iyernat

Folks - I am not a newbie but rarely find time to learn all the tricks and hence I am an auto-setting user on my Nikon D7100. I only have three lenses - 18-55, 35mm/1.8 and 50mm/1.8.

I want to know how to take a picture of a person who is running but is fully in focus, however everything around him/her is blurred. I have seen pictures of famous athletes like this. I was just curious. Any and all help is appreciated.

Screamin Scott Loc: Marshfield Wi, Baltimore Md, now Dallas Ga

Actual settings are going to depend on light levels but you will want to pan the camera to follow the runner. If using flash, rear curtain sync will do this as well...

http://www.digital-photo-secrets.com/tip/3326/how-to-use-rear-curtain-flash-for-creative-photos/

yorkiebyte Loc: Scottsdale, AZ/Bandon by the Sea, OR

It's called "Panning"...Very fun to do and learn. I does take practice, however!
http://www.nikonusa.com/en/learn-and-explore/a/tips-and-techniques/10-tips-for-better-camera-panning.html

Ciao!

TomC. Loc: Bel Air, MD

Hi,
You need to put your camera setting on "Shutter Priority". Then change shutter speed to 1/1000 or thereabouts. Follow the subject in the view finder, get them in focus and snap when they are to the left of the frame if they're running left to right. Your subject should be in focus and everything around it will be out of focus (blurred). You could practice on cars driving by or bike riders 'til you get comfortable with the process. It's not a difficult thing to accomplish, all it takes is a little practice. Good luck and let us know how you did. Your 18-55mm lens will do fine.

Morning Star Loc: West coast, North of the 49th N.

Yes, a lot of practice. And I think the most difficult to learn, is to NOT stop panning when you push that shutter button. Keep the camera moving for another second or two!

WayneT Loc: Paris, TN

Pick up a copy of Steve Perry's Secrets To The Nikon Autofocus System at www.backcountrygallery.com he will explain that trick as well as many more. It's a great book on focusing in the Nikon system. Steve is a member here at UHH.

par4fore Loc: Bay Shore N.Y.

Since your a newbie and interested in panning shots of runners, make your self an expert on this. Study panning and work at it, this will help you along with every area of photography while enjoying yourself. Have fun.

JPL

I do this in the same way except I usually use much slower shutter speeds.

par4fore Loc: Bay Shore N.Y.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Some good links -
https://www.picturecorrect.com/tips/how-to-pan-for-action-photography/
https://digital-photography-school.com/showing-speed-using-panning-when-shooting-action/
https://digital-photography.wonderhowto.com/how-to/use-panning-capture-great-action-shots-with-movement-377596/

SusanFromVermont Loc: Southwest corner of Vermont

Another thing to do is set your camera for AF-C. I use this with back-button-focus, keeping button depressed and using burst mode for multiple shots [CL or CH]. This gives you multiple shots to choose from because when panning it is easy to get off the subject and lose focus as well as cut off parts!

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

1/30 sec. and PAN. IMPORTANT, follow the runner with your camera, the closer you are with the 55mm, the better, when you trip your shutter, KEEP THE RUNNER IN THE CENTER OF YOUR FRAME. In other words, KEEP THE CAMERA MOVING WITH THE RUNNER AS YOU TRIP THE SHUTTER.

Toment Loc: FL, IL

Use multi-shot drive too

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

For a subject that's running directly toward you, a long focal length lens with a relatively large aperture is the best way to get a strong background blur...


Above was done with a 300mm f/2.8 lens nearly wide open at f/3.2.

The subject is moving more slowly, but here's an even more strongly blurred background (there's a railroad track, buildings and other in the background)...


That was accomplished using a 500mm f/4 lens with a 1.4X teleconverter, for a 700mm f/5.6 combo, with aperture wide open.

Distances between you and the subject and between the subject and the background are another key factor. Below was shot with a 500mm f/8 lens at a fairly close distance (about 8 feet), while the background was about 2X farther away (a fence and firewood pile)...


Higher magnifications are another big factor.... macro lenses render very shallow depth of field and strongly blur down backgrounds. For example, notice how only a few millimeters of the below image fall within the plane of focus...


The image above was shot with a 180mm macro lens near it's maximum life size magnification. I don't recall the aperture but it was probably stopped down a little from it's maximum of f/3.5... maybe f/5.6.

A little or a lot of background blur creates a sense of three-dimensionality in a two-dimensional image and can really help "separate" or isolate the subject from the background... or even foreground... so that the more sharply focused subject stands out better in the finished image.


And, yes, using a slower shutter speed in combination with a panning movement with camera and lens that's tracking a moving subject is another way to cause the stationary background to blur...


Panning techniques such as above generally only work when the subject(s) are moving primarily perpendicular to the direction you're pointing your camera... i.e., when they're moving right to left of left to right across your field of view. (Though there is a "zoom panning technique" that can be used with subjects moving directly toward you.) When doing panning techniques, take lots of extra shots. There are always a lot of spoiled images... fewer "keepers". That's just inevitable when using a slow shutter speed with moving subjects. Practice helps increase the number of good shots you'll get, though. In the above image the panning movement was accentuated by using fill flash (set to second curtain sync... otherwise the subject would appear to be moving backward).

Note: If using a stabilized lens, it may have a special setting especially for panning, so that only the vertical axis is stabilized and the stabilization isn't working against your effort to blur the horizontal movement. Some lenses with stabilization automatically detect panning and go into this mode. Others require it to be set with a switch. Still others simply don't give you the option. If your camera instead has in-body stabilization, I don't know what can be done, if anything. I just don't use any cameras of that type. Maybe someone else can advise.

cambriaman Loc: Central CA Coast

Pan following the runner, keep them in exactly the identical spot in the viewfinder as you pan. The background will be satisfactorily blurred with the camera settings used for the runner.