If you have followed my blog at all, you know I like to show motion whenever I feel it adds to the story of what I am photographing. At the ESTA Safety Park Dragstrip speed is the name of the game and panning is my way of capturing it. Besides the mechanics of panning, the most important choice I make is to set the shutter speed. I use Shutter Priority mode and let the camera calculate the aperture and ISO from there.
The Junior Dragster Eat My Fairy Dust racing at the ESTA Safety Park Dragstrip in Cicero, New York on Sunday, May 16, 2010.
For the Junior Dragster division, I choose 1/60th of a second and got some great panning results but none better then the one I share above of the Eat My Fairy Dust dragster. Using the Nikon 70-200VR lens, my camera selected an aperture of f/20 and ISO of 200. I timed it perfectly to get the dragster sharp with the bleachers, track, safety barriers and the wheels a nice blur to show the speed of the vehicle. Click on photo to see a larger version and you might see Tinker Bell riding along.
Later in the day, I was taking closeup photos of the drivers in the staging area where I got the burnout photos I posted earlier this month. The Sun was getting lower and started glinting off windshields and visors. I noticed a particularly bright reflection coming off a visor of the Junior Dragster you see below. I switched to Aperture Priority mode and stepped down the lens to its smallest setting of f/22 to accentuate the reflection into a starburst. My camera set the shutter speed to 1/30th of a second and an ISO of 200 for a proper exposure.
Speed Racer. A starburst off a Junior Dragster racer's visor before his race at the ESTA Safety Park Dragstrip in Cicero, New York on Sunday, May 16, 2010.
It reminds me of Japanese animation which shows large and bright starbursts off anything reflective.
This is my submission for this month’s assignment on Creative Exposure.
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Wow!! That is the PERFECT panning picture! Great job!
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Thank you, Michaela!
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Fantastic panning photo Scott. I used to do a lot of panning shots in my film days and drag races are perfect for practice.
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When people ask about panning, I always suggest finding a local dragstrip for practice. Why not try some panning of your dogs?
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Nice job. That has always been a difficult technique for me to do.
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Hi, Syd! Thank you for retweeting this link and your comment.
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Wow Scott, that car in the pan is incredibly sharp. Perfectly done!
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I even said “Wow!” when I pulled it up on my computer screen. Thank you!
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The panning shot is amazing! LOVE the colored lines in the background and I don’t think you could have selected a better car! Goooooo Tink!! 😀
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🙂 The guys have nothing on this gal, Tracy! By slowing down the shutter to 1/60th, the background bleachers came out great. Thanks!
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That was an awesome panning you did! I wanted to try some panning too, but I do not have any good enough lens! I’ll have to do some investing!
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It’s not the lens here. It’s the technique. I have panned using my iPhone camera with good results. Check out this article (click on link): The Art of Panning
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That’s a great shot! I will remember how you did that! I also like the starburst! Cool!
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Thanks, Terry! Let me know if you get some panning photos.
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Love the panning technique, the first photograph is amazing, I like the second one too but the first one is my fav:)
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The first is my favorite, too. Not only is it a good panning photo but the hint of Disney makes me smile.
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That first photo is just great. The panning effect is very nice. Panning is “new territory” for me, so thanks for the article “The art of panning” – that was good info. for me 🙂 . I am sure I’ll take some steps into the panning-world soon.
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Be sure to let me know when you give panning a try, Truels. You will find it a challenging and very rewarding technique to learn.
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Very cool shots, Scott! Wow! Makes you feel like you could feel the wind in your hair. The color is stunning as well.
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Thanks, Karma. Hmmm..not much wind in her hair with the helmet she wears. 🙂
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The starbursts are very cool. I really love that first shot. How many shots did it take you to get that one? Or is it an “ancient Chinese secret?” 😉 lol
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It only took one of that car. 🙂 I took about 50 panning photos with 30 keepers. Pretty good average I’d say.
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This is what I call creative exposure, great shot! You must be Mr. Panning himself. I´m getting suspicious now, did YOU invent this photo-style?….at least you know how to use it real well.
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Oh my, no, I didn’t invent this style. (blush) I have taken the time to practice it and hone my skill. With all the sports I like to photograph this is a very valuable technique for me to have.
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That’s an awesome shot Scott, love the panning effect of the first image. All this time, I thought panning is the photoshoping technique, I didn’t know that you’ve to do it while taking the picture.
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I am glad I could show you how to do panning in camera. As we all know, the more you can get right in the camera the better the photo will turn out. I am sure it can be done in PhotoShop, too.
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Wow, what fun shots, Scott! Thanks for showing us such inspirational examples for being more creative.
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You’re welcome, Jennifer. Hope it helped!
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