First attempt at panning

O'Rork · Oct 27, 2008

What a terrible day. Sustained 32 MPH wind with gust to 70. I really had a difficult time holding steady.

1

2

3

Heck · Oct 27, 2008

Seems you needed a slower shutter speed to get more motion in the in the shots. For auto cross I think 1/80 to 1/60 is the sweet spot for me.. 1/100 is a safe bet also.. the slower you go the keeper count goes down.. shooting in burst for panning is also a good idea.. you may get 1 keeper out of 4 and thats pretty good.. keep it up.

mrodgers · Oct 27, 2008

Yeah, not much background blur for panning shots.

/off topic, the 3rd picture, you know what kind of car that is? Is that a McGill MRT5?

You can race the simulated version at Live for Speed, as realistic as you can get without being on a race track!

samal · Oct 27, 2008

I got my first shot at panning with my kids on a swing - with repetitive motion it was easier practicing to keep the subject in the viewfinder. They were taken- frist at 1/50 f/22, second 1/50 f/13 and third at 1/60 and f/11:

O'Rork · Oct 28, 2008

Thank you all for posting. MRogers I have no info on the car in #3, it sure looked home made.

All of the shots were from a distance of 100 yards or so. At the distance, the 200mm lens and the vicious wind, any snaps at 1/60 to 1/125 showed motion alright. They showed everything in motion!

The 2 photogs shown in one of the shots had a much better position than me, but I bet they are in bed with a nasty cold!

polymoog · Oct 28, 2008

I'd agree with Heck's advice, and I would test shooting both in single shot mode and continuous mode. I don't know which Nikon you have, but if it is a simpler/older one, it may be that the autofocus is too slow and loses focus between shots, which happens to me all the time ... I have a Pentax *ist DL which as a model came out in 2005 and is considered an entry level DSLR. I have taken many ´panning shots both in single and continuous mode, really it depends on the event and the speed of the subject but sometimes I still think single is teh best, even though you only get one shot. Also, in continuous mode you don't have to burn off all the shots at once, you can take one or two, wait a fraction of a second and taken the next - but as I said it all depends on the subject you are shooting.

samal · Oct 28, 2008

There are very nice panning shots in your album, polymoog!

polymoog · Oct 29, 2008

samal said:
There are very nice panning shots in your album, polymoog!

Thanks

gsgary · Oct 31, 2008

Do you have an external flash, if so you can get some great shots at 1/20 - 1/60 on second curtain sinc, I pan everthing i shoot for the shots above i would be as low as 1/20 1/30 keep your elbow tight to your side as you follow the car be gentle with the shutter and follow through trying not to move up or down a bit like a golf swing
This is at 1/50 with panning action and second curtain sinc