How to Use the Ken Burns Effect in a Documentary

The Ken Burns effect is a film and video editing technique that creates motion from static images. Named for American documentarian Ken Burns, it involves panning and slow zooming over still images such as photographs and archival documents. Using simple camera techniques like the slow pan, the close-up, and the zoom, Burns produces energy in his documentary films that rivals that of narrative motion pictures.

The Ken Burns effect was not actually invented by Ken Burns. The technique has existed for decades and is sometimes known by the term "animatics." However, given Ken's persistent and masterful use of the technique, most people now know it as the Ken Burns effect.

Burns himself cites past films for introducing him to the potential of animatics. In particular, he notes 1957's City of Gold, which the National Film Board of Canada produced to document the Klondike gold rush, as a touchstone of the technique. He then incorporated it into his own films such as The Civil War, Baseball, Jazz, The Dust Bowl, The War (about World War II), The Central Park Five, and Country Music.

The Ken Burns effect is useful in documentary films where video clips are in short supply but still images are available. By employing panning and zoom effects, you can transform a simple photo slideshow into a flowing visual narrative without any actual motion video footage. You can easily achieve the Ken Burns effect with video editing software. Apple's iMovie and Final Cut Pro even feature an effect that is literally called the "Ken Burns effect" thanks to a one-on-one negotiation between Ken and Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. You can also manually create the effect via most other types of editing software.

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