What is a cyclorama (infinity wall)?

How a cyclorama works

In an ordinary room, the line where the wall meets the floor catches light differently from both surfaces, so it always shows on camera. A cyclorama replaces that corner with a long curve. Lit evenly, the curve disappears and the subject appears to float in an endless space.

A white cyc can be lit to read as pure white, soft grey or even near black, and can be washed with coloured light. That flexibility is why a single cyc can serve a bright e-commerce shoot in the morning and a moody music video at night.

What a cyclorama is used for

• Fashion and full-body portraits, where the whole outfit must sit on a clean background.
• Commercials and product films with the product as the hero.
• Music videos and dance, where performers need room to move.
• Cut-outs and compositing, because an even background is easy to separate in post.
• Group shots and team photos that need width.

Cyclorama versus a paper backdrop

A roll of seamless paper does a similar job for small subjects, but it is narrow, it marks as soon as someone walks on it, and it is hard to light for wide or moving shots. A built cyclorama is wider, sturdier and repaintable, so it suits full-body, group and moving-camera work.

Tips for shooting on a cyc

1. 1Light the background separately from the subject. Even background light is what makes the curve vanish.
2. 2Keep the subject away from the wall so their light does not spill onto it and their shadow falls out of frame.
3. 3Protect the floor: clean shoes or shoe covers keep the white white.
4. 4Ask before taping or fixing anything to the cyc — damage is costly to repair.
5. 5Plan colour washes with the lighting team so gels and fixtures are ready.

The cyclorama at Obscura

Obscura in Mokattam, Cairo has a 7 m white infinity cyclorama on 120 m² of floor, a 5 m ceiling with a rigging grid for hanging lights, and 100% blackout, so the cyc can be lit any way you need at any hour.

Lighting a white cyc evenly

The usual approach is to light the background with broad, soft sources aimed at the wall from the sides or from above, then check the result on camera or with a light meter at several points. When the wall reads evenly across the frame, the subject is lit separately with whatever look the shoot needs. A rigging grid helps here, because background lights can hang above the set instead of standing in the shot.

For a pure white look, the background is often lit slightly brighter than the subject. For grey, it is lit less. For a coloured look, gels on the background lights wash the wall in colour while the subject keeps natural skin tones.