Pan that shite

[dollywobbler]

Hi folks. Here's a few tips for panning shots for those attempting 'in action' shite pics. I'm by no means an expert, but these tips have helped me improve, and they may do you too.

 

For shutter speed, you need about 1/60 or 1/80 for panning shots. I use a 'bridge' super zoom with a fixed lens which is a bit clunky for panning, but by pre-focussing it (half-hold the button) where I want, I can then swing to where the car's coming from and hit the shutter as it reaches the spot. Pivot from the waist to ensure a smooth pan.

 

If you're snapping a car three-quarters (ie so you can see both side and front) you'll never get the whole car in sharp focus. It's really down to practice and technique but ideally you want the front in focus and the rear of the car looking all blurry.

 

To get the whole car in focus, you need to snap the side as it's directly in front of you.

 

As Ayd has proved, a classic car run is a great way to practice, though it can be hard work if they're coming through quickly!

 

As for speed of the object car - 30mph is ideal, but even 15-20 can get results.

 

Here's one of my favourite pans. Note that the rear is out of focus. The speed wasn't that high which is why the background isn't that blurry.

 

A simple 'point and shoot' camera may be able to get these results on a gloomy day, as it'll automatically use a longer shutter speed. If the sun is shining, it can become an issue for my Super-zoom, though a proper DSLR can cope.

[seth]

Nice little summary Dolly. Might be best for a complete newbie to start at 1/200 1/160 or similar and work down from there. Shutter speed can be varied according to the speed of the car too. 1/60 should give some decent blur to a car going at 30 but for something going much faster then a faster shutter speed might give more consistent results. Treat this kind of photography like a golf swing too. Start following the car well before where you intend to press the shutter and follow on through as smoothly as possible.

 

I've had quite a lot of practice at this in the last couple of years but still probably miss more than I get good.

 

 

Edit: That's at 1/160

[Tayne]

.

[trigger]

I struggle to understand the settings on my Canon EOS 450D, It does take nice photos but i just use it with my ISO set a 200 and my white balance set on shade, everything else is on auto, This might explain why a lot of my photos seem to come out a bit darker then I'd like.

 

Interesting to read about the shuttle speed settings, I can never get to grips with understanding them as I'm a bit thick with things like that!

[brammy777]

Well I attempted a moving shot or two today and one came out.... okay and the other one was too blurry. How do I set up a point and shoot for it? Or is it just a case of accepting its limits?

[Tayne]

.

[seth]

Brammy. No idea. Perhaps there is a mode setting that sets the camera up to do a longer than "normal" exposure - maybe a night time setting? It is also difficult to pan smoothly using a camera at arms length while looking at a tiny screen on the back.

 

Trigger, I use Canon too (400D until recently, now 40D). As a general rule use as low an ISO setting as possible for the available light. As ISO number goes up then the image will get more grainy but in darker conditions you may need to up it to be able to use a shutter speed you are comfortable with.

 

I leave my white balance on Auto. Seems to do what I want of it. Only time I might play with is is under street/electric lighting.

 

If you put the camera into TV mode then you are in control of the shutter speed and the camera will alter the aperture (F number) to give an acceptable exposure.

 

For tracking something that is moving put the Autofocus mode into "AI Servo" Now when you press the shutter half way the focus will lock on to the moving object and as you follow it along will keep it in focus. So, point camera at car when it is a distance away, half press shutter to lock focus on to it, follow it as it gets nearer (with your finger still holding the shutter halfway down) and then when it is near enough press the shutter fully while still tracking the car to take the picture.

 

Simples!

[Tayne]

.

[Guest Leonard Hatred]

A good way to experiment is by using aperture and shutter priority, so at least one or the other is still automatically set by the camera.

Think they are Av and Tv modes on Canons.

[dollywobbler]

Yup, good stuff - thanks for following on with more advice chaps!

 

I almost always use P mode on my Canon, so it controls everything automatically but I can play around with a few settings - force flash and that sort of thing. I slip into Tv (shutter priority) mode for the moving shots.

[messerschmitt owner]

cars are easy

 

birds - a bit more difficult!

 

However, you can really only do this stuff properly with a real slr or slr digital - most cheaper cameras don 't have the speed you get from an slr.

