If you’ve ever spent time shooting product photography or still life, you probably recognize and appreciate random surfaces and textures that would make flattering surfaces to photograph things on. Here’s an easy and inexpensive way to create leather texture the next time you find yourself in need of a classy surface. While randomly browsing the aisles of Home Depot in search of items I could use in my studio, as I often do, I stumbled across an inexpensive material in the same isle as the wallpaper that I just couldn’t pass up. 

Con-tact Brand’s Black Adhesive Shelf/Drawer Liner, for less than an Alexander Hamilton (that’s ten USD for our friends across the pond), is a versatile wallpaper-like material that has a real-enough leather texture and an adhesive backing that allows the material to be affixed to much more than the surfaces inside your kitchen cabinets.

For less than ten bucks you get an 18” by 180” roll of the material, so you can cover quite a large surface area for cheap. I picked up a 24” by 48” piece of thin masonite board a few aisles down and headed home to cover the board with some of the liner. 

The liner adhered to the board nicely and by taking my time applying it, I avoided any annoying bubbles or creases that could occur by rushing the application. In about five minutes time, I had a firm, clean looking leather surface to use for product photographs. 

Sometimes looking in the least expected places can yield results you may not find elsewhere. What’s your favorite hardware store photography find?