Some time ago I wanted to publish an entry in which to record the importance of the background in photography. The first idea was to comment on the different background options that we have in macro photography and more specifically orienting the content to mushroom photography. But as happens when you buy a shirt and do nothing but see people with your same shirt, well, the same thing has happened to me. Since I began to shape the entry on backgrounds, I have been seeing how little these are cared for. And not only in macro photography, in landscape, city, fauna...

And already this week, after I was asked for my opinion on an anonymous photo of mushrooms. The photo in the recycle bin question, that was my answer. The worst of all was seeing that the author was being applauded even with his ears, which makes it very clear that we are living a stage in which the person who takes the photograph is valued more than the photo itself. It was then that I decided not to postpone this entry any longer and talk about the importance of the background in photography.

The importance of the background

Imagine that you are going to a wedding, new suit or dress, hairdresser, makeup... you have even gone to the gym so that your clothes fit you better. You see how handsome you are and you know that this is how everyone will see you. But instead of wearing shoes that match your clothing, you put on muddy hiking boots. Exactly! No one is going to see how good that hairstyle looks on you or the figure that the suit makes you, they are not even going to notice the expensive jewelry that you only wear on special occasions like these. No, all eyes are going to go to your feet.

Well, it's the same with backgrounds, if we don't give them the importance they have, all the effort we've put into our subject or in the foreground is going to go to waste.

And how do we hit the bottom?

Well, trying to summarize, we would say simplifying as much as possible. Clean backgrounds on which our main subject is cut out, without overlaps or interfering elements. There are many tools available online to remove the background of an image, such as Slazzer, the best background remover ever made. You can use it to remove the background and replace it with something that will make your image even more perfect. All are available and it is up to you to choose your tool.

Once we have understood how to simplify a background, we may want to complicate it, adding elements that contribute or support the scene. Clouds in a landscape would be a clear example. But when we talk about close-up photography the story changes, the ability to unite a background with a motif becomes quite complicated and this is when the technique gives way to the imagination.