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• Beginner Photography
Guide to Motion Blur and Panning in Photography • Landscape Photography
• Wildlife Photography
BY DVIR BARKAY | 5 COMMENTS
LAST UPDATED ON AUGUST 26, 2018 • Portraiture
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In photography, conveying motion is one of the most challenging tasks due to the
very nature of a stills photograph. You are essentially freezing a specific moment
in time rather than capturing the whole of the sequence from which this moment Take Your Photos
originates. When set to fast shutter speeds, our cameras can break down whole
events into precise frames that tell a story in hundredths and thousands of a FARTHER
second. Nowhere are fast shutter speeds more common than in the fields of
sport and wildlife photography, where using a quick shutter speed is almost a
prerequisite in the hopes of freezing the subject at the perfect moment when the
action peaks.

The issue with telling a story in hundredths and thousands of a second is that, at
such fast shutter speeds, the subject is perfectly frozen in place – so the image
loses all sense of movement. To counter this, a photographer can employ two
techniques known as motion blur and panning with motion blur.
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“Motion blur” refers to the apparent streaking of moving objects in a photograph A Photography Life Member
that occurs when part of the image being recorded changes during the exposure.
This streaking may occur on an object that is moving within in the frame or
because of user-induced camera shake. The longer the shutter speed, the more REVIEWS

apparent the motion blur. • Camera Reviews

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“Panning” refers to a technique where you follow a subject with the camera while • Other Gear Reviews
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keeping it in the same position in the viewfinder as it moves along a plane of
motion. The subject can be anything from a runner on a racetrack to a flying bird, PHOTOGRAPHY TUTORIALS
and this technique is most effective when your subject is moving across a
horizontal plane. Panning with motion blur is a combination of the two
techniques, where the photographer pans along with the subject while utilizing a
slow shutter speed. This effectively combines both techniques to produce an
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image where part of the subject is sharp while the rest of the image blurred and BASICS PHOTOGRAPHY

streaked, thus creating the visual sensation of movement. Today’s article covers
these two techniques and explains how they can be used to create more
dynamic images.

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Canon EOS-1D X @ 600mm, ISO 100, 1/15, f/16.0

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What Is Motion Blur? PHOTOGRAPHY VIDEOS

To understand how panning works to create a sense of motion in a stills UNIQUE GIFT IDEAS
photograph, we must first understand motion blur.

When we create an image, the resulting photograph is a combination of all the

objects in the scene – as well as their movement through the camera’s viewpoint
– over the period of the exposure. During the exposure, if any object in the frame
moves faster than the set shutter speed can “freeze,” the subject will look
smeared along the direction of its relative motion.

This smearing occurs on an object that moves within the frame, or on a static
subject when the camera moves during the exposure. The latter of these options
is a useful technique in and of itself for creating a sense of motion in an
otherwise motionless scene.

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The below photograph of the roots of Mangrove Trees highlights this technique.
Here, slow shutter speed and deliberate camera movement across the horizontal
plane dramatically blur the details of the roots to create a sense of movement in
what was an otherwise stagnant scene. Whether one prefers this to the original
is a matter of taste, but having this technique gives a photographer a creative
outlet in situations where the subject is entirely stagnant.

ILCE-9 + FE 100-400mm F4.5-5.6 GM OSS + 2X Teleconverter @ 606mm, ISO 50, 1/5, f/11.0

With the camera completely still (on a tripod or bean bag), motion blur can be
used to create a juxtaposition between the moving and unmoving elements of a
scene. While the shutter is open, the subjects that remain fixed for the duration
of your exposure remain sharp and in focus while the elements of the scene that
moved during the exposure are increasingly blurred depending on how fast they
move.

The below photographs of The Lion Geyser complex in Yellowstone highlight this
technique. The Geyser cones remain pin-sharp for the duration of the exposure,
while the fast-moving steam and water rise from their depths, turning into a
seamless jet of steam and textured water.

Canon EOS-1D Mark III + EF70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM +1.4x @ 115mm, ISO 100, 0.6 seconds, f/13.0

Canon EOS-1D Mark III @ 180mm, ISO 100, 3.2 seconds, f/20.0

The problem with this technique is that if your exposure time is too long, and the
background behind your subject is too bright, you might end up “losing” your
subject. Quite simply, the brightness of the background is stronger than that of
your subject during the duration of the exposure. Therefore, this technique works
better when you have a darker background from which your subject can stand
out, like in the below image of Castle Geyser.

Canon EOS-1D Mark III + EF70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM +1.4x @ 280mm, ISO 100, 15 seconds, f/8.0

What is Panning?
Panning refers to a technique where you follow a subject with the camera while
keeping it in the same position in the viewfinder as it moves along a plane of
motion.

First, keep in mind that panning applies both to photos with motion blur and
photos without. We pan with our subjects all the time in order to track it across
the frame, often with fast shutter speeds to freeze motion completely. The
beauty of panning is that the final image is highly dependent on the shutter
speed set by the user, with slower shutter speeds giving the motion blur effect
so often associated with the technique.

Canon EOS-1D X @ 600mm, ISO 100, 1/15, f/16.0

To correctly pan, a photographer must match the speed of the subject’s

movement with the movement of the camera and lens. Fluid camera movement is
essential to achieve the desired smoothness of the background blur. Beyond
your technique and settings, it is also vital to understand your subject’s motion
and how it impacts the final image.

