Cyclorama studios
White cyc and chromakey green solve opposite problems
A white cyclorama is built to disappear. A chromakey green cyc is built to be replaced. They share the same curve construction but almost nothing else — different paint, different lighting ratios, different floor treatment, and different rules for what can go in the room. Meros designs and builds both types of cyclorama studio in Sydney.
What a cyclorama curve actually is
A cyclorama is the seamless curve where wall meets floor, built to remove the visual corner that would otherwise break up a background. The curve itself is largely the same regardless of colour — a coved radius built to a consistent profile, so the transition reads as flat in camera. What differs entirely from here is what goes on top of it.
White cyclorama — built to disappear
A white cyc's entire job is to read as nothing — an even, shadowless field the subject sits in front of, with no visible horizon line and no gradient. That means lighting has to be genuinely even across the whole curve, usually with dedicated cyc lights or a strip-light system separate from the subject's key lighting, because uneven white reads immediately as a flaw, not a background.
Getting a white cyc right
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Dedicated, even lighting across the entire curve — separate from subject lighting
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Paint finish matters — flat, non-reflective white avoids hot spots and glare
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Floor protection is critical, since white shows scuffs and marks far more than any other colour
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Distance from subject to cyc affects how easily shadows fall onto the background
Common white cyc mistakes
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Lighting the cyc and the subject with the same fixtures, causing uneven exposure
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Underestimating how much floor maintenance a white cyc actually requires
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Placing the subject too close to the curve, so shadows fall visibly onto it
Chromakey green cyclorama — built to be replaced
A chromakey green cyc exists purely so a keyer can cut it out and replace it with something else — which means the whole brief is consistency, not beauty. Flat, even saturation across the entire surface, with spill control so green light doesn't bounce onto the subject's edges and undermine the key. Subject-to-background distance matters even more here than on white, because spill and shadow both get worse the closer the subject sits to the curve.
Getting a green cyc right
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Even, flat lighting calibrated specifically for the green — not the subject
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Spill control — the subject far enough from the cyc, and flagged where needed — to prevent green edge contamination
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Matte, non-reflective paint in a consistent, keyer-friendly shade of green
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Wardrobe and prop planning — no green clothing, no reflective props near the subject
Common green cyc mistakes
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Placing the subject too close to the cyc, causing green spill on hair and skin edges
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Uneven lighting across the green, which creates patchy keys that need heavy post-production cleanup
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Not briefing talent on wardrobe restrictions ahead of the shoot
Which one do you actually need?
If the final output keeps the real background — most corporate and training video, e-commerce product photography, portraiture — white is almost always the right call. If the final output replaces the background entirely — virtual sets, weather-style broadcasts, composited effects work — green is the only option that makes sense. Some studios build both into a single curve using interchangeable panels or a switchable system, which is worth considering if your production mix genuinely spans both use cases rather than sitting clearly in one camp. Only a minority of studio builds actually require a cyclorama curve at all — most needs are met by a simpler background system.
Cyclorama FAQs
Will a cyclorama floor crack?
A cyclorama floor usually cracks because of what's underneath it, not the cyc itself. Meros builds cycloramas directly onto the concrete slab wherever possible, and lays fibre cement board over timber floors when a slab isn't available, giving the cyc a stable base.
How do you maintain a cyclorama wall?
Every Meros cyclorama comes with touch-up paint and a simple maintenance guide at handover, so minor scuffs can be fixed in-house. For heavier wear, Meros offers a repaint service as a call-out.
How long does it take to build a cyclorama studio?
Most Meros cyclorama builds in Sydney take one to two weeks on site. Allow two to four weeks beforehand to schedule trades — equipment is rarely the hold-up.
Related guides
how cyclorama needs vary across corporate, e-commerce, education, creator and hire studios
cyclorama construction cost in context