Camera Technique: Panning

What is Panning?

Panning is a photographic technique that allows for the appearance of motion in a photograph. When done properly, a subject is in sharp focus while the background is blurry.

Consider the panning photograph below:

Photo, panning bike on king, taken by wvs on Flickr

To achieve the look of panning, a photographer must manipulate the shutter speed of the shot. The optimal shutter speeds vary between 1/8 of a second to 1/125 sec, but vary depending upon the speed of the subject. Panning requires you to follow the subject while the shutter is open (and even after the shot is fired). The subject in the foreground becomes sharp and the background looks blurry, giving off a sense of movement.

A couple of important tips to achieve the shot:

• Practice, practice, practice. Panning for beginners is difficult. The first few shots will likely show everything out of focus. Don’t give up.
• Hold still, keep your feet still, and move your body slowly. Follow the subject carefully, only moving your upper body to do so.
• Use a suitable background. Lit backgrounds will streak your resulting photograph. Something darker is usually better.
• Pre-focus your subject. If you intend to photograph an image at a certain distance, pre-focus and prepare your shot.
• Hold your camera steady. You don’t want a jagged and partially panned shot.
• Slower subjects use the slower shutter speeds, whereas faster subjects will use the faster shutter speeds. This is also something that requires an element of practice. You don’t want to freeze the motion with too fast a shutter speed because then you’re not achieving the results of panning.

Panning is great fun once it’s mastered, so start practicing!

credit: http://www.photocritique.us