Thanks James for replying. Yes you are right I was thinking I would get less blur if I went higher than 1/160. When I went below 1/160 I found that the blur in the background became much stronger. I would have been out today again to try some higher speeds as you have advised but typical Scottish weather it is raining again.
Regards
Bob
The point of the pan shot is to blur the background, so I'm confused by your statement above. The slower the better for a pan shot. And yes, a slower shutter means more blur.
When I was shooting shifter karts I would routinely shoot at either 1/640 (for the bulk of my shots), or about 1/125 (for my pans). I seldom picked anything inbetween. To me, a pan shot at 1/250 is not enough blur to be interesting, and looses sharpness as well, so its a double-whammy in a bad way. The stuff in the middle just never did anything for me.
By the way, I know some professional motorsports photographers who can get keepers (though a low percentage!) of race cars at 1/30 a second. It can be done, but its hard. I don't even attempt it myself.
The point of the pan shot is to blur the background, so I'm confused by your statement above. The slower the better for a pan shot. And yes, a slower shutter means more blur.
When I was shooting shifter karts I would routinely shoot at either 1/640 (for the bulk of my shots), or about 1/125 (for my pans). I seldom picked anything inbetween. To me, a pan shot at 1/250 is not enough blur to be interesting, and looses sharpness as well, so its a double-whammy in a bad way. The stuff in the middle just never did anything for me.
By the way, I know some professional motorsports photographers who can get keepers (though a low percentage!) of race cars at 1/30 a second. It can be done, but its hard. I don't even attempt it myself.
Thanks for that reply Bill as I have said I have found I get more keepers at 1/160 than I do if I go less. I suppose I just need to practice more.
Regards
Bob
Thanks for that reply Bill as I have said I have found I get more keepers at 1/160 than I do if I go less. I suppose I just need to practice more.
Regards
Bob
Of course you get more keepers at a higher shutter speed. The higher shutter speeds are just plain easier to capture. The slower you go the less keepers you have. Its just the way it is. If you're trying to get a high keep-rate with a slower shutter speed you will always be disappointed. At very slow shutters, like 1/60 or 1/30, do not be surprised if your keep rate is under 25%. Even when I was panning on a consistent basis my 1/125 keep rate was under 50%. Its the price you pay to get that type of shot.
Of course you get more keepers at a higher shutter speed. The higher shutter speeds are just plain easier to capture. The slower you go the less keepers you have. Its just the way it is. If you're trying to get a high keep-rate with a slower shutter speed you will always be disappointed. At very slow shutters, like 1/60 or 1/30, do not be surprised if your keep rate is under 25%. Even when I was panning on a consistent basis my 1/125 keep rate was under 50%. Its the price you pay to get that type of shot.
Thanks once again Bill for putting things into perspective for me. I did find that the background in the shots I took at 1/60 were too far blurred for me and parts of the car were out of focus. With the 1/160 I seem to get a reasonable blurred background with blurring in the wheels.
To be quite honest Bill I don't seem to relish putting shots in the trash bin after going to all the trouble in the first place to take them if you know what I mean.
I have looked at the photos in your link and they really are stunning. A credit to you.
Regards
Bob
Thanks once again Bill for putting things into perspective for me. I did find that the background in the shots I took at 1/60 were too far blurred for me and parts of the car were out of focus. With the 1/160 I seem to get a reasonable blurred background with blurring in the wheels.
To be quite honest Bill I don't seem to relish putting shots in the trash bin after going to all the trouble in the first place to take them if you know what I mean.
I have looked at the photos in your link and they really are stunning. A credit to you.
Regards
Bob
The rain has been so bad today so I never got out for my practice. I was going to try my Canon 17-55 2.8 today because I just may have to use this lens on Saturday as there are trees very close on each side of the track and I will be too close for the 70-200. I was wondering if I would get the same result with this lens at 1/160 and would the F. stops be the same as the 70-200L F.4 that I have been practicing with?
Regards
Bob
To be quite honest Bill I don't seem to relish putting shots in the trash bin after going to all the trouble in the first place to take them if you know what I mean.
I have looked at the photos in your link and they really are stunning. A credit to you.
Thanks! It took a lot of work to get to where I am now. And I've had to throw a lot of photos that were taken with considerable trouble into the trash can along the way. Hint... hint...
Thanks! It took a lot of work to get to where I am now. And I've had to throw a lot of photos that were taken with considerable trouble into the trash can along the way. Hint... hint...
Well Done Bill and I would appreciate it so much if you would look and give me your honest opinion at the next rally shots I will be taking which is on Saturday the Merrick Stages Rally through Glentrool forest Newton Stewart South West Scotland. The weather here has been really bad with so many cancellations. Have you any tips for this as the weather is rain, rain, rain. I am retired and this is a total hobby which I thoroughly enjoy but I would hate to get my gear wet.