 

DSC_9387 copy by messerschmitt owner, on Flickr

 

 

DSC_9221 copy by messerschmitt owner, on Flickr

 

DSC_9091 by messerschmitt owner, on Flickr

 

 

[/img]

[myglaren]

Those are superb shots Mr Messerschmidt Owner All mine are crap these days, terminal laziness to blame for that I fear.

 

For those of you with SLRs, you will find, buried in the menus somewhere, that they will take sequences, either a series of changing apertures, shutter speeds, EV steps, flash exposures and often focus points (auto bracketing) to help get just the right exposure through redundancy.

[messerschmitt owner]

Those are superb shots Mr Messerschmidt Owner All mine are crap these days, terminal laziness to blame for that I fear.

 

For those of you with SLRs, you will find, buried in the menus somewhere, that they will take sequences, either a series of changing apertures, shutter speeds, EV steps, flash exposures and often focus points (auto bracketing) to help get just the right exposure through redundancy.

yep - I use my Nikon (55,000 shots fired now) D50 and I use the sports setting on it for panning as it can cope with the speed more easily and have it on 'burst' mode too - taking a few shots while panning often means that at least one works. The panasonic pocket digi I have is way too slow to capture moving objects.

 

The birds were taken at Ny Alesund, Spitzbergen - and I think I fired off about 100 shots of moving birds while off Bear island - about thirty worked OK. The reindeer were at Honningsvaag, North Cape.

 

I find the best thing about digital cameras is the instant results and the ability to muck about with settings while taking pictures to get it right.

[dollywobbler]

Where as possibly the worst thing is getting home and realising you've got hundreds of photos to sift through. Never used to happen in the days of 36 exposure film!

[messerschmitt owner]

Framing!

 

Framing your image is also key to a good photo - a little careful thought before you press the shutter and sometimes a little bit of effort should give you a good image. Don't just snap it, think about it.

 

Here are some examples of framing your image. It makes it more interesting and the composition can add an extra dimension to your picture.

 

DSC_4347 by messerschmitt owner, on Flickr

 

DSC_4534 by messerschmitt owner, on Flickr

 

 

DSC_3813 by messerschmitt owner, on Flickr

 

Composition - also important - think about what you're doing and try different zooms!

 

DSC_2870 by messerschmitt owner, on Flickr

 

bremerhaven by messerschmitt owner, on Flickr

 

 

DSC_7529 by messerschmitt owner, on Flickr

 

 

Luck - luck plays an important part in good photography - timing is everything, so always be prepared!

 

 

DSC_4558 by messerschmitt owner, on Flickr

 

DSC_2596 by messerschmitt owner, on Flickr

 

DSC_8421 by messerschmitt owner, on Flickr

[dollywobbler]

Framing and luck do occasionally combine! Was thrilled to get this one at Goodwood Revival. Panning aeroplanes is an odd experience!

[Guest Leonard Hatred]

Nice pics!

One thing I don't like about digital cameras is that most of them take roughly the same photos - i.e. very good, sharp quality, so you don't get wild variations like the ones gifted by my '70s Soviet 35mm SLR and other cameras of that period. I can see why people edit some of that shonkiness into their modern digi shots.

I did buy one of the cheapest used dSLRs I could find and even that takes decent photos with a bit of patience.

[dollywobbler]

Aye. Here's one that a very talanted friend took. Hard to believe he took it a few weeks ago!

 

He's got some great ageing software. Given his taste in shite motors, we really should try and recruit him here...

[messerschmitt owner]

that caravan in the background is the giveaway! It should be a Thomson, Sprite or a CI or even a ratty old Cotswold ...

 

Great photo too.

[seth]

Some lovely photos there messer. Dolly, loved that aged Allegro. Spot on!

 

For aeroplane shots, this is the luckiest timing I've had.

 

[Tayne]

.

[dollywobbler]

Hmmm. Maybe with our Plane Skillz0rz we should start Aeroshite.com...

[ChinaTom]

Reminds me of a couple of snaps we took at Goodwood (2004 I think).

 

This is my favourite - only a real hawk-eye will see the moderns in the car park behind the fence. It kind of justifies the ridiculous expense my mate went to on that uniform.