AF: Making a model look more realistic on a new background

[phfoto]

I usually do still life photography but decided to play around with portraits and had a subject in front of a green screen, removed the background and I was looking for a good background to use and although there is plenty I've come across a problem of creating realistic depth so the person doesn't actually look like it's on a pasted background. Any tips on getting this looking more real or is it case of trying loads of backgrounds to see what fits? 

[Paul Mc]

Lighting/shadows, colour grade and focus need to be consistent between the foreground and the background. Assuming that you've masked or cut out the old background with a clean edge then these things can make or break the look. A lot of background/landscape shots use a different focus from how it would be as a backdrop with a foreground subject so I often need to add a tiny bit of Gaussian blur. If you've used a shallow DOF then you might have a bit more work using a gradient blur layer. Colour balance and sometimes HSL adjustments are often needed to make the foreground sit well in the scene colour-wise. The main issue for my work (food and table-top photography) is choosing a background where the lights and shadows fall in a similar way to how the foreground is lit. Sometimes lightening the shadows can soften them and make them less distinct fooling the eye as to the light source but it's a lot easier if you can choose a backdrop with a similar light direction and shadow edge (hard/soft).

[Aad Slingerland]

Not free but I can recommend this:

https://courses.affinityrevolution.com/p/pixel-perfect-selections

[phfoto]

Thank you to the both of you!

[kirkt]

It often helps to have the background you ultimately want to composite the model into in mind while you are shooting against the green screen.  This way, you can match lighting, camera position and focal length, color palette of costume and set, etc. to the shot of the model.   Blending the model into the background plate will involve not only a good extraction of the model from the green screen, but additional attention to details that integrate the model into the background, such as color grading, light wrapping and edge softening to match the background, etc.  

Try picking a background plate and then envisioning how the subject needs to be lit, shot and treated before you take you first shot.  Humans can often identify when something does not look "quite right" even if they cannot explain exactly what the problem is - try identifying what does not look right in your first attempt to see if you can methodically correct those issues with lighting, color, camera settings, etc.

Have fun!

kirk