Did you see my last post about the 17-55?
Regards
Bob
The point of the pan shot is to blur the background, so I'm confused by your statement above. The slower the better for a pan shot. And yes, a slower shutter means more blur.
When I was shooting shifter karts I would routinely shoot at either 1/640 (for the bulk of my shots), or about 1/125 (for my pans). I seldom picked anything inbetween. To me, a pan shot at 1/250 is not enough blur to be interesting, and looses sharpness as well, so its a double-whammy in a bad way. The stuff in the middle just never did anything for me.
By the way, I know some professional motorsports photographers who can get keepers (though a low percentage!) of race cars at 1/30 a second. It can be done, but its hard. I don't even attempt it myself.
Bill, good to see you are still around. This is 1/160th
I can shoot at slower speeds. While I admit I took offense to your statements at first, I guess I needed to hear that. The more comfortable I get, the more boring it will all be. I filtered through Aperture at all of my greater then 1/200th shots and was quite suprised to see when I first got my 70-200 back in 2006 I shot at 1/80-1/160 all the time. You are correct in the feeling of speed being greater.
1/160th
1/80th
Looks like I am going to try dropping my shutter a little this weekend.
Bill, good to see you are still around. This is 1/160th
I can shoot at slower speeds. While I admit I took offense to your statements at first, I guess I needed to hear that. The more comfortable I get, the more boring it will all be. I filtered through Aperture at all of my greater then 1/200th shots and was quite suprised to see when I first got my 70-200 back in 2006 I shot at 1/80-1/160 all the time. You are correct in the feeling of speed being greater.
1/160th
1/80th
Looks like I am going to try dropping my shutter a little this weekend.
Well I think the 1/160 shot is very good indeed, if I can produce anything like that, end of story I will be happy.
Regards
Bob
Hi Everyone...new to posting here just thought I would give me .02 on the subject of panning.
This seems like a good topic to bring back up.
I guess the things to think about don't just have to do with the technical things with your gear, but what are you trying to create.
Also consider where you're standing with relation to your subject. Whats in the background do you want more or less detail to be seen. Are there any elements of the surrounding area that you want to capture to help tell a story with your images. Change you elevation (image #8) get as low as you can (yep you might get dirty) get higher (image #6) for a different perspective.
Are you in the middle of a high speed section, are you in the braking zone or at apex or at track out where the car is accelerating towards or away from you. You can't forget lighting, where is the sun in relation to your subject...Of course the list of things to think about can go on and on.
Here are a few samples of slower than normal shutter speeds along with some a little & one higher than I normally do for a panning shot. I regularly shoot between 1/20th up to 1/200th for panning shots. As for head on and going away shots I will shoot from 1/20th up to 1/800th it just depends on what I am shooting at the time.
Cheers,
Curtis
1. 1/10th
2. 1/20th
3. 1/30th
4. 1/40th
5. 1/80th
6. 1/100th taken from a tv stand
7. 1/125th @ 120+mph
8. 1/320th taken from the top of a dirt embankment looking straight across at The Attitudes (Second Attitudes) at Miller.
Hi Everyone...new to posting here just thought I would give me .02 on the subject of panning.
This seems like a good topic to bring back up.
I guess the things to think about don't just have to do with the technical things with your gear, but what are you trying to create.
Also consider where you're standing with relation to your subject. Whats in the background do you want more or less detail to be seen. Are there any elements of the surrounding area that you want to capture to help tell a story with your images. Change you elevation (image #8) get as low as you can (yep you might get dirty) get higher (image #6) for a different perspective.
Are you in the middle of a high speed section, are you in the braking zone or at apex or at track out where the car is accelerating towards or away from you. You can't forget lighting, where is the sun in relation to your subject...Of course the list of things to think about can go on and on.
Here are a few samples of slower than normal shutter speeds along with some a little & one higher than I normally do for a panning shot. I regularly shoot between 1/20th up to 1/200th for panning shots. As for head on and going away shots I will shoot from 1/20th up to 1/800th it just depends on what I am shooting at the time.
Cheers,
Curtis
1. 1/10th
2. 1/20th
3. 1/30th
4. 1/40th
5. 1/80th
6. 1/100th taken from a tv stand
7. 1/125th @ 120+mph
8. 1/320th taken from the top of a dirt embankment looking straight across at The Attitudes (Second Attitudes) at Miller.
Thanks Curtis very informative and well explained. You have some great shots there.
Regards
Bob
Thank you! This means a lot to me considering what gear you have to work with and the quality you can get.
Oh, and a really good technique for panning is to follow the subject like you're shooting video. Watch the screen for what would look like a good picture and then press the shutter, but keep continuously following the subject. I've actually held both cameras at the same subject with one shooting video and the other stills, but that takes a lot of practice to get it right.
