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to pan

to pan

26 4.1
To move a camera to follow something or show a wider scene
  • verb
  • /pæn/
  • Specialized
translation icon : panear
  • During the documentary, the camera will pan across the wildlife in their natural habitat.

Going to go up, I hope there it goes up, pan back, zoom up.

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Examples

  • We start on this image, then pan over to reveal the truck moving forward.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • Focus on the lens, pan up, focus behind.

  • I almost want to like pan out so you can see how big it is.

  • So now we can look at this side and slow pan over to this side and they look similar.

  • So I used James looking out to pan the camera around.

  • Just pan the camera around, all right?

  • And then to finish off the shot, I will just slide left and pan out and up.

  • Hey, pan down the row.

  • We can zoom in and out and pan around like this.

  • As the Chief reads, we pan the faces around the table.

    Fiction book (1992)

Synonyms

to zoom out
vsto pan
  • Informal
5 4.1

To look at a wider area to see the whole picture

moves the camera physically to follow or reveal a larger scene
1 3.6

Move the camera lens so the subject looks closer or farther

moves the camera across to follow or show a wider area

Idioms

flash in the pan
  • Informal
4 7.2

A person or thing that has a short time of success and then people forget them

1 9.9

Completely ruined or wasted and no longer useful

Phrasal Verbs

to pan out
  • Informal
48 5.3

To end up in a good or successful way

to pan off
  • Specialized
9.5

To wash sand or gravel in a shallow dish to find small pieces of gold

to pan out
  • Specialized
8.5

To wash small stones in a pan to find pieces of gold

Compounds

23 1.0

A shallow pan with a long handle for cooking food in hot oil

An area in New York where many popular songwriters and music publishers worked in the early 1900s

2 8.4

A Chinese dish with chicken and mushrooms in a light sauce

Peter Pan
  • Informal
2 6.2

A man who acts like a boy and avoids adult duties

A round baking pan with sides that open and a latch to release cakes easily

1 3.0

A shallow pan placed under a machine like a fridge to catch dripping liquid

A flat collar with rounded ends that meet at the front and appears on women's and children's clothing

1 2.4

A shallow pan with a long handle and slanted sides for cooking omelets

1 4.5

A thin sauce made from the juices left in a pan after cooking meat

A wide shallow metal container for making food on a stove

4.6

A shallow pan placed under roasting meat to catch fat and juices

A pan that plugs in and cooks food by baking or grilling

A pan with a built-in electric heater that cooks food without a stove

6.9

A metal tray under a stove that holds ashes so you can remove them

9.8

Support for political, cultural, and economic unity across Europe

A political movement to unite all people who speak German into one country

Pan paniscus
  • Specialized
9.8

A large ape like a chimpanzee that lives in forests of the Congo Basin, often called the bonobo

Pan troglodytes
  • Specialized
7.1

A large wild ape that lives in African forests and uses simple tools

A kind of chimpanzee that lives in east-central Africa and has long hair

9.9

A type of chimpanzee from central Africa with a black face

Pan troglodytes verus
  • Specialized
9.9

A western African chimpanzee with a pale face that is endangered

A day to celebrate and promote unity among countries in the Americas

7.7

An organization that helped countries in the Americas work together before the Organization of American States

9.8

A shallow baking dish for making small pies

1.3

A deep pot with a lid for cooking food slowly

warming pan
  • Archaic
8.2

A long metal pan with a handle and lid filled with hot coals to warm a bed before sleeping

A pan used to keep food warm before serving

How Wide

to sweep
127 2.3
to pan
  • Specialized
26 4.1

Surface Forms

pan infinitive
panned past
panned past participle
panning present participle
pans third person singular

Etymology

Pan (camera move) comes from the word panorama, with pan- meaning 'all'. A camera pans to show 'all' of a scene by moving across it, which is why panning follows action or shows a wide view.