Daniela on "Motion blur"

Daniela — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 12:21:20 +0000

Thanks for your valuable advice. You gave me some good ideas and directions, tricks I did not know!

kirpi on "Motion blur"

kirpi — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 15:39:01 +0000

Blurring a moving subject is even too easy :-)
It is closely related to shutter speed. Eight times out of then you get what you want (or what you don't want :-) just by setting a slow shutter speed and shooting straight.
Mind not to move your camera, or the background will be blurred as well.

There are some creative variations to this basic approach. One of these is to use a strobe and freeze your subject just before closing the shutter. This particular way of shooting is known as second-curtain slow syncing.
Look at this picture:

[http://www.flickr.com/photos/rorymunro/3396107820/]

The blurred subject is very effective in giving a sense of speed, while the crisp image of the same subject renders all the details.

Of course also panning can be coupled with the above "slow sync" approach, and this is an example:

[http://www.flickr.com/photos/staipale/3937396051/]

You get:

details (with a flash)
slight subject movement (with a slow shutter speed)
blurred background (by panning your camera)

All on the same photograph.

Don't be afraid to experiment!

Daniela on "Motion blur"

Daniela — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 12:52:41 +0000

What if I want to give the opposite effect of blurring the baby?

kirpi on "Motion blur"

kirpi — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:25:42 +0000

Motion blur is not necessarily evil. Instead, it can be used to convey a positive feeling at times.
One of the best approach is to set a moderately fast shutter speed, and then follow your subject. Do not be afraid to move while following the kid: walk, run, swing, pan your camera, do whatever you can to keep your subject steady within the frame.
Such panning will result in an acceptable level of sharpness for your subject, whereas all the rest of the image will appear severely blurred.
Look at this example:

[http://www.flickr.com/photos/psycho-pics/3620435065/]

Remember that sharpness is not a value in itself.
Look at the girl's face: you do not need to get every single hair sharp and crisp. Joy and emotion are clearly visible on her smile and that is the good point.

Today, digital photography has an advantage over film: you can carelessly shoot even hundreds of photos and then just keep the ones that comes out fine, without thinking of possible costs.

Daniela on "Motion blur"

Daniela — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:21:54 +0000

I'm photographing my lively kids. How to avoid motion blur?