Fluid Dog in Motion

Fluid Dog in Motion

Inside the Photo

Sometimes I do not get what I intended in a photograph, and end up trashing them. In this case, I got something different, but better.

This was a series where I was attempting to get a panning photo of something in motion, where you use a relatively slow shutter speed, and move the camera at the speed of an object in motion. It’s a 1/8 of a second shutter speed at f/11 if you wanted to know the numbers.

So Gunner, a dog I was taking care of for a friend, was happy to continually chase a ball, So I would toss with my left hand, like a hook shot, and get him to run past me to the right. I never did quite get the panning shot, but the slow shutter speed here got a motion effect that looks more painting than photograph. Note the wavy lines of texture, as my motion apparently was not quite horizontal.

I might not be able to replicate this if I tried!

Photo Metadata

  • Caption: Part of a mostly unsuccessful effort to do a panning exposure, where you move the camera wight he subject to keep it in focus.

    I was tossing the ball; all over the yard and Gunner did a heroic job running back and forth for my subject.

    Although this is not the intended effect, I like the painterly feel to the exposure.
  • When: Jan 10, 2013 11:36:11 am
  • Camera: Canon EOS 7D
  • Focal Length: 50mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Aperture: f/11
  • Shutter Speed: 1/8sec
  • Rights : cc licensed ( BY-SA ) photo by Alan Levine