In this photo editing tutorial we’ll show you a quick and easy way to create a motion blur effect in Photoshop using the Path Blur and Spin Blur tools. Download our start image and follow along!
Photography gives us the ability to freeze action, but this can sometimes mean we lose the sense of speed.
One way to get round this is to use a slightly longer shutter speed, then pan with the subject. Get this right and the subject will stay sharp while the background will be nicely blurred.
When it’s done well, nothing can beat panning blur, but the technique is notoriously hit-and-miss. Luckily, we can achieve similar results with Photoshop filters. One advantage the Photoshop method has is that we can make static subjects appear to be travelling at great speed.
If you’ve got a Photoshop CC subscription, you can make use of a new feature that lets you add noise to the blur. This means you can get uniform noise across the frame, just as if the effect were captured in-camera.
This is especially useful for low-light images like our shot, taken as the sun was setting with the ISO set to a noise-inducing 4500. Here’s how it works…
SEE MORE: Panning – how the pros capture motion (and the best settings to use)
How to use the Path Blur and Spin Blur to make a motion blur effect
01 Select your car
Open up car_before.jpg. Go to the Layers panel (Window>Layers) and hit Cmd/Ctrl+J to duplicate the layer. Grab the Quick Selection Brush from the Tools Panel and paint over the car to select it. If it goes wrong, hold Alt and paint to correct. Exclude the greenery through the windows.
SEE MORE: Shutter blending: how to combine images taken at different shutter speeds
02 Refine the selection
Click the Refine Edge button at the top. Use the Refine Edge controls to improve the selection edge. Set Radius to 2px, Smooth to 4. Set Output to: New Layer with Layer Mask and hit OK. Next, click the eye icon to hide the newly made top layer then highlight and reveal the middle layer.
SEE MORE: Long exposure cloud movement – how to give sharp skies a slow shutter effect
03 (Over)lap the car
To blur the background without affecting the car, we need an overlap around its edges. Grab the Clone tool, hit 0 for 100% opacity, Alt-click to target an area of background next to the edge of the car, then paint to add an overlap all the way around. It doesn’t need to be perfect.
SEE MORE: Unsharp Mask – how to ensure the sharpest images possible every time
04 Think fast!
Right-click the middle layer and choose ‘Convert to Smart Object’ then go to Filter>Blur Gallery> Path Blur. Drag the blue line across from right
to left and uncheck Centered Blur, then use the Speed and Taper sliders to control the strength of the effect. We set Speed to 96, Taper to 8.
SEE MORE: 34 Photoshop effects every photographer must try
05 Make some noise
Zoom in close to the edge of the car. Notice that it’s quite grainy due to the high ISO used, while blurred areas are smoothed out. This doesn’t look realistic, so add noise with the Noise tab. Set Amount to 38, Size to 19, Roughness to 13, and Color to 15 to match the noise in the car.
SEE MORE: How to replace a sky: Photoshop effects to make your landscapes more attractive
06 Go for a spin
Convert the top layer to a Smart Object. Go
to Filter>Blur>Spin Blur. Set circles over both wheels with Blur Angle at 22 and use the noise settings from step 5. Click Path Blur and blur the car, then hit OK. Click the Smart Filter mask and paint to hide the blur over the centre of the car.
Quick Tip
If the subject has a hard-edged shadow make sure this stays sharp too, just as it would with in-camera panning
SEE MORE: Photo to cartoon effect – how to use Photoshop to turn images into drawings or paintings
Don’t have Photoshop CC?
If you don’t subscribe to Photoshop CC you won’t have the Path Blur or Spin Blur filters, but you can still get excellent results with two of Photoshop’s older filters.
When it comes to adding the horizontal blur to the background, rather than using the Path Blur filter go to Filter>Blur>Motion Blur; and when adding a spinning blur to the wheels, instead of the Spin Blur filter, make a circular selection and use Filter>Blur>Radial Blur.
These older filters don’t offer the option to add in noise, but you can add this manually to the blurred layer by going to Filter>Noise>Add Noise.
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