creative play with intentional camera movement

Seascape photograph made using intentional camera movement. ©2021 Lee Anne White

A student recently asked what I thought about intentional camera movement (ICM). It is one of those photographic techniques (actually many related techniques) that has been around since long before digital photography, but has grown so much in popularity that it now has its own name, dedicated publications, devoted practitioners and workshops.

For those new to the term ICM, you may be familiar with panning and zooming—two of the basic camera movements made while making long exposures. But you can move the camera other ways, too, and combine multiple movements (if you are coordinated enough). With the use of neutral density (ND) filters that block the amount of light entering through a lens, you can even make long exposures on bright, sunny days. The shutter speed, type of camera movement and whether or not the subject is moving (and at what speed) all come together to create a unique photograph.

ICM is a playful practice that includes a great deal of experimentation. Digital photography, because you can afford to make lots of photographs and see the results immediately on the back of your camera, has reduced the learning curve and made it easier to get successful results quickly and affordably. But it still requires lots of imagination, play and practice, and image processing often must be approached with a different mindset, as well. For those using smart phones, there are several slow-shutter apps available for making ICM photographs.

While entering St. Thomas port on a ferry after dark, I made this abstract photograph of sailboats. ©2023 Lee Anne White

I teach occasional classes in photographic creativity and ICM is one of those techniques I like to present. It’s always fun to see what students create and they usually have fun creating those images. It can open our eyes to new ways of seeing that is very interpretive and expressive. It’s an especially creative way to explore motion, texture and color (though I like it in black and white, too).

The seascape photographs I made back in the mid-2000s for my Mutable Sea series were all long exposures made on a tripod. Since then, I have taken the camera off the tripod and added camera movement to these images, as well (top photo). ICM is not a technique I use on a regular basis simply because it doesn’t fit my vision for most of the subjects I photograph. Still, it is fun to play and I do so from time to time—often, it seems, when I am on a moving boat or vehicle.

This photograph of shrubs and grasses was made along a rugged road in Canyon de Chelly while bouncing along in the back of a Pinzgauer Swiss Army troop carrier. ©2022 Lee Anne White

ICM can be wonderful technique to use if it suits your subject and expresses your vision. I have seen stunning abstract photographs made this way. As with any technique, it also requires some mastery. A blurry photo doesn’t make a successful ICM photograph. The camera movement should clearly appear intentional and the results should convey an intended mood, emotion or visual expression. As with any photograph, it’s not the technique that matters most; it’s the intent behind the photograph that should really shine through.