The Art of Landscape Panning

What is panning?

Panning is a technique that has been used for years. It combines a slow shutter speed with camera motion. That’s it. The slow exposure with the sudden change of the camera creates a sense of movement in the image. In landscape photography, we’re adding movement to an otherwise still image to create a unique, artistic visual of the scene.

Below are six steps to help you create your first panned image if you have never done it before .

Panning in photography is usually associated with moving objects like cars, bikes or animals. But panning can also be applied in the landscape genre. It is one way to create abstract and dreamy images.

Let’s start with the basics.

1. Find your scene

Find a scene that isn’t too cluttered. For example, you can use a body of water or the ocean with a nice sky or a stand of nicely spaced trees. Panning can be done either vertically or horizontally depending on your subject.

A horizontally panned shot of the ocean reflecting sunrise color. Settings: f/10, 1/10s, 200mm, ISO 100

2. Slow your shutter speed

To start, set your shutter speed somewhere around 1/30s and adjust your aperture. With longer shutter speeds it’s easy to blow out your highlights, so don’t be afraid to push your aperture to f/9.0 or higher in order to let in less light. If you are shooting around midday where it may be too bright and you can’t get your shutter speed low enough, you may need to use an ND filter to allow for a longer exposure. If you don’t have a filter, try panning early in the morning or later in the evening when light levels are lower.

3. Hold steady

When you’ve got your exposure and focus set, hold your camera tight to your body and move your body in a steady motion either horizontally or vertically. For vertical panning, try starting with your knees a little bent and initiate movement upward. For horizontal panning, initiate movement at the waist and move your upper body from one side to the other in a fluid motion.

4. Fire away

Once you’ve initiated movement, continue to pan until after the exposure has finished. Make sure to follow through with the panning motion until after the shutter has closed.

5. Make adjustments

Use your viewfinder to assess your image and make adjustments as desired. You can speed up or slow down your panning movement to change how the image is recorded.

f/14, 1/ 5 seconds, ISO 50

6. Keep practicing

Keep practicing until you get a photo that you love! Panning allows you to experiment until you get a result that fires up your creative juices and inspires you to push your photography into new directions.