Jump Shot

Jump Shot, a photo by johnchamilton on Flickr.

Bull-riding action from the 2012 Hamel Rodeo, Corcoran, MN. This is a vertically oriented 16×9 panorama, shot at a very high shutter speed of 1/5,000 sec.

Photoshop tech talk ahead: To simulate the motion blur in the background, I first selected the bull and rider. Inversed the selection. Then chose filter–blur–motion blur, with the direction roughly approximating the 45-degree angle of motion of the bull. I reduced the effect by bringing down the opacity of the layer (always do your effects on a separate layer) until it looked natural to my eye. The effect is subtle, but I like how it gives the image a little more “something.”

Thanks for visiting, friends!