motion photography tips

[dingo]

Does anyone have some tips on how to get the best results when taking pics of moving objects, mainly cars?
I have just bought a new camera which allows the adjustment of some settings, and I would appreciate some help in this. I currently just set the camera to the 'Sports' mode so that I have the quickest possible shutter speed....but most pics still turn out blurred. :?
Thanks in advance. :D

[saadie]

increase the exposure time .... hit the trigger and follow the object ....
start doin this and u'll gradually master motion pics ..

[cooperluke]

If it is the quickest shutter speed that you camera has... then there are 2 things that may happen...
The first is that your camera is not fast enough to take such pictures. What model is it?
The second is that you mat not have enough light to take a picture in the maximum shutter speed, and your camera automatically compensates by reducing the shutter speed.

But you can take a nice pic of moving objects without blurring the object (the background will stay blurred). It's like this... you follow the object for a few seconds before pressing the shutter, and this way your lens will have the same angular speed has the car, and the car won't (If well done..) blur.

:) Let me know if it worked!

[dingo]

If it is the quickest shutter speed that you camera has... then there are 2 things that may happen...
The first is that your camera is not fast enough to take such pictures. What model is it?
The second is that you mat not have enough light to take a picture in the maximum shutter speed, and your camera automatically compensates by reducing the shutter speed.

But you can take a nice pic of moving objects without blurring the object (the background will stay blurred). It's like this... you follow the object for a few seconds before pressing the shutter, and this way your lens will have the same angular speed has the car, and the car won't (If well done..) blur.

:) Let me know if it worked!

Thanks for the advice....I have a Ricoh Caplio R1 which is claimed to be the fastest compact digital camera currently on the market. :)
The light shouldn't be a problem since the pics are taken during the day in sunny weather.
I'll let you know what happens when I take a few pics tomorrow morning before work. :wink:

[sheruken]

Basically, start playing "Counter Strike" and use the Gun - Magnum (Sniper Rifle). Master that gun, and start killing other players with ONE SHOT! If you can be a good sniper, you can be a good photographer of moving objects!
LOL (but trust me, both have similar rules).. :wink: :lol: :mrgreen:

[evoWalo]

You could also Photoshop the image for motion blur. It's cheating I know but a lot of car mags use the trick when they're pressed for time.

[dingo]

This camera also has a continuous shooting mode, which allows me to take photo's as long as I hold the shutter button down. I haven't tried it yet, but maybe if I use that I could take 10 consecutive pics and then a few should be good at least.

You could also Photoshop the image for motion blur. It's cheating I know but a lot of car mags use the trick when they're pressed for time.

I know about that, but I am not trying to make a car look like its moving....I just want to take a pic of a car that is actually moving. :wink: :)

[evoWalo]

Oh in that case set the shutterspeed to 1/10th to about 1/40th of a second and keep the car in motion in frame & in focused. Depending on your lighting situation keep your camera's ISO/ASA setting to about 200-800. Each camera's different so experiment. Those death defying shots that appear to be taken at ultra high speeds are actually done at very low speeds with very slow shutter speed. :)

[saadie]

http://img148.exs.cx/img148/3172/pict01399qj.jpg

http://img153.exs.cx/img153/5312/pict01408ev.jpg

these are some pics i took using my technique :D ...

you sure do have an awsome camera ....

[dingo]

Here are two I took with my 'old' camera of a 360 and a 645Ci:

http://img142.exs.cx/img142/7044/f3606lz.th.jpg (http://img142.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img142&image=f3606lz.jpg)http://img142.exs.cx/img142/4017/bmw645ci5eu.th.jpg (http://img142.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img142&image=bmw645ci5eu.jpg)

they turned out pretty well, and it was in auto mode and all I did was focus in a particular spot and waited for the car to enter the frame and took the pic. When I do the same with my new camera it turns out like shit.....why? I now have to track along with the car while I never did this with the other (cheaper) camera. :?

