First time trying to do the Panning

[jventer]

So as you know I am still new to photography and I am still learning, I have read some stuff on panning and saw some very nice pictures so while we were on a trip with our car club I was trying the panning thing, was very difficult and I only got about 2 shots worth while, the last one is still not right, I need some advice on what I can do to get this perfect

[Marko]

This is a very tricky technique to master and cars are a hard starting point because they are fast.
Shot 2 is harder than shot 1 because of the angle, practice with straight on angles first.

Perhaps try with a jogger or a cyclist to practice.

[Yisehaq]

That is a nice try for a first timer especially. I have worked hard on panning and now I am almost getting there and happy to share.

What I know about panning first.
1. you don't need to go very low on your shutter speed to get the panning effect. A little bit lower than the focal length would do fine. e.g. if you are shooting at 200mm, 160mm also could give you the effect. So try to practice from there first.
2. use as low ISO as you camera can support will help you in not overexposing your shots.
3. If you use tripod or monopod practice with the horizontal movement of the **pod. It sometime is a bit difficult. But if you lens has Image stabilizer I think you can do without it.
4. don't fill the frame at the beginning. The car could be come too fast to follow so get a bit further or use lower focal length.
5. Don't worry about exposure metering. You can deal with it afterwords in PP. shoot in raw if you are crazy about that. I was crazy about learning everything at once and really made me suffer. So practice only on the panning without worrying of any other techniques and measurments.

While shooting
1. stand parallel to the movement of the car. Don't face the car or allow it to come from any angle for the time being. But once you get it there are alot of ways to do it.

2. keep the car in your view finder from a bit far and follow it until it reaches perpendicular to you. meaning you seeing the profile of the driver. Just to mention you don't get in his/her way.

3. VERY IMPORTANT don't stop following the car in your view finder after you take the shot for some time. you can even use the burst mode of your camera until you feel it is out of range. that will give you a chance to choose from.



Finally after you know how to follow these rules and you get it right then it will be time to break all of them.
Hope I have not managed in .
Enjoyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

[jventer]

Thanks I am going to try and try untill I get this perfect!