If you’re a researcher looking to create compelling science photos, what will get your photos noticed? One way to draw attention is to clear away the background of your photo.

Take a look at the photo above. The bright colors of this protein assay really pop, because the background is really simple. Additionally, the white background provides a high color contrast to the assay that is the photo subject.

Very frequently, all you’ll need is a simple white piece of paper to form the perfect background for your images.

SciFund Challenge has a lot of advice for beginners on how to create great science images in our Instagram for Scientists class. Here’s the relevant section of the class material.