monopod or tripod

[philippe1980]

Hey everyone,

I m learning how to do panning correctly so here is my question:
How do you Guys do this? Because of the slower shutterspeed I was thinking of using a tripod or monopod but then I always have the feeling I m to late to capture the action…
Should I just practice more or is there another way,

Have a nice day
Thanks
Philippe

[Flyboy]

A 2.8 lens, vibration reduction, a steady hand a few keepers. This is where the heavy machinery comes in.

[Key]

Hi Philippe,

Looking at your Flickr portfolio, I suspect there is more you can tell me about photography than the other way around, but here goes.

As we are, stricktly speaking, panning a whole lot as aviation photographers I am going to assume you specifically mean panning with a slow shutter speed. I am certainly no expert at it, as most of the time I do not seek its effect (if conditions make it possible at all). I generally don't want my take-offs or landings to look like they're doing 700mph if you know what I mean, that is not the impression I want to convey. That said, panning long exposures can create great visual effects, and it can turn a distracting background into an exciting one as well.

Based on my limited experience, it depends on both the situation and your equipment what works best. I tend to think two factors play a main role:
- the heavier the gear you're using, the more useful support can be;
- the lager the pan angle (how many degrees do you swing the lens), the less practical support is.
This paints a range between hand-held panning with a light camera set over large angles and using a tripod for a heavy set over small angles.

Obviously, the main advantage of support is it helps to reduce vertical shake. The main disadvantage is you sort of have to step around your mono- or tripod while panning, hence the second factor above. I suspect that matches your experience of feeling late to capture the action. It's a different movement. This is worse with a tripod than a monopod of course.
On the other hand, the monopod tends to tilt while you're turning and so will your camera, because having it on a loose ballhead on a monopod results in very awkward handling. On a tripod it's the contrary, you need to have the ballhead loose but - and this may be its main advantage here - you can hold the body with both hands even with heavy lenses, like a gunner if you will. This greatly helps keeping the horizon level and the movement smooth. On a monopod I need one hand on the lens if it's a heavy one, in order not to loose the set's balance.

It may well be that good hand-held shooting techniques do as much as using support. Take a steady attitude, find out if having the lens support turned upwards works better for you than having it below the lens when holding it (you likely know all this). Very important, even with short exposures, anticipate in what direction(s) you will be shooting and 'unwind' your body. Start with a twist in order to look more or less straight ahead at the most important point, usually where the angular velocity is the highest as well - especially in this case.

-- As I had the reply window open, Flyboy replied as well, with useful tips. Not sure if 'heavy' should be taken literally there. And indeed, few keepers...
Either way, I hope anyone chips in who has more/other/better info!

Cheers,
Erik

[philippe1980]

hey,

flyboy thanks for the tips. They will come in handey today as I'm goiing to practice this saint dizier

Erik, thanks for the complement, the tips and the time you took to write your answer as well. It was verry usefull.

grtzzz
philippe

[bvdboomen]

I have used a monopod a lot when shooting football games. After a few seasons I decided to stop with that since a tripod/monopod takes away a lot of freedom of movement. Especially when shooting a game like football with a lot of movement in all axis.

When standing along a runway, where the planes fly in one direction I can see the use of it. Doing an airshow is a lot more difficult. Shooting helicopters in the wild, where slow(er) speed is a must, is another league.

You indeed have to practice a lot to get used to the tripod/monopod. I now use the tripod for night and creative shoots in a studio.

As flyboy mentions, a lens with a good stabilizer gives you a lot more freedom to anticipate movements.

[TopGunPhotography]

The best way to learn panning is just practice, sit at the airport and just keep putting your shutter speed lower till you get the look you're going for. I rarely use either a tripod of mono for planes, usually for early am/pm taxi shots where I need to be more steady.