tutorial 2

Lauren scott shows you how easy it is to recreate an abstract camera panning effect with any image from the comfort of your computer

Recreate a creative camera dragging-effect in Photoshop CC

introducing intentional camera movement is one way to capture a scene that stands out from the rest. You may have tried the camera-drag technique before, which is where you pan your camera during a long exposure. If you have, you’ll know how ethereal and artistic the results can be. Depending on the shutter speed, and specific movement, lines in the scene become blurred and colours merge pleasingly across one another.

Here, we’ll show you how to recreate a similar effect in Photoshop. Re-editing your existing shots using this technique is a fun way to get different results without having to revisit the location! One of the most important things is to choose the right starting image. For example, beach scenes or woodland areas can work best, as any tree or horizon lines in the landscape become more prominent when blurred across the frame. Don’t agonize too much over choosing your image, though; because the editing process is fairly quick, you can discard a shot and move on if it isn’t working.

Blending modes and opacity levels are key to experimentation here. You can also tweak the number of layers and saturation levels to your heart’s content (or, until you’re happy with the final result). We started off simply by using three layers, but as you play around you might find your shot works better with more than this.

At the end of the process, don’t be afraid to go bright and bold with the colour levels. Boosting the vibrancy can make all the difference here, leaving you with an abstract photo that’s really quite striking.