rajfotografie

Zooming

A fun and creative use of a zoom lens is creating a zoom burst. You zoom in or out while taking a photo, resulting in an image with a decorative perspective. This is called a zoom burst!

Even from a pair of glasses on your desk with some reflections in the lenses from daylight, you can create a beautiful zoom burst!

how do you create a zoom burst?

Pay attention to the following points:

• use a tripod
• longer shutter speed
• high aperture value (small aperture)
• zoom speed

tripod A zoom burst is created by zooming in or out during the exposure. This intentionally creates motion blur with a sense of perspective distortion.

The best zoom bursts are made using a tripod. It keeps the camera stable and prevents unwanted movement. This results in clean, straight lines without strange shifts. That sharpness adds dynamism to the image!

longer shutter speed To zoom smoothly in or out, you need time. Around six to eight seconds is ideal. But even with a shutter speed of 1/3 second, in bright light and with fast zooming, you can still create a nice zoom burst.

high aperture value With longer shutter speeds you get good results, even at high aperture values (small lens openings). This helps prevent overexposed images. If the photo is still too bright, adjust aperture or shutter speed.

zoom speed The speed at which you turn the zoom ring depends on the chosen shutter speed. Count and practice a few times to see if you can zoom in or out completely within the exposure time.

The example photo was taken at f/20 with an exposure time of 8 seconds and ISO 100. The image turned out slightly too bright. Highlights were reduced and shadows slightly lifted. Colors were improved by increasing brightness. A simple shot that clearly shows what a zoom burst can achieve.

Static or moving subject

When the subject is still, creating a zoom burst is relatively easy. Setting exposure and timing the zoom movement are manageable. If it fails, you simply try again. Success is almost guaranteed!

When the subject is moving, it becomes much more difficult. You must focus quickly, aim the camera, keep it steady, and zoom in or out at the same time. It often fails, but keep trying.

sports photography

A zoom burst with moving subjects is often seen in sports photography. Cyclists approaching the camera, with one of them in focus, are a typical example. Because the subject itself is moving toward you, it is difficult to keep it sharp while also creating a zoom burst.

partial zoom burst

If you want both the zoom effect and a reasonably sharp subject, you can create a partial zoom burst. In this case, you only zoom during part of the exposure instead of the entire time. This requires a longer shutter speed. For example, with a 6-second exposure, you zoom for only 3 seconds. The result is a fairly sharp subject with visible zoom streaks.

Subject choice for zoom bursts

You can create a zoom burst from almost anything. The fun part is that—even as an experienced photographer—you can never predict exactly how it will turn out. It remains a surprise. Just keep experimenting until you are satisfied with the result.

sailing ships

The masts and rigging of these sailing ships were decorated with lights. The exposure time was 1.6 seconds at f/9 and 16mm with a Nikon 16–85mm lens. ISO was 100. A relatively short exposure, meaning the full zoom range was not used. The ships themselves are not visible; what remains is a magical and colorful image!

Examples of zooming in and out

The following photos were taken in daylight and focus on raindrops on a window. This also produces surprising zoom bursts. The first image is zoomed in, the second zoomed out.

You can see the difference in the background. In the second image it has a different type of blur, almost a double-image effect. In the first image the background is simply out of focus.