Learn the skills to get the shot, no matter how fast your subject moves.

In Part 1 of this tutorial, I explained the connection between Shutter Speed, Aperture and ISO sensitivity. In this part, I will elaborate on some practical applications and show you how to set up your camera to achieve the effects you want.

Whether you want to freeze action or blur the lights of a car at night, motion is a primary concern of many shooters. Many questions I receive relate to motion. Some readers of Part 1 suggested that I continue my series, elaborating on different scenarios to help guide you through many possible photography scenarios you may encounter.

Freezing Motion in Action Shots

An example of a subject frozen in Motion is this photograph of a rock jumper in Maui.

Shooting action is difficult. It requires preparation and anticipation. If you press the shutter when your subject enters the viewfinder, you will most likely miss the shot. Remedies are cameras with very high frame rates. Instead of looking through the viewfinder, you set up your shot and then press the shutter release well before the subject enters your cameras field of view. Keep the shutter pressed until the subject leaves the scene and pick the best photograph of the entire set. You need a fast camera to do this.

However, this is not always the best option. Every camera has limitations (frame buffer) that only allow you to capture a certain number of photographs at high speed. Maybe you do not want to tip off your subject if you shoot wildlife or maybe there is another reason you want to get a fast moving subject in just one attempt. This is very difficult, and requires practice. I sometimes look through the viewfinder with my right eye and scan the surrounding area with my left eye. This can be very confusing, especially if you use a focal length much different from the natural human field of view.

You need to practice your technique before it matters. Take as many action shots as you can and find a technique that works for you. Anticipate the subject and press the shutter button before the subject enters your viewfinder. The actual amount of time you need to anticipate depends on your camera response time.

Freezing motion requires fast shutter speeds. The table below shows which exposure times you need to freeze a subject in motion. These times are estimates of course, but generally work well.

Common Scenarios and Recommended Maximum Exposure Times

How to Set your Camera

Switch your camera to Shutter Priority Mode (Canon: Tv, Nikon, Sony: S) and select an appropriate shutter setting from the table above. Your camera will automatically pick a corresponding aperture setting. When you “meter off your scene” (aim and press the shutter release button halfway), the aperture number may be blinking.  This way your camera tells you, that it has reached the maximum aperture (small f-number). If this happens, you need to “boost your ISO”. There is just not enough light to expose a scene for such a short time, even with a wide-open aperture. Set your ISO sensitivity to Auto (better yet High Auto if your camera has this setting) or increase ISO sensitivity until your camera tells you that it can expose the scene at the speed you chose.

On bright sunny days, you can get 1/1000s exposure with f/5.6 at ISO 100. On overcast days, you can get 1/500s with f/5.6 at ISO 200. ISO settings of 1600 or higher are common during twilight.

If you mastered this technique, you can further increase your chances of success by selecting a single autofocus point. It is easier to focus on a certain player in a match if you select a focus point and align it with your player. This technique also helps to isolate a subject from the background and other subjects, especially since short exposure times usually result in narrow depth of field.

If you know where a subject will enter the scene, you can also pre-focus. Focus on the road or another feature right where you expect the subject to enter the scene and then switch your lens to manual focus while keeping your hands off the focus ring. When your subject enters the scene, you already have it in focus and just need to take the shot. In sports, this can mean the difference between getting the shot and missing it.

Image Stabilization

Image Stabilization is a great tool. It stabilizes the lens from unintentional movement and lets you shoot handheld, using longer exposure times than you could without it. However, it does not freeze motion.

Panning

Try panning to emphasize the speed of an object!

Track a fast moving object and set your camera to a much longer exposure (1/30s or longer). Select a single focus point and keep it on the subject. While following the moving subject with your camera, press the shutter release button halfway to focus and then press it all the way to take the picture. You probably need to take many pictures since most will not be sharp.

Panning the camera with your subject will create motion blur in the background, which will greatly enhance the feeling of speed.

Blurring Motion

A popular technique to photograph flowing water is to use slow shutter speeds. The water will appear silky smooth as the water drops fuse together. Blur the lights of cars at night, or a turning wheel using this technique for professional looking photographs.

Blurring a subject works especially well in the presence of nearby sharp objects. Water that runs over rocks, which are stationary and in focus will look better than just blurry water. We must be careful when blurring subjects, which sometimes leave the impression of lack of sharpness. Always include a stationary subject that is in focus and sharp. The viewer will immediately make the connection and realize that the blurring of a subject is intentional.

Use slow shutter speeds of 1/10s or slower to achieve the blurring. Attach a neutral density filter to your camera or use a polarizing filter if you have one to reduce the amount of light that enters the lens, to allow you to increase the exposure time as much as you need. The minimum aperture often determines how long we can expose.

Unfortunately, the matter gets a little complicated if you strive for maximum sharpness. The optical properties of small apertures may cause slightly un-sharp photographs. I wrote an article about diffraction earlier explaining the matter, but it is complicated enough to skip for all but the most technically minded readers.

Experiment

Having a pushbutton approach is a great way to get started with photography, but it also harbors the inherent danger of laziness. The prevailing perception is that photographers simply take the shot, but have little to no influence in creating what is in the scene. The scene presents itself to us. We did not create it and we are thus not responsible for the beauty of our photographs. This reduces photography to a lucky accident and discredits the art of photography.

Composition encompasses much more than just aiming in the right direction. Many creative choices are invisible to our viewers. We use focal length to manipulate the distance perception between two objects. Moving closer to an object with a wide-angle lens stretches the middle ground to near infinity, making objects just a few meters away appear at a great distance. Photographers enhance the presence of certain graphical elements and weaken the presence of elements disturbing a picture.

Blurring an object to enhance the perception of speed is another creative option at our disposal. I would like to encourage you to experiment as much as possible. After you got the shots you wanted, possibly by using some of the tips on this page, you should try something new.

Certain techniques that go hand in hand with fast moving subjects such as focus point selection, pre-focusing or tracking are hard to teach. You need to practice and learn by doing.

Don’t let failures discourage you from seeking progress. When you experiment and try something new, you will likely fail more often than not, but I guarantee that the learning process will be more fun this way and that you will find your own style. If you just follow in the footsteps of others, you will never exceed what they have accomplished before you. At best, you can hope to be as good as somebody else is. If you charge ahead in a new direction, you may discover something new, even better.

Read some articles of my series on becoming better photographers, if you wish to challenge yourself beyond tables and technical stuff.