The Art of Intentional Camera Movement: Play, Experiment, Grow
By: Roxanne Overton
We live in a three-dimensional world, or do we? Actually, there is a 4th dimension – an enchanting space of motion. It’s a magical way to visualize a story – to use time and movement to alter our perspective of reality – or of what we’ve been told is visual reality.
Most of what we see is in our peripheral vision – all that area that surrounds where our eye is focused at any given moment. Every bit of it is blurry. Stop reading and look at the words in front of you. How much of what you see is actually in focus? A tiny amount in our field of vision is all that we see clearly. Everything else exists in blur. We flit from object to object so quickly that it fools us into thinking we are seeing a much larger field of sharp, focused vision.
When we are out with our camera what causes us to choose a subject – to home in on it? Obviously, something catches our eye – but it usually does it in a blurry state of being. My frustration was that I often liked what caught my eye much better before I focused on it. Try as I might, I could never see and hold that initial sight.
I solved that challenge by putting the camera in motion over elongated time. Sometimes, I am in motion as well.
I experimented with shutter speeds and different movements and was delighted with the various personalities that the images adopted. Like traditional photography, there are many choices of perspective. I could shoot quiet elegance, pure whimsy or rock ‘n roll, depending on motion and time. Any subject had the opportunity to try on different moods and looks that could be radically different from each other.
I love how ICM alters clarity just enough that the familiar takes on an unfamiliar appearance. Phone cameras and social media have made photography visually commonplace. The ease of travel allows multitudes to photograph what used to be isolated and exclusive. It seems everyone has the same photograph of icons like the Golden Gate bridge or a New York skyline or that special spot in Angkor Wat. A lot of talented photographers take these photographs and many take them very well. To my eye though, they all look pretty much the same. These photographs all share the common vision of a literal interpretation of the scene. No matter how skillfully executed, they do not inspire the viewer to see beyond the literal, the immediate and the obvious.
When I got my first camera, I immediately looked up how to shoot a multiple exposure. It was never my intent to photograph documentary style. I wanted to interpret what I saw and to impart the emotional pull that drew me to my subject. My desire was to photograph the ephemeral. When we click the shutter, we capture time. It’s an illusion of sorts. What we get will never pass our way again in quite the same way. I didn’t want to take what was expected. Instead, I was looking for a way to tell the story a bit differently. Those elements of good photography had to be present but I also wanted to add other parts to my visual exploration. If successful, the viewer would know how it felt to be there at that particular moment – the emotion of it. When one feels an image, it imparts a power that the visual can’t do in isolation.
It doesn’t matter if I shoot simple subjects or iconic places, when I use ICM, the photographs become uniquely mine. No one else moves quite the same way at the same timing and speed. Each ICM photograph is inimitable in its interpretation. Different movements and timing can yield a multitude of results that are pleasing in diverse ways. It’s an exciting and evolving way to tell a story.
One of the first things I learned is that just because I was going to shoot ‘blurry’, didn’t mean I could be careless and not shoot well. Quality photography needs a strong subject, proper exposure, and good composition. This is true whether you are shooting at 1/500th of a second or 1/10th and in motion. I think making sure of the quality of each image is even more important with blur because you are removing that element of expected reality most people rely on - sharpness.
I am mindful when I shoot. I consider all of the essentials as I compose my shot. I don’t take short cuts – instead I am considering extra attributes as I factor in the effects blur will likely have. I question how I want to move, how much time I want to collect and look for details I may want to incorporate into my choices. Digital shooting, with its instant feedback, accelerates the learning curve.
Motion captures ‘extra everything’. Moving light and atmosphere overlay details in new ways. Elements are hidden and revealed differently. The excitement of discovery is sensuously delicious. Shapes and lines form where there were none while absent where I might expect them to be. Everything changes and morphs into an altered state of reality. The story is still there – only it’s a whispered impression – a snippet of energy. Sometimes it seems to be a figment of my imagination.
Everything is fair game. No subject is out of bounds. Anything can be interpreted through motion giving the viewer a different perspective. I shoot without prejudice – every genre is open to me.
Different styles of ICM are endless. 1/5th of a second with a quick vertical sweep will give a remarkably different impression than a half second with the camera moving in a wide arc. I usually shoot anywhere from 1/13th of a second up to 3 seconds. I don’t worry about other camera settings. The camera adjustments serve just two essentials – exposure and shutter speed.
How I shoot and move really seems to depend on my mood. The subjects offer themselves and I go into action. Visual feedback determines how my path evolves during my shoot. Some days I use shorter shutter speeds with quicker camera movements and other days a strong ND filter goes on the lens so I can linger for a couple of seconds or longer. It’s not unusual to start out with one style and find myself doing something quite different an hour later.
My moves can be fluid and smooth or a series of short jerks. On longer exposures, I may move at first and then finish my shutter time with the camera held in one spot to give emphasis to specific elements. You might think there isn’t enough time to do this in two short seconds but there is plenty. It’s all about artistic interpretation.
One of my favorite things about ICM is that subjects can be quite simple and ordinary, yet make a beautiful, stunning photograph. Color is often used to compose. A yellow line down a road with the blur of parked bikes and a passing car can turn exquisite when rules of exposure, composition and the right moves gather and join forces.
The more I have played with ICM, the more I have realized that if I look at things carefully, there is always a great photograph waiting to be discovered. I’m not bound by time of day, or specific light in a certain place, or any of the other confines that traditional photography can impose. Instead, I am free to roam and make things happen with whatever presents itself.
When I work on my finished product, I self-critique. I constantly evaluate what is strong in my image – where I got things right. This is all brain food that goes into the next shot. I keep myself aware of what works and what doesn’t and I build on the successes.
Every shot we take – every photograph we make – is the summation of our life time. It’s just so cool. It’s important to explore continuously if we are to grow as an artist; otherwise, we are likely to become the sum of only one experience, endlessly repeated.
It doesn’t matter where you live or shoot. There are more stories waiting to tell than one can find in a lifetime. It also doesn’t matter what kind of camera you have. I’ve taken some of my favorite ICM shots with my phone. Control for shutter speed and exposure compensation are all you need to explore the limits of your imagination.
The examples shown here are all single frame, ICM shots done totally in camera. Occasionally, I shoot a neighboring texture and will add it in Photoshop to give back some of what was lost to motion. I like to play with multiple exposures in camera as well, sometimes mixing still with blur, but I’ll save those photographs for another time.
We live on an amazing planet that is filled with gifts of discovery. I have found that my camera has expanded my world in wondrous ways. It takes me past observation and makes me an equal participant in the experience. How absolutely fantastic is that?
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