Light gray.. Since most machines are beige (some are black) , you want a contrasting color when taking photos. On Mon, Mar 14, 2016 at 11:12 PM, Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote:

Here are some pictures of the back half of the new room, in which you can see how the microcomputer exhibit is shaping up:

http://vcfed.org/evan/long1.jpg

http://vcfed.org/evan/long2.jpg

There's a lot more work to do. For example, each station will get a backdrop, so visitors (and their pictures!) are not distracted by artifacts/walls behind the units. We determined that the most affordable way to do this is to use bolts of fabric. A bolt is a yard wide (same as each unit), up to 10 yards long, and can be purchased in almost any color. I called the fabric store and found out they'll even cut an entire bolt into a zillion slices for us. If we get them cut into 6-ft. lengths (same height as each shelving unit, then we can just attach them to the back of each unit, it makes a nice backdrop, and it's completely mobile with the unit itself.

The question is, what color should be get? Beige? Off-white? Light gray? Light/medium blue?

Note: In the second picture, the iMac + late-90s internet appliances are not part of the micro exhibit; they're part of the modern history exhibit. Will pick up some dark green fabric for its background so it matches the green wall across from it (shown in earlier pictures).

On Mon, Mar 14, 2016 at 11:12 PM, Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic@lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote:

Here are some pictures of the back half of the new room, in which you can see how the microcomputer exhibit is shaping up:

http://vcfed.org/evan/long1.jpg

http://vcfed.org/evan/long2.jpg

There's a lot more work to do. For example, each station will get a backdrop, so visitors (and their pictures!) are not distracted by artifacts/walls behind the units. We determined that the most affordable way to do this is to use bolts of fabric. A bolt is a yard wide (same as each unit), up to 10 yards long, and can be purchased in almost any color. I called the fabric store and found out they'll even cut an entire bolt into a zillion slices for us. If we get them cut into 6-ft. lengths (same height as each shelving unit, then we can just attach them to the back of each unit, it makes a nice backdrop, and it's completely mobile with the unit itself.

The question is, what color should be get? Beige? Off-white? Light gray? Light/medium blue?

Note: In the second picture, the iMac + late-90s internet appliances are not part of the micro exhibit; they're part of the modern history exhibit. Will pick up some dark green fabric for its background so it matches the green wall across from it (shown in earlier pictures).

Suggestion: flip the slats on the blinds up instead of down so that direct sunlight can't sneak through.

Hi all, On Mar 14, 2016, at 8:12 PM, Evan Koblentz <evan@snarc.net> wrote:

There's a lot more work to do. For example, each station will get a backdrop, so visitors (and their pictures!) are not distracted by artifacts/walls behind the units. We determined that the most affordable way to do this is to use bolts of fabric. A bolt is a yard wide (same as each unit), up to 10 yards long, and can be purchased in almost any color. I called the fabric store and found out they'll even cut an entire bolt into a zillion slices for us. If we get them cut into 6-ft. lengths (same height as each shelving unit, then we can just attach them to the back of each unit, it makes a nice backdrop, and it's completely mobile with the unit itself.

While I have no opinion on appropriate backdrop coloration other than agreeing it should contrast for good photography (corollary: avoid sharply clashing brightness levels), I would advise caution in the selection of material. If you get something relatively fine-woven it will be a lot less likely to collect dust, though relative immunity from static buildup helps there too (and is probably a good idea anyway, considering the nature of the collection, heh!) The ability to resist CHANGING the chosen colour after years of light exposure is also important.