[TT]

As already said, it is actually easy..

here is how I do it:

1. set the focus... since I mainly use auto mode, I point the camera on the road where the car will be when I will take the pic and focus there
2. the car arrived, I point at it, a bit before the focus point
3. I start "following" it, keeping it in the center of the picture if possible
4. I shoot the pic and keep following the car for a while

A little tip, if possible, try to be sure the camera won't have too much vertical movement (for pics like mines for instance, where the car basically follow an orizontal line in front of you.. in any case, no movement on the axis perpendicular to the one the car is following)

That's it... here are some examples taken with shutter set somewhere around 1/80 (automatically set at that speed since I also let the camera judge most of the time)

http://img147.exs.cx/img147/9058/jaguarxk1400012mg.th.jpg (http://img147.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img147&image=jaguarxk1400012mg.jpg) http://img147.exs.cx/img147/6596/mercedesbenze55amg0325rf.th.jpg (http://img147.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img147&image=mercedesbenze55amg0325rf.jpg) http://img147.exs.cx/img147/1420/porsche996carrera4scabrio0232h.th.jpg (http://img147.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img147&image=porsche996carrera4scabrio0232h.jpg) http://img147.exs.cx/img147/3863/porschecayenneturbo0940eo.th.jpg (http://img147.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img147&image=porschecayenneturbo0940eo.jpg)

http://img136.exs.cx/img136/4646/riv20040038wt.th.jpg (http://img136.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img136&image=riv20040038wt.jpg) http://img136.exs.cx/img136/9060/riv20040384yi.th.jpg (http://img136.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img136&image=riv20040384yi.jpg)

This was a cloudy day.. in sunny days should be a joke: for the following ones, shutter speed was always 1/640, sometimes even more I think and I didn't even had to move the camera to obtain sharp pics

http://img137.exs.cx/img137/6728/salombiere2004day20127hm.th.jpg (http://img137.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img137&image=salombiere2004day20127hm.jpg) http://img137.exs.cx/img137/7545/salombiere2004day20173qm.th.jpg (http://img137.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img137&image=salombiere2004day20173qm.jpg) http://img137.exs.cx/img137/9099/salombiere2004day20315jy.th.jpg (http://img137.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img137&image=salombiere2004day20315jy.jpg) http://img137.exs.cx/img137/483/salombiere2004day20534fp.th.jpg (http://img137.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img137&image=salombiere2004day20534fp.jpg)

As for your two pics dingo, do you recall what shutter speed you got there with auto mode?
And the new one in sport mode, what speed did it set the shutter

[abbor]

I think many try to explain the same thing, but TT got the best tutorial for you... Follow his advise, and you should take good moving pics.. :wink:

[dingo]

As for your two pics dingo, do you recall what shutter speed you got there with auto mode?
And the new one in sport mode, what speed did it set the shutter

Thanks for the mini-tutorial. :D
I can't remember what shutter speed it was on the old camera, and with the new one in the specs it says the speed ranges from 8sec to 1/2000 sec.....but I will let you know the exact figure tomorrow since after you take a pic it shows on the screen the shutter speed used. :wink:

[SFDMALEX]

Ok I guess Im a pervert because when I clicked the thread I swear I read "motion pornography tips"

So I started reading the first post and thought *holly shit we got a porno producer in the making on JW* :lol:

[TT]

Ok I guess Im a pervert because when I clicked the thread I swear I read "motion pornography tips"

So I started reading the first post and thought *holly shit we got a porno producer in the making on JW* :lol:

Now that you said it, I can admit it was the same for me :D

[dingo]

LMAO at you two......well maybe I am just using the car as a cover for what I will really be taking pics of. :wink:

[saadie]

aHem http://messenger.msn.com/MMM2004-11-10_11.23/Resource/emoticons/50_50.gif

[dingo]

I had a spare 10mins before work so I took some shots of moving cars (no nice ones, sorry). I think they turned out pretty good, a little on the grainy side though. :?

