Motorcycle Explorer Issue 6
Top Tip Corner
This issue we look at
getting a pro shot with a
digital camera... what is
panning all about?
Don’t break into a cold sweat people, this is going to be painless and after this you will wonder
how you ever got along without it. Ever been on a rally or a race and got a load of shots, come
home and then wonder why your pictures look like the ghost of Claude Monet took over your
camera?
In still photography, the panning technique is used to suggest fast motion, and bring out the
subject from other elements in the frame. In photographic pictures it is usually noted by a
foreground subject in action appearing still (we are looking at motorbikes) while the background
iis streaked and/or skewed in the apparently opposite direction of the bike's travel
When photographing a moving subject, the panning technique is achieved by keeping the
subject in the same position of the frame for the duration of the exposure. The length of the
exposure must be long enough to allow the background to blur due to the movement of the
camera as the photographer follows the subject in the viewfinder. In other words you don't hold
the camera still and wait to snap the shot as the bike goes by, you follow the bike with the
camera 'panning' with the motion to click a smooth shot.
The exact length of exposure required will depend on the speed at which the subject is moving,
the focal length of the lens and the distance from the subject and background. An F1 car
speeding along a straight might allow the photographer to achieve a blurred background at
1/250th of a second, while the photographer might need to go as slow as 1/40th to achieve the
same amount of blur for a picture of a running man.
The faster shutter speed allowed by fast moving subjects are easier to capture in a smoothly
panned shot. With slower moving subjects, the risk is that the panning motion will be jerky, and
it is also harder to keep the subject in the same position of the frame for the longer period of
time.
A low budget option is to tie a piece of string around the lens, then to drop the other end to the
floor and step on it to pull it taut. This will allow a little bit more stability and allow for smoother
blur.
Most important is to shoot and play and have some fun! It's digital so it's not like you're going to
run out of film! Go on out and sit by a roadside and practice. PLEASE don't use flash if you do or
you could end up with some raher angry rider coming back your way. MEM will not be running a
feature on how to remove a Nikon from your rectum - so you're on your own if you do!
picture source - common holdings