In digital video production, the term 'panning' refers to which movement?

• A. A vertical zoom of the lens
• B. The speed at which footage is slowed
• C. A horizontal movement of the camera from left to right or right to left
• D. The process of adjusting audio balance

Answer: (C)

Panning is the horizontal movement of the camera view. It involves rotating the camera left to right (or right to left) on a stable mount, like a tripod, to sweep across a scene. This motion helps follow action or reveal more of the environment without moving the camera forward or backward. It’s different from tilting, which moves the camera up and down, and from zooming, which changes the lens focal length to magnify or widen the image. (Note: in audio, panning means distributing sound between left and right speakers, but in this video context the term refers to camera motion.)