Panning & Subject Sharpness...

[TwoTwoLeft]

I got the chance to borrow a Canon EF 100-400L this weekend, what an amazing lens. I was working on panning... I was trying for two things. One: Try get the subject as sharp as I could regardless of background.

This is the best one I got...


ISO 200 | f/5 | 1/1000


Two: Try for a nice motion background blur while still getting a sharp subject.

I have found a professional example of what I'm trying to get. The image has their watermark so I'm not sure if I can post it on here or not for example purposes.

I just cant seem to get the subject sharp. I've tried shutter speeds as low as 80. I get the background motion blur but the subject is always fuzzy. Do I just need to get better at panning or would using a tripod help?

 

[fokker]

Panning at 1/1000 is close to pointless. You need to work at it before you can get good sharp shots at 1/80s or even less. Just keep working your way downwards.

I'm not 100% sure but that lens probably has 2-mode IS - switch it to mode 2 for panning, where the IS only works in the up/down plane which is quite handy.

 

[tirediron]

When panning, shutter speed relates directly to the speed of subject movement. Here's an example, I shot at 1/400; the subject was moving at around 25 miles an hour. Note that there's some degree of background blur, but it's not excessive. I could have probably gone as low as 1/200-ish but much more than that, and I would have had difficulty keeping any degree of subject clarity.

Turn off ALL of the stabilization features and practice. Your best bet is to sit on the side of the highway and shoot a few hundred (or thousand) cars going by until you get the technique down.

 

[Robin Usagani]

^^^ what they said.

Your background should be blurry like this

 

[TwoTwoLeft]

So it is possible to get that nice & sharp kind of panning shot hand held at the lower shutter speeds? These guys aren't using a tripod or some fancy gyro stabilizer?

Yeah having the lens in the right mode would help... I had the modes mixed up. I guess it's just practice. I'll got out next time and see what I can do with the IS off.

 

[KmH]

So it is possible to get that nice & sharp kind of panning shot hand held at the lower shutter speeds?.

Yes. Absolutely.

What counts is the speed of the subject relative to the panning speed.

In other words, if the camera panning speed matches the speed of the subject, you get a sharp subject but a blurred background.

It takes a bit of practise to pan a hand held camera smoothly, but photographers do it all the time.

 

[Village Idiot]

So it is possible to get that nice & sharp kind of panning shot hand held at the lower shutter speeds? These guys aren't using a tripod or some fancy gyro stabilizer?

Yeah having the lens in the right mode would help... I had the modes mixed up. I guess it's just practice. I'll got out next time and see what I can do with the IS off.

Yes. Not necessarily. You have to be able to track your target. I tend to shoot with both eyes open, which helps tremendously from panning. You pick a spot outside of your pan area to start tracking, which you should be able to see with your non viewfinder eye. From there, you start tracking your target (I use AI servo AF), and then fire at the middle of your pan point. You can always squeeze off a sequence of shots and pick the best one to start out with.

 

[TwoTwoLeft]

I know the photo I posted isn't a good panning example. I was panning at 1/1000 to start with just to play with the different AF modes (AI Focus & AI Servo). I was thinking, what's the point of moving on to slower shutter speeds if I can't get the focus down first?

It's achieving that zero relative motion with the subject I need to work on. Keeping both eyes open while shooting will defiantly help. I don't know why I didn't think of that. Use it in trap shooting all the time. Keep both eyes open, lead your target and follow through.....

 

[Village Idiot]

I know the photo I posted isn't a good panning example. I was panning at 1/1000 to start with just to play with the different AF modes (AI Focus & AI Servo). I was thinking, what's the point of moving on to slower shutter speeds if I can't get the focus down first?

It's achieving that zero relative motion with the subject I need to work on. Keeping both eyes open while shooting will defiantly help. I don't know why I didn't think of that. Use it in trap shooting all the time. Keep both eyes open, lead your target and follow through.....

How is your AF setup? Most cameras will allow you to assign the AF to another button rather than on the shutter, so that the shutter shoot and the other button focuses. This is invaluable for panning, imo.

 

[Stradawhovious]

Most cameras will allow you to assign the AF to another button rather than on the shutter, so that the shutter shoot and the other button focuses. This is invaluable for panning, imo.

Here's a silly question.....

Why?

 

[Village Idiot]

Most cameras will allow you to assign the AF to another button rather than on the shutter, so that the shutter shoot and the other button focuses. This is invaluable for panning, imo.

Here's a silly question.....

Why?

Just cause.

For me, freeing the shutter button from focusing gives it one function, so it's the only thing to concentrate on. I can hold it right down to the point where anymore pressure will cause it to fire and it doesn't have to two stage feel to it. It also give me a better feel of grip.

I guess I should have said it was invaluable to me. The camera would feel totally off to me if it didn't start focusing until I pressed the shutter button.

But in general, it's a good setup to have for the whole reason of being able to focus, recompose, and then shoot without the camera refocusing once you press the shutter in.

 

[Robin Usagani]

So if you have the back button on and you are on AF, will it shoot if you press the shutter button or it will wait until it is focused first? I may start doing this. I keep forgetting to mess with this.

 

[OrionsByte]

Put your camera in continuous shooting mode and just let it snap 4 or 5 frames as you track your subject while it passes by. Chances are at least one of the frames will turn out sharp.

 

[Village Idiot]

So if you have the back button on and you are on AF, will it shoot if you press the shutter button or it will wait until it is focused first? I may start doing this. I keep forgetting to mess with this.

It might depend on the focus setting and the camera.

 

[TwoTwoLeft]

I know the photo I posted isn't a good panning example. I was panning at 1/1000 to start with just to play with the different AF modes (AI Focus & AI Servo). I was thinking, what's the point of moving on to slower shutter speeds if I can't get the focus down first?

It's achieving that zero relative motion with the subject I need to work on. Keeping both eyes open while shooting will defiantly help. I don't know why I didn't think of that. Use it in trap shooting all the time. Keep both eyes open, lead your target and follow through.....

How is your AF setup? Most cameras will allow you to assign the AF to another button rather than on the shutter, so that the shutter shoot and the other button focuses. This is invaluable for panning, imo.

Ah HA! That's what the AE/AF, no AE lock setting buried in the Custom Function Settings menu is for! I was using AI Servo AF mode.

Damn, with so many settings to change, I think I'm going to have to start making checklists for every time I change what I'm shooting!