motosports motion blur

[skoh]

So I don't know if i'm posting this in the correct spot but it's motorsports related. My friends are stunt riders and I am trying to accomplish this, so far from what i've read up on is having a larger depth of field and a slower aperature. Thanks

http://a968.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/2/l_75ded385fa560a97e57ecd32e0bf7b67.jpg

[tehdrok]

Looks like you're doing pretty well so far :p

I've only tried panning once, but the slow shutter speed was the key. Had my 350D on "TV" mode to control the shutter speed and set it to somewhere around 1"4 (bearing in mind that I might be completely wrong on this, back then it was guesswork and I just played around with it until I got a keeper; I can't remember the exact settings :( ), and then it's a matter of tracking the car/bike/subject to get the motion blur on the wheels, etc.

Ended up with something like this:

http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/ll149/tehdrok83/photo2-1.jpg

Hope this helps :) I'm sure someone more experience will be able to offer more constructive and informed assistance :p

[skoh]

nice mustang. that's exactly what i'm looking for. I want a 60mph wheelie to have the effect that the object looks like it's traveling much faster!! kind of like trick photography. Thanks!

[tehdrok]

No worries :) Try playing around with the slower shutter speeds until you get a keeper. Out of 300+ photos that I took the whole weekend, maybe 15 or 16 were keepers, so bear that in mind; It's not always easy, especially when you're not used to doing it. If you have unsteady hands a monopod might be useful, too, but I wasn't using one and I did ok :)

I had to get some shots of a 360mph jet car, too :? THAT was tricky, lol!

[davidk]

You guys should use manual over TV mode because TV auto sets the exposure. You can get a really underexposed image if the car is white, overexposed if the car is black. What i do is take like 3 shots in TV, then view the info and see what the camera was exposing at, then switch to manual and set accordingly. I just happened to notice you guys might have been having trouble with exposure by viewing your images.

[saturnin]

shoot in Manual..practice practice your panning, I usualy shoot between 160 - 250(shutter) and play with your fstop and iso of course.
ON a bright day iso 100, the lower the light bump up iso. I usualy keep te fstop high 5.6 or higher on a brigth day to get the whole rider in focus as oposed to just his helmet or the bike..yada yada... keep practicing..

[an33sh]

good to see stuntaz up here..

i am myself part of a stunt team and their photographer.

Best way would be set it to shutte priority, about 1/125 at first, just to get a feel, then, slowly start pushing it down to about 1/60th to get really nice blur..bump up ISO in bright conditions, so that all parts of the bike are in focus..

Important bit : Follow the bike real smoothly and precisely..The faster the bike is, more the blur...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v637/m1g/MOTORHEAD/ATgAAAD2A7WzRePCnLfRd-3lYz7QymxR-7.jpg

[RPCrowe]

Using IS:
Some lenses which have IS capability also have two IS modes; 1: for normal photography in which your camera is not moving and 2: for photography when you are moving or panning the camera. If your IS equipped lens doesn't have the panning mode (only the latest versions of IS have this mode) you would be better off by turning the IS off.

Tripod heads:
Although I like ball heads for general photographic uses, I tend to favor other type heads for following fast moving subjects as in motor and hydroplane racing.
My first choice is a Manfrotto 3421 Gimbal Camera Support. This is excellent for use on either a tripod or monopod. However, this mount is fairly expensive and beyond the needs of many photographers.
Fluid pan heads were designed for smooth panning when using motion picture and video equipment. Used fluid pan heads can be had relatively inexpensively on the used market and are excellent for the type of imagery you are describing. The fluid head will dampen vibrations and eliminate jerkiness in panning. Using a fluid pan head and a relatively slow shutter speed will blur the background while keeping the subject relatively sharp.

It must be noted, however, that while panning cars, motorcycles and boats can achieve sharp subject imagery, often panning subjects such as runners and horses does not produce as sharp an image because these subjects are not only traveling in a single direction (for which the panning will compensate), but are also moving up and down and have legs and arms (in the case of runners) which will blur. However, this blurring will often accentuate the feeling of motion.

[skoh]

Yeah. Can't wait to try some more.. thanks for all the input. that's cool you stunt too an33sh

[Mike-DT6]

Is that stunt rider wearing trainers and not even any socks?

[tonylong]

I'd say practice is definitely key -- I've been practicing on highway cars as well as small planes to build my skills!

Yesterday I took several hundred shots from the side of a freeway at various shutter speeds from 1/125" to 1/250". For me the key is to start at the faster shutter speed until I get into the flow of things. It's crucial to me to get the main subject good and sharp, so getting the flow of the speeds I'm working with is important, then I'll slow down the shutter to increase the motion blur.

I had some nice keepers from yesterday! Even though a freeway is not as interesting as a race track, it's still cool making ordinary cars look like they're racing:)! Plus, my keepers are largely based on how sharp the main subject is -- it's nice when you can zoom in and see reasonably sharply insignias, license plates, exressions on the faces of the people in the car or airplane!

If you haven't set your * button to set your AF lock/AI Servo, give it a try, it can come in handy in this type of shooting.

I've been using Manual mode for this: I set my exposure for the overall scene before doing any actual shooting -- that way, like someone said, different cars won't throw off the exposure, and you ensure the depth of field you want. The cars will "fit in" to the exposure. The best alternative of course would be TV because you want to work with a known shutter speed.

Have fun!

[saturnin]

thats nothing..most of the time stunt riders dont even wear helmets..nevermind sox..ehheeh
I'm currently finishing off my 2nd stunt documentary..u can visit the stie @
http://www.asphaltjunkiez.com to view trailers and youtube link etc

Is that stunt rider wearing trainers and not even any socks?

[PhotosGuy]

A sharp subject while still keeping some wheel blur depends on the distance to the subject, the angle to the subject, the focal length, the speed of the subject, & the effect that you're trying to get.

More in here:
Advice needed for Rally shooting (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=292705)

Need an exposure crutch? (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=89123)
More on how the subject affects the exposure in Post # 47 (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showpost.php?p=5191658&postcount=47)