[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/DAPARRR12777.swf, 585, 473, [/swf]
Panningis an essential technique we use to freeze a moving subject. By the camera staying in one place and keeping pace with the subject, we null any movement of the subject so even at slow shutter speeds we can get a sharp subject though the camera and subject are moving. The reason is real simple, the subject and film plane are in sync. So when you do it right, you get a photo like this. A tack sharp image of a P-51D going 451mph.
With panning, while the camera and subject are keeping pace with each other, the background on the other hand is not. Since the camera is moving with the subject and the background is not moving, the background gets blurred. How much blur? That all depends on the shutter speed, the slower the speed the more blurred the background.
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/DAPARRR15131.swf, 585, 473, [/swf]
Ever watch the movie The Aviator about Howard Hughes? Well there’s a great scene where Hughes while watching dailies of his Hell’s Angles movie, watching planes flying against a bald sky screams the planes look like they are holding still. His solution, clouds! Clouds make a world of difference! As you can see here, the camera is stationery on the ground panning with the P-51D as it rips by. With no clouds in the background, the planes looks like it’s pretty much standing still. Put clouds in the background, even though they are a long ways in the distance, shooting at 1/90 the panning action blurs the clouds enough to give the illusion of movement.
Why do I bring this all up? Being a visual communicator and an old fart, I’m always looking for ways to tell the story better and at the same time, finding those answers in camera. Yeah, I know my way around the digital darkroom but finding an in camera solution is what I always strive for. You ask, “What’s the problem here?” Come back in a minute and I’ll show ya.
Photos captured by D3/D3x, 200-400VR on Lexar UDMA digital film