First and most obvious is that the subject ought to be moving, and preferably
doing so at a fixed distance from your position. Frequently, the best panning blur
occurs with a subject that is traveling at a right angle, across and parallel to the
photographer’s field of view. It’s almost impossible to get good results with a
subject that is headed directly towards or away from you.

The farther your subject is, the slower it appears to be moving, and the easier it’ll
be to follow during your pan. But if it is too far away, you lose clear distinction
between it and its surroundings, lessening the visual effect of the motion. Also,
the closer it is to the background, the more pronounced the appearance of
speed and movement will be. As a rule of thumb, when framing your image, I
recommend ensuring that your subject is large enough to take up at least 25 to
35 percent of the frame.

Probably the first question I receive while teaching the panning technique is
“what shutter speed I should use?” The shutter speed used is an essential
element of a panning shot, with different settings leading to dramatically
different results. Slow shutter speeds result in a more dramatic blur effect, while
faster shutter speeds retain greater sharpness with fewer parts of the image
blurred. While there is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question, I would
recommend starting at 1/30th or 1/20th of a second and moving up or down from
there. With wildlife that is walking or moving slowly, I try to use shutter speeds as
slow as 1/6th of a second. You will be surprised how much motion blur is possible
with even a walking subject.

Animals that are running make it easier to use faster shutter speeds, and in these
instances, I typically use speeds from 1/15th to 1/30th of a second. Due to their
speed, with birds in flight, I typically use speeds of 1/40th to 1/80th second. Of
course, the choice of these speeds is dependent on what sort of effect you
desire, and I have found that nothing beats experience in the field in knowing
which shutter speeds work best.

With panning, you are striving to have one or more elements of the image remain
relatively sharp even as most of the image becomes blurred. Conventions state
that if all the elements in the image are blurred, then there is usually no place of
emphasis for the eyes to land on and capture our attention. While this is mostly
true, this is a very creative form of photography, and I find that some of the most
unconventionally blurred images sometimes end up being the most interesting.

DSLR-A700 @ 300mm, ISO 200, 1/25, f/8.0

The most challenging part of getting a panning shot right is to learn to swing the
camera and lens smoothly as you match the subject’s movement. If your subject
is moving on a predictable, “near perfect” plane, a tripod is probably your best
bet for panning. In such instances, you only have to concentrate on the smooth
tracking of the subject and can also pre-focus on the desired spot as you don’t
have to worry about holding the camera and lens combination. That said, most
wildlife subjects and sporting events aren’t predictable, and in such situations
hand-holding is the way to go. All the images accompanying this article were
taken while I hand held the camera. When panning while hand-holding, It is
critical to grip the camera as steady as you can, with elbows and arms tucked
into the body and a slight flex of the knees smooth followed by a fluid swing of
the body from the waist as you follow the subject. For more conventional panning
shots, try and avoid any sudden upward or sideways shifts with your body, with
fluid movements a key.

Canon EOS-1D X + EF200-400mm f/4L IS USM @ 300mm, ISO 100, 1/40, f/16.0

If doing panning in bright lighting situations, you may have to stop down the
aperture quite a bit while setting your camera to its lowest ISO settings so that
you can attain slow enough shutter speeds. Using a polarizing filter or a light ND
filter can prove highly beneficial for panning shots, as they let in less light to the
camera sensor. This can help in very bright conditions where your camera’s
lowest ISO setting isn’t enough to achieve slow shutter speeds. Do be aware that
shooting with very small aperture settings, like f/16 or smaller, makes any dust or
dirt on your sensor increasingly visible. The solution to this is to keep your sensor
clean and to learn how to remove spots in post-processing.

Canon EOS-1D Mark III + Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM @ 19mm, ISO 200, 1/30, f/18.0

A significant advantage of panning is that you can do it at times of the day when
the lighting is very harsh and with too much contrast to achieve pleasant color
images. In such situations, you will often find parts of the image are completely
blown out, but this can be advantageous as it can lend a dreamy quality to the
image, especially when you post process in Black and White. Panning also works
in very low light situations, enabling you to extend your photography sessions
well into conditions that are otherwise less than ideal for photography.

I hope this article taught you something new about motion blur and panning! If
you have any questions, you are welcome to ask below.

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FILED UNDER: PHOTOGRAPHY TECHNIQUES

TAGGED WITH: CREATIVITY, MOTION BLUR, TIPS FOR BEGINNERS

About Dvir Barkay

Dvir Barkay is an award winning nature photographer born in
Israel and currently based out of Philadelphia, PA. To see more
of Dvir's work, please visit his website.

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5 COMMENTS Newest

Ernst
September 4, 2018 5:31 am

I have been experimenting with ICM and Motion Blur effects. This article has been very
helpful…Thank you…

0 Reply

Bob Rini
September 4, 2018 3:02 am

Thanks for sharing this important information.

0 Reply

Shmuel Halevi
August 27, 2018 6:41 am

Good stuff Dvir. Liked it :-)

0 Reply

Dvir Barkay Author

Reply to Shmuel Halevi August 27, 2018 7:18 am

Thank you Shmuel, I am glad that you found it instructive!

All the best,

Dvir

1 Reply

jassim khudeir
August 26, 2018 8:16 am

that’s so great your job dvir, I’m really proud of filming you

0 Reply

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