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5 DIY Photo Backdrops For New Year’s Eve!

By Rach DePaoli | Effects Showcase Inspiration

Finding the next best photo op is crucial to maintaining creative status and flow in our media-driven culture. We want to see new content, whether that is showing off the latest fashion trend, product, or a fun event that you attended. Our world is digital and there is no better way to put your holiday party on blast than to create a perfect photo op for your guests!

NYE photoshoot supprting

Holiday parties are a perfect time to put together a photo booth station. This is such a fun way to celebrate that most parties seem to automatically come equipped with them. The great part about these is that they don't have to break your budget. You can put a budget-friendly DIY backdrop together that produces some really incredible photos that people will want to share on their profiles.

1. Use Traditional Household Items

You don’t even have to go out and purchase new material in order to create a beautiful backdrop. You can create a background from wax paper by checking out this tutorial here. Think of other household items that you could use, from hanging colorful bottles to using foil to add some bokeh effects in the background.

NYE photoshoot waxy background

Bokeh adds a really interesting effect to the background of images. It has the capacity to make an image look very romantic or glimmery. You can achieve this effect by using wrinkled foil as your backdrop or by stringing up some lights behind you. 

NYE photoshoot bokeh backgrounds

Just make sure your subject is moved out from your backdrop a couple of feet in order to get this effect. If you get your photos back and didn’t feel like you were able to achieve this in person, you can always add in a bokeh effect with BeFunky’s Photo Editor

2. Reuse Holiday Recycling

Gather up all of your tinsel or use your leftover silver and gold glittery holiday garland to stream vertically to create a full, shimmery backdrop. You can even reuse all of the tissue paper from your family’s holiday gifts to create a really unique background – check out this tutorial for all of the tips and tricks. 

NYE photoshoot tinsel

You can also try creating a solid-colored background – match the color of the wall behind you in order to make a nice textured effect. Another option is to create a colorful background that fits the theme of your party. This can be a groovy color palette, or a black-and-white tie affair with gold, black, and white.

3. Use Furniture As a Prop

People feel comfortable when they have items in front of them that they are able to utilize and are used to. Furniture allows someone to interact with it in a really relaxed kind of way. These kinds of props work really well with a group but can also add a good depth of field for someone standing for a portrait.

NYE photoshoot furniture

If you want to go extra, you can use a bathtub, stool, side chair, a collection of floor poufs, or a large couch that has a unique pop of color.

4. Add Fun Props to Break the Ice

Picking up some dollar store props is a fun and inexpensive way to stock a bin full of photobooth items that people will have a blast posing together with. You can even make your own paper props by using BeFunky’s Graphic Designer, printing and cutting them out, and gluing them to popsicle sticks. 

NYE photoshoot props

A simple prop that you can also use is a collection of balloons. These can go a long way and can also create multiple scenes, either by keeping them clustered or by separating them into single balloons for a more relaxed feel. You can even get trendy balloon numbers for a simple, high-class backdrop.

NYE photoshoot balloons

5. Lighting Is Key!

Lighting can make all the difference when creating a dynamic photoshoot. Take note if you want backlighting, angled lighting, or direct lighting. As mentioned above, you can set up backlighting with twinkle lights or leftover Christmas lights. Simply hang these up on a wall behind you and have your subject step a couple of feet in front of this backdrop to get a bokeh effect behind them.

NYE photoshoot twinkle

You can set up a really trendy backdrop in an empty corner of your house by setting up two opposing lights with colored light gels over them. You can be done here or you can add in some confetti or props to add some fun elements to your images.

NYE photoshoot colorful

If you or a friend has a disco ball laying around or if you choose to host a disco-themed party, grab a disco ball and shine a light towards it so the little mirrors reflect light back onto the wall. This is such a simple way to add dimension and soft light for your subject.

NYE photoshoot disco

Lastly, with lighting, a trend that has stuck around is having a neon sign as a backdrop. This can be on a blank wall or it can be within a scene. Getting one that has a funny or relatable phrase is key to viral photos.

NYE photoshoot neon

Create a Unique NYE Photobooth Backdrop

This year, you don’t have to break the bank to throw a memorable New Year’s Eve party. Create your own NYE photo booth backdrop for your friends to take their new profile photos in front of. Whether you round up some of your favorite furniture, buy some dollar props or make your own, or utilize lighting to create a simple scene - you’ll have a night to remember. And when you're done, use BeFunky's Photo Editor to edit your photos to perfection.

Photo Editing, Simplified.


Photo Editing. Simplified