Shutter speed

[Uzzfuzz]

Hi, please can someone help me with the following..have seen many wonderful photos with an action photo eg a horse rider or biker,,where the central figure is totally in focus and the bavkground is streaky to give an idea about the motion..i know its a commonly used technique.. What settings would those be ..thanks so much

[Andrew76]

Hi Uzma. I think judging by how you've described your desired outcome, that you're talking about a 'panning' shot. You still want to have a fairly quick shutter speed - say around 1/200 depending on what you're shooting, and how fast it's moving, then, what you'll have to do is follow the subject you want in sharp focus with your camera, and snap the shot at the appropriate time.

This will freeze the subject, and give you that 'streaky' background you desire. It takes some practice, to say the least! I often sit in the front yard and shoot cars driving by to hone my skills. It helps to try with different settings too, and see what types of artistic effects you can create!

Hope this helps you out a little??

[rpcrowe]

Hi, please can someone help me with the following..have seen many wonderful photos with an action photo eg a horse rider or biker,,where the central figure is totally in focus and the bavkground is streaky to give an idea about the motion..i know its a commonly used technique.. What settings would those be ..thanks so much

Andrew is totally correct... I may be able to add a bit to his post... Panning (following a moving subject with your lens) can, if a slower shutter speed is utilized, provide a sharp image of the subject with a "streaky" background.

1. It is easier to do this when all the movement of the subject is in one direction. As an example, panning with a car or a motorcycle can give you a sharp image of the car and motorcycle but a blurred background. The car or motorcycle can be sharp because all of the motion of either subject is in one direction and following the subject with your camera can nulify the motion of the subject.

2. However, things are different with a horse, a runner or a person on a bicycle because that type of subject is not only moving in a single direction, the legs are moving up and down and arms can be pumping. A pan with a slow shutter speed may get a sharp image of the person's or the horse's body but not the legs or arms. However, often a blur about the legs or arms gives the impression of motion...

[Colin Southern]

Keeping in mind too that if you have a IS / VR lens then you need to switch it to panning mode (or off) for these types of shots.

[rpcrowe]

Keeping in mind too that if you have a IS / VR lens then you need to switch it to panning mode (or off) for these types of shots.

That is certainly true. When a lens has two modes (Canon designates them Mode 1 and Mode 2) you select Mode 2 which will allow you to move the camera along a horizontal plane without fighting to keep the lens still. It will however, correct for vertical movement.

However, some older Canon IS systems only have a single mode and that is when you need to shut off the IS prior to panning or the IS will fight to keep the lens still.

I don't know how this works with other than Canon stabilization in lenses or how in the in-body stabilization of cameras that have such stabilization works with panning.

[Colin Southern]

However, some older Canon IS systems only have a single mode and that is when you need to shut off the IS prior to panning or the IS will fight to keep the lens still.

Leaving it on can produce some cool accidental effects though

[dasmith232]

...shutter speed around 1/200 depending on what you're shooting...

+1 on the part about "depending on what you're shooting. 1/200 would be good for motorsports (cars, motorcycles) in a racing situation. For human-powered things (bicycles, running, etc.) you'll definitely benefit from mode-2 technology, but also much slower shutter speeds. I've done several cycling events and depending on my distance to the riders and really, how I'm feeling that day, I use speeds as low as 1/60, but often around 1/125.