Need some help with settings

[TexasWicked1]

I'm wanting to take a picture of a car going by, but I'm not seeing the results I'm looking for. I would like to get some of the tail blur, but I would like to stop some of the action to have the front of a car in tack sharp focus.

There was an old thread here with a BMW doing what I was wanting to try work on.
The other thing is I may not have the right equipment. Currently I am using a Nikon D7000 with the 18-85mm F/5.4 ED VR (I believe maybe F/4.6).
It's a fair lens, but it isn't optimum for some of the stuff I want to grow into.

Thoughts or suggestions?

[El Viejo]

I did a little of this back in my film days. Here's what I remember. You need to use a slow shutter speed, I'd say at least a half second, perhaps longer. That means a low ISO, and an f-stop as high as you can get, f-11 to 16 or more. You need to try and be on the side so the object is moving in a relatively straight line, and you're able to follow its movement with your camera. As the object approaches, find it in your viewfinder, follow it as it moves, and press the shutter. If you're able to keep the object in the same relative position in your viewfinder throughout the exposure, it should come out in focus while you're able to see its motion behind it in your pic. It's important to keep your camera level, and moving smoothly as the object passes by. Some people will mount their cameras on a tripod, but if you do, you will need to use a bubble level to make sure it is level, otherwise it might be moving slightly up or down as you pan the camera across. This technique is called "panning" and is something that often requires several trials before getting decent results, but it can be very impressive when it does come out. Good luck. Be sure and post pics up here when you get some done.

[TexasWicked1]

Thank you sir, I will test what you have shared and check out the results. I really appreciate your input.