This one was taken in 'Sport' mode and the shutter speed was 1/270:

http://img138.exs.cx/img138/4784/r00100822hs.th.jpg (http://img138.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img138&image=r00100822hs.jpg)

'Sport' and 1/410:

http://img138.exs.cx/img138/5237/r00100830wx.th.jpg (http://img138.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img138&image=r00100830wx.jpg)

'Continuous' mode, took a few pics consectutively....this was the best, 1/290:

http://img139.exs.cx/img139/1936/r00100841mn.th.jpg (http://img139.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img139&image=r00100841mn.jpg)

The fastest shutter speed I managed was 1/760 when I had it in 'Normal' mode but set ISO to ISO 800.....so maybe this is the best, but I only took one pic at this setting of a group of cyclists (who were going slower then the cars):

http://img134.exs.cx/img134/6348/r00100876yf.th.jpg (http://img134.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img134&image=r00100876yf.jpg)

oh and here is the only decent car I saw, the new Golf and it was movng too....can't remember the settings since I deleted it off the camera:

http://img138.exs.cx/img138/1988/golf6cv.th.jpg (http://img138.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img138&image=golf6cv.jpg)

[saadie]

you were supposed to take pics with motion blur ?

[TT]

Uhm.. they are better indeed, and the grain isn't too bad. if you want less grain, you have to reduce the ISO setting if possible.. probably all the "preset" modes also modify it to be able to raise the shutter speed... I always let it at 50 ISO.
Anyway even at 800 ISO, the grain is quite good! With my camera, already at 200 the pic is not worth to be posted

[MercedeSChink]

if you actually want cool trailing effects set the shutter speed around 15 to 30th of a second...the background will be somewhat blury while the car will be sharp...btw, this is while you're panning the shot...btw, remember to adjust yur aperature so you don't over or underexpose the pic, just look at yur meter...

btw...i'm not a huge camera freak, but i work at my cousins' camera store...adencamera.com...please feel free to check it out, we do international shipping...

[TransAm]

Badmihai can probably give you some great tips as well.

[corvette97]

sorry tt, what do you mean by "grain"?

[TT]

You know, when a picture isn't "clean" but full of little "grains".. you will understand looking at the following ones:

GRAINY
http://img145.exs.cx/img145/2572/lamborghinicountach0183cg.th.jpg (http://img145.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img145&image=lamborghinicountach0183cg.jpg) http://img145.exs.cx/img145/5213/mitsubishilancerevovii0wq.th.jpg (http://img145.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img145&image=mitsubishilancerevovii0wq.jpg)

CLEAN
http://img145.exs.cx/img145/1981/ferrari575m0641hj.th.jpg (http://img145.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img145&image=ferrari575m0641hj.jpg) http://img145.exs.cx/img145/9541/hamannlagunasecaii0037wa.th.jpg (http://img145.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img145&image=hamannlagunasecaii0037wa.jpg)

[corvette97]

So to take cleaner images wich settigns do you need to move?... for example when its darker i use higher ISO speeds and when its sunny i use lower ISO.. any other recomendations?

example:

this was my first try, i used lower ISO speed about 50 or 100 and this
http://img23.exs.cx/img23/1659/pruebas17diciembre20040086ty.th.jpg (http://img23.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img23&image=pruebas17diciembre20040086ty.jpg)

is was my second try i used 400 ISO i think looks clean to me
http://img93.exs.cx/img93/5580/pruebas17diciembre20040056mx.th.jpg (http://img93.exs.cx/my.php?loc=img93&image=pruebas17diciembre20040056mx.jpg)

[TT]

ISO IMO should always be set at the lower possible value! You should work with shutter speed and aperture. And it's impossible to give precise values sinceit changes every day and with every camera. You just need to do some tests and you will get the hang of it for your particular camera in a given light.

[corvette97]

take a look at my pictures please? :D

[TT]

First of all, this is a topic about pictures of moving objects :D
Second, ISO isn't realted to speed. The shutter has a speed (the it stays open and let light in), ISO is more like sensibility to that light, but raising ISO, although you can get "better" pics with scarce light, you lower the quality

IMO in your two pics it is the other way around: the second was with ISO set lower that the first one because usually the higher the ISO, the mor ethe grain in the pic.

