Panning in Composition
Sandhill Crane in Flight Shooting moving subjects in low light situations can be quite challenging. The only way to get a sharp image of a moving subject is to have a fast enough shutter speed to "stop" the motion of the moving subject. Now with the ability we have to shoot at high ISO s, it's common today for people to crank up the ISO to 1600 or faster and have at it. Hurray for technology, and I think it's fantastic that we can do this now. But there's another way to handle the problem. When your subject is moving roughly perpendicular to the direction of your lens, consider panning your camera during the exposure to track with the motion of the subject. If you do this successfully, you can effectively "stop" the motion of the bird relative to the position of your camera. The subject will be sharp, and all stationary objects will display motion blur. It's a very nice effect if you get it right, though it takes some practice. You ...