Panning - Explanation of Panning in Photography

The main effect of panning is to freeze the subject while the background is blurry. Using a tripod with panning capability (most tripods have the ability), the camera is turned as a subject passes the photographer. Once the camera has matched the relative speed of the subject the shutter is tripped. The resulting image is one of the moving subject in sharp focus and the background reduced to a series of motion blur lines. This effect conveys a sense of moving quickly with the subject to the viewer. It is commonly used for subjects such as race cars, runners, and flying birds.

Moving the camera horizontally or vertically with a subject, rather than pivoting on a central point, will also freeze the subject but it will eliminate any subject distortion. This type of motion is more complicated as it requires the photographer and camera to match the subject's speed and direction rather than staying in one spot and tracking the subject using relative speed.