Anyway, for that kind of picture you shouldn't change the ISO.. since you could use a tripod, you just set the shutter speed to an higher value.
I do the same when I have my tripod (like in the pics for the Ferrari auction): slow shutter (1 sec) and deep field of focus (F8.0).. ISO is to be raised when you are really desperate for more light

[corvette97]

oh sorry :(

thanxs for the advice :)

[MercedeSChink]

actually, for those pictures...depends if you want more background or less background for a portrait...for more backgrounds in a portrait, you might need a tripod, and set the aperature at the highest amount(smallest number on the readings) and set the shutter speed at a regular rate perhaps 30th of a sec, depending on the light situations...if you want less background set the aperature at higher than usual (4-5.6 is normal usually), then set the shutter speed at a low speed so you can balance out the amount of light that's going in...remember to use the histogram of the meter to see if you need more aperature or less or more speed or less...i tend to like to have a lil bit of a underexposure...

btw...iso settings aren't that much of a use to me and i think its usually no need to change the settings...iso i usually shoot at is 400...

[TT]

Wow, it is pretty high 400 actually! Why so high? with wich camera?

As for the background discussion, not sure I get what you mean with "more" and "less" background, but an higher F setting means a deeper field (everything on focus), while a lower value goes blurry right behind the focal point.

[MercedeSChink]

yeah, so lets just say yur aperature setting is at the highest...you get more background in the picture...while the smaller aperature the less background will show up...btw an f4 is a high aperature setting, thus giving you more background in a shot when shooting a portrait or something like that...also, when you do portraits best thing to do i think is to set to aperature priority, the Av setting...

[SDK2003]

TT has got the idea.
Once you master panning you can really lower the shutter speed and take great photos :)

http://www.sdk2003.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/bike1.jpg

http://www.sdk2003.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/ferrari1.jpg

[c0wb0y007]

Hi Dingo,

Hope I can help you a bit.

First of all I'm going to try to say something about the shutter speed:
I don't know what camera you use, but try to step away of using the sport mode. People tend to use high shutter times when it comes to sports photography, sometimes it is necessary of course. But from the moment you want to show the aspect of motion don't use high shutter speeds. When I'm shooting race cars at the Nürburgring, my shutter speed doesn't go any higher than 200/s. I prefer 125 or 160/s. I don't say that you won't have motion blur when shooting on 300 or even higher but it depends on how fast your object moves. I bet you can have good motion blur shooting F1 cars at 500 and even 800/s. I think that shutter speeds of 1/40s - 1/60s for shooting cars on public roads are just fine. That will do the trick.

Another important thing is that I think it's always good to pre-focus. You pre-focus on a part of the road, there where the car is going to pass. So, when you are into street photography just pre-focus on the lane where the car will be driving the moment it passes you. Note that it is possible the camera can't find a focal point, take in mind that a camera can only focus itself if it finds a differ in contrast. So, if your camera doesn't focus itself immediately when you focus anywhere on the black tarmac, aim on the yellow or white road markings.

Now, your camera is set, you see a red Enzo coming 8) ... . When it comes to positioning yourself; I'm always doing the same thing which is: I'm following the upcoming car through the view finder, My feet point into the direction as I want to snap the car. The result can be that you snap the car form the side such as TT's shots (E-class and Cayenne) or under another angle. Because you pre focussed before, you just have to wait when the car comes into focus and then you just have to pull the trigger :wink:

It can be quite frustrating in the beginning but pratice makes perfect.

Keeping a cool head is always an advantage, have seen people missing a shot because they lost their calmness, if you are shooting pictures you are looking through the lens, you go for the pictures and that's it. Some people tend to shoot a few pictures in a rush and they want to get involved what happens afterwards --> Don't !!! The satisfaction will be much bigger after seeing some great images appear on your monitor :D

Good luck with it Dingo !!!

Cheers

[c0wb0y007]

As you can see, SDK2003's example of panning is just perfect.

[c0wb0y007]

Ok Dingo,

Another example, this is a picture of my Golden Retriever "Kai". Picture is made with a shutter speed of 1/30s

http://users.pandora.be/jokke1/Photography/A.Miscellaneous%20photos/13.kai%20at%20high%20speed.jpg


CHeers