Comments
When I was shooting shifter karts I would routinely shoot at either 1/640 (for the bulk of my shots), or about 1/125 (for my pans). I seldom picked anything inbetween. To me, a pan shot at 1/250 is not enough blur to be interesting, and looses sharpness as well, so its a double-whammy in a bad way. The stuff in the middle just never did anything for me.
By the way, I know some professional motorsports photographers who can get keepers (though a low percentage!) of race cars at 1/30 a second.
A former sports shooter
Follow me at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/bjurasz/
My Etsy store: https://www.etsy.com/shop/mercphoto?ref=hdr_shop_menu
Thanks for that reply Bill as I have said I have found I get more keepers at 1/160 than I do if I go less. I suppose I just need to practice more.
Regards
Bob
A former sports shooter
Follow me at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/bjurasz/
My Etsy store: https://www.etsy.com/shop/mercphoto?ref=hdr_shop_menu
Thanks once again Bill for putting things into perspective for me. I did find that the background in the shots I took at 1/60 were too far blurred for me and parts of the car were out of focus. With the 1/160 I seem to get a reasonable blurred background with blurring in the wheels.
To be quite honest Bill I don't seem to relish putting shots in the trash bin after going to all the trouble in the first place to take them if you know what I mean.
I have looked at the photos in your link and they really are stunning. A credit to you.
Regards
Bob
The rain has been so bad today so I never got out for my practice. I was going to try my Canon 17-55 2.8 today because I just may have to use this lens on Saturday as there are trees very close on each side of the track and I will be too close for the 70-200. I was wondering if I would get the same result with this lens at 1/160 and would the F. stops be the same as the 70-200L F.4 that I have been practicing with?
Regards
Bob
A former sports shooter
Follow me at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/bjurasz/
My Etsy store: https://www.etsy.com/shop/mercphoto?ref=hdr_shop_menu
Well Done Bill and I would appreciate it so much if you would look and give me your honest opinion at the next rally shots I will be taking which is on Saturday the Merrick Stages Rally through Glentrool forest Newton Stewart South West Scotland. The weather here has been really bad with so many cancellations. Have you any tips for this as the weather is rain, rain, rain. I am retired and this is a total hobby which I thoroughly enjoy but I would hate to get my gear wet.
Did you see my last post about the 17-55?
Regards
Bob
Bill, good to see you are still around. This is 1/160th
I can shoot at slower speeds. While I admit I took offense to your statements at first, I guess I needed to hear that. The more comfortable I get, the more boring it will all be. I filtered through Aperture at all of my greater then 1/200th shots and was quite suprised to see when I first got my 70-200 back in 2006 I shot at 1/80-1/160 all the time. You are correct in the feeling of speed being greater.
1/160th
1/80th
Looks like I am going to try dropping my shutter a little this weekend.
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Well I think the 1/160 shot is very good indeed, if I can produce anything like that, end of story I will be happy.
Regards
Bob
This seems like a good topic to bring back up.
I guess the things to think about don't just have to do with the technical things with your gear, but what are you trying to create.
Also consider where you're standing with relation to your subject. Whats in the background do you want more or less detail to be seen. Are there any elements of the surrounding area that you want to capture to help tell a story with your images. Change you elevation (image #8) get as low as you can (yep you might get dirty) get higher (image #6) for a different perspective.
Are you in the middle of a high speed section, are you in the braking zone or at apex or at track out where the car is accelerating towards or away from you. You can't forget lighting, where is the sun in relation to your subject...Of course the list of things to think about can go on and on.
Here are a few samples of slower than normal shutter speeds along with some a little & one higher than I normally do for a panning shot. I regularly shoot between 1/20th up to 1/200th for panning shots. As for head on and going away shots I will shoot from 1/20th up to 1/800th it just depends on what I am shooting at the time.
Cheers,
Curtis
1. 1/10th
2. 1/20th
3. 1/30th
4. 1/40th
5. 1/80th
6. 1/100th taken from a tv stand
7. 1/125th @ 120+mph
8. 1/320th taken from the top of a dirt embankment looking straight across at The Attitudes (Second Attitudes) at Miller.
Thanks Curtis very informative and well explained. You have some great shots there.
Regards
Bob
This is probably my best panning shot ever:
From this weekend:
It even works for bikes:
All shot with a point and shoot Panasonic dmc-fz20 or Sony dsc-f828.
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First class panning shots.
Regards
Bob
Oh, and a really good technique for panning is to follow the subject like you're shooting video. Watch the screen for what would look like a good picture and then press the shutter, but keep continuously following the subject. I've actually held both cameras at the same subject with one shooting video and the other stills, but that takes a lot of practice to get it right.
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