In previous articles we’ve discussed what shutter speed is and how it effects exposure. Now let’s look at how shutter speed can be used creatively to portray motion. We can have motion of the subject, the background, the camera or any combination of the above. And for this article we’ll only discuss intentional camera movement. In another article we’ll discuss unintentional camera movement and how it effects sharpness.
First let’s look at the factors that control how our camera sees movement. First and most obvious is the speed of the subject’s movement. Second is the direction of movement; movement toward or directly away from camera is not as obvious as movement from side to side. Third is the distance from the camera to the subject; a car traveling 100 MPH looks much faster at a distance of 20 feet than at half a mile. Fourth is lens selection; a telephoto lens not only seems to magnify our subject; it also magnifies any movement. Wide angle lenses have the opposite effect; by minimizing subject size, they also minimize the sense of movement. And last and perhaps most important is shutter speed, because we can use shutter speed to choose how we portray motion, and it’s the variable that we as photographers have the most control over.
So how does shutter speed affect how we see motion and movement? We basically have three ways to shoot motion – try to freeze the movement, allow the motion to cause blur or use a technique called panning to move with the action, so there is a blurred background and possibly blur in part of the subject, but there is at least some relatively sharp part of the subject where the movement of the camera followed the movement of the subject almost exactly.
We can freeze motion with a fast shutter speed. This may require high ISO’s and wide apertures to freeze very fast action. Remember it will take a faster shutter speed to freeze movement going across the frame than movement going toward or away from the camera. And to restate the obvious, the faster the movement, the faster the shutter speed needs to be. A shutter speed of 1/125 of a sec may freeze a bicycle moving slowly across the frame, where it may take 1/4000 of a sec to freeze the motion of a jet streaking across the frame. We freeze motion when it is more important to show detail in our subject than to convey a sense of motion. Sports such as football, basketball and even rodeo usually depend on sharpness. I would add a special caution about planes and helicopters. While a fast shutter speed may capture sharp detail, it freezes the movement of the propeller or rotor and makes it look like a model and not like a plane in flight. For most prop planes 1/80 or 1/100 creates good prop blur. Helicopter rotors turn more slowly and may require 1/30 sec. Good luck handholding a telephoto on a moving, vibrating helicopter at 1/30 sec. Literally 1 in a 100 good shots is par for the course, but that one good shot makes up for the 99 rejects. Jets don’t have any externally moving parts that convey movement, so a fast shutter speed works well.
Slower shutter speeds allow the subject to blur and lose detail, but may convey a stronger sense of movement, or even blur to the point of creating an abstract picture. It sometimes works to use very slow shutter speeds that blur the subject dramatically. A shutter speed that is only slow enough to create a slight blur may look more accidental than intentional. One special case is moving water in streams or waterfalls. Most photographers prefer the water to be blurred silky smooth. Depending on the amount and speed of the water this may require from 1/2 sec up to several seconds.
Panning is following the movement of a subject with shutter speed that is slow enough to show movement in the back, and blur in parts of the subject that are not moving in exactly in the direction of the camera. Panning works well for sports like track and field, cycle racing, horse racing and auto racing where motion is more important than detail. To pan, set a relatively slow shutter speed, and stand with your hips square toward where you want to capture the action. Then twist at the waist in the direction the subject will come from. Start tracking your subject before the point where you want to capture the action, and follow past that point. You’ll want to set you camera to its fastest frame rate and shoot a lot of shots hoping to get that perfect shot where everything lines up just right. Don’t be disappointed if only 1 in 20 or 30 works. But when they work they are impressive. Like everything else, it takes practice and repetition to get good results.
Next month I’ll be discussing how to make your images look sharp.
(Figure ) At 1/500 sec details are sharp, but nothing shows a sense of motion.
(Figure ) 1/20 sec without panning turns the rowers into an almost abstract blur that conveys movement, but not detail.
(Figure ) 1/20 sec and panning, tracking the third rower, shows a sense of speed while still maintaining some detail.
(Figure ) While the rowers aren’t moving very fast, 1/15 sec shutter speed and panning makes it look as though the shell is really moving. Notice the blur and movement of the background.
(Figure ) 1/250 sec freezes the movement of the rotor and gives no impression that the helicopter is actually flying.
(Figure ) 1/30 sec gives good rotor blur and looks more appropriate for a helicopter in flight.
(Figure ) For a jet 1/1000 sec captures good detail. Speed is implied in a jet without having to blur a prop.
(Figure ) Panning along with this horse at 1/100 sec blurs the background and his hooves while keeping the face sharp.
(Figure ) 1/30 sec is too fast to blur the movement in this waterfall.
(Figure ) 4 secs gives a pleasing blur to this waterfall.
(Figure ) 1/250 sec captures very little of the speed of this car. Notice the wheels and background cones are only very slightly blurred. Nothing really conveys that this was a very tight turn at 50 MPH. (I know, because I’m driving!). If you look very closely, the front right wheel is lifted off the pavement, but nothing else really conveys the speed of the car. As a general rule when a fast moving car (or motorcycle or bicycle) is broadside to you, you should use a shutter speed slow enough to allow the wheels to blur, and this usually also requires panning.
Figure Freezing the action of this bull rider required 1/1000 sec. Due to the very poor lighting, that required a wide open aperture of 2.8 and an ISO of 25,600. A slower shutter speed would have resulted in blurring which could have created an artistic abstract.
So, here are your homework assignments for learning about shutter speed and motion.
1) Start simply by having someone walk or run by you about 30 feet away. Put your camera on a tripod, in shutter priority mode and photograph the walker as he’s coming toward you, moving directly across from you and going away. Use 1/15 sec then 1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1/250 and 1/500. Repeat with your subject only 10 feet away.
2) Now to make it more challenging. Stand beside a busy road (but safely away from traffic). Put your camera on a tripod, in shutter priority mode and photograph (Notice I DID NOT say shoot) cars coming toward you, moving directly across from you and going away. Use 1/15 sec then 1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1/250 and 1/500. Do this sequence with a wide angle lens, a normal lens and a slight telephoto. Try not to look like a terrorist or sniper.
3) If you haven’t already been arrested, repeat exercises 1 and 2 above, but this time hand hold the camera and try to pan along with the movement of the walker and cars.
4) Find a waterfall or water flowing over rocks in a stream. You need some ripples and turbulence to show motion. Put your camera on a tripod, in shutter priority and photograph the water at 10 sec, 5 sec, 1 sec, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/15, 1/30, 1/60, and 1/125. Notice the blurring of the water and see what shutter speeds look good to you. Remember this effect depends on the speed and turbulence of the water, so the effect won’t be consistent with every moving water subject.
5) Go to an air show like the ones in Smyrna TN or Wings Over North Georgia in Rome GA. These are great places to practice panning and learn the effects of different shutter speeds. Or go to a racetrack or motocross track.
6) Practice photographing any sport that interests you and that allows you good access. Try various shutter speeds, and try panning. See what works, what doesn’t, and what suits your particular vision.
