Christmas. Same goes for gold. Think white, navy, orange, black, pink, light green.

Chocolate Brown.

I have a chocolate brown roll in our range but I haven’t used it with a client yet. So with the magic of Midjourney I’ve done an AI mockup of what it would look like.

Colours to go with brown? Think tonal – beige, light brown dark browns and black. Contrast with navy, light blue, white. Or go complementary: pink, orange or red.

Of course if you really can’t decide on a background colour, and you have your headshot session booked with us, we can pick for you.

If you’re in Melbourne and want to elevate your online presence with personality driven headshots, head to the Photoform* website. Click the image below to visit our cosy homepage.

Copyright of all images and text belong to Myles Formby of Photoform*, 2023.