Were you the type of kid who just had to have the radical laser backdrop instead of the plain blue backdrop when it came time for picture day at school?
Even if you weren’t, we’ve got good news for you. Our folder design mockups feature a completely customizable background; allowing you to have any kind of image or texture you want—and many of them look even better than that laser background.
We’ve gathered up some of our favorite background images and textures to use with our folder design mockups, or with an original business card, flyer, or other printed design mockup of your choice.
Please be advised that some of these mockup backgrounds come from paid stock photo sites and the prices may vary. Many of these sites allow you to buy images for less when you prepay for multiple download credits, and some offer free image downloads if you subscribe to a monthly plan. The prices we have listed are for the least amount of downloads or commitment possible; it’s the price you can expect to pay if you only want the single image.
- Miscellaneous
Texture Background Images
The best thing about folder design mockups is that they look like the real thing. Chances are you’ll want a background graphic for your mockup that matches in realism. These organic textures are taken directly from the world around us and include the types of materials you might actually use as a backdrop when physically photographing a folder.
Wood Background Images
Wooden textures are great for folder mockups because they create a nostalgic feeling of home. Wood is earthy and natural with a distinct smell and touch, which creates powerful sense memories in our brains. It’s also the material we tend to associate with professional desks and offices, making it a great choice for corporate folder designs.
Simple Wooden Table (Free)
Mahogany Wood Grain (Free)
Stone Background Images
Stone and masonry create a sense of permanence, establishment and strength. Stone provides a strong foundation for whatever’s built on top of it, so putting your mockup on top of a stone background instills trust and confidence in your folder design.
Granite Sleek Surface (Free)
Hand Troweled Wall Surface (Free)
Cloth/Fabric Background Images
If you really want your folder mockups to look like an actual photograph, then you can’t go wrong with a fabric texture for your backdrop. That’s because fabric is a popular choice of backdrop when photographers take pictures of printed materials. Fabric can be accessible and friendly like gingham, or it can be plush and sophisticated like silk, giving you a lot of options for finding the best cloth for your design.
Close-Up Detail of Cozy Fabric (Free)
Red Velvet (Free)
Metal Background Images
Metal is simple, clean and strong. Though you often see it in designs for industrial brands, it’s versatile enough to work for a wide array of professional fields. Metal isn’t just cold steel and sterile aluminum, it’s also shimmering silver and glittering gold.
Brushed Gold Metal (Free)
Grunge Stratched and Stained Metal (Free)
Leather Background Images
Leather is a rare material that’s outdoorsy, rough, professional and distinguished all at once. But unlike real leather, these leather textures are 100% vegan and cruelty free.
Red Leather Texture (Free)
Off-White Leather Texture (Free)
Paper Background Images
What better way to show off a faux paper product than to use a matching background made of faux paper? Like fabric, paper is also commonly used as a backdrop in photography because it’s simple, clean, versatile and practical.
Black Parchment (Free)
Sky Blue Speckled Paper (Free)
Abstract Background Images
From technological arcs and waves to repeating patterns and fractals, these abstract images and textures are a bit of a mixed bag, but they all have one thing in common-they aren’t supposed to look like anything real. These aren’t the type of textures that you would use to make your mockup look a real photograph—but that can be a good thing. The use of abstract color won’t always work with every print design, but it’s a great tool to use when appealing to an audience’s emotions.
Red Background Images
Red is the color of passion, love, energy and excitement, so it makes the perfect choice for attention-grabbing folder mockups. Red also stimulates hunger, so it’s often used in designs related to the food industry.
Red Triangle Mosaic Pattern (Free)
Texture 52 (Free)
Orange Background Images
When you think of orange, you get that warm fuzzy feeling of campfires and fall leaves that just takes you back to your childhood. Perhaps that’s why these orange textures are perfect for infusing youth, fun and friendship into your folder design mockups.
Rotational Symmetry Orange (Free)
Fractal Orange Tangle (Free)
Yellow Background Images
Who doesn’t like yellow? It’s the color of sunlight, sweet lemonade, and those smiley face emojis you use when you send texts. Yellow is bright, cheery and full of happiness and energy, which are all great qualities to bring to your folder design mockup.
Abstract Yellow Gradient (Free)
Abstract Yellow & Orange Background (Free)
Green Background Images
Green is so deeply rooted in nature and health that we even say we’re going “green” when we take efforts to improve the health of our environment. But green is also the color of money and security, which is why you see it used in designs for everything from medical and insurance designs to banking and finances.
Electronic Circuits (Free)
Rotational Symmetry (Free)
Blue Background Images
Blue is the color of tranquility. It’s a popular color in marketing because it displays a sense of professionalism to the audience. Blue is also the color that people most often pick as their favorite, so you really can’t go wrong with using these blue abstract textures for your mockups.
Blurry Blue Wallpaper Background (Free)
Sky Blue Diagonal Stripes (Free)
Purple Background Images
When we think purple, we often think of kings and queens, as it’s a color that’s often associated with royalty and wealth. However purple also has a softer, feminine side that’s full of whimsy and fantasy. Purple is hardly the most conventional choice for a folder mockup background-which makes it the perfect choice for when you want your designs to look unconventionally creative.
Fractal Soft Background (Free)
Pink and Purple Blur (Free)
Black Background Images
Even if black is the absence of color, it is not the absence of emotion. Black has a simplicity to it that makes it bold, authoritative, powerful and elegant. But black can also be mysterious with a hint of danger lurking underneath. Best of all, it goes with everything, so your folder mockup will look great on a black background (unless of course, the folder is also black or another dark color).
Black and Gold Flowing Background (Free)
Monogram Line Seamless Pattern (Free)
Multicolored Background Images
Color brings emotion to design, so it stands to reason the more colors you add to your design, the greater range of emotion you can utilize. Whether you are having a hard time picking just one color to complement your mockup or you just like the idea of coloring with a full box of crayons, here are some multicolored abstract textures that are sure to make your folder mockups look fun and vibrant.
Remember that your background should complement your print design, not compete with it. A multicolored background may work best if your design is plain or monotone; that way, it will add interest without making the mockup too busy.
Vivid Blurred Colorful Background (Free)
Metallic Holographic Background (Free)
Grunge Background Images
Grunge textures add a look of antiquity to your folder mockup background by making it look weathered, beaten, rusted and aged. These aren’t your father’s background textures-they’re dirty, grimy and a little too punk rock for the corporate world. And sometimes that’s exactly what you need to get your audience’s attention.
Gradient Colored Liquid with Foam (Free)
Raspberry & Rocket Stained Texture (Free)
Lights/Bokeh Background Images
Light has the ability to extract a wide range of emotions from your audience, from the energy and excitement of a light blur to the nostalgic, warm feeling of a string of holiday lights. Light textures are typically formed by long exposures and blurred lenses-an artform unto itself which the Japanese call “bokeh.”
Multicolor Light Streaks (Free)
Celestial Shadows Defocused Background ($10)
Conclusion
When picking a texture or image for the background of your folder mockup, there’s one cardinal rule to keep in mind. The background should only serve to enhance your folder design, but not be so interesting that it takes focus away from the design itself.
If you can’t find anything to your liking, remember that you can download or create your own custom background texture. We recommend an image that is at least 3000px x 2000px and 72 DPI for best results (or, alternatively, use a texture that is seamless, allowing you to tile it into a larger pattern).
Now we want to hear from you. Do you have a favorite texture you’d like to share with us? Have you created your own texture that other designers can share and utilize? Post your comments and share your textures below. And hey, while you’re at it, if you have any old-school pictures of you in front of a radical 90’s laser backdrop, we definitely want to see those too.
