Sports Photography Techniques

Sports Photography

Quality sports pictures are often hard to find. The main reason being most photographers have little or no opportunity to photograph sports events. The other problem is even if you are at the event there are certain areas best suitable to get the best sports photography. The further you are from the sports action the harder it is to capture the action and emotion.  A number of techniques are used in sports images by professionals aiding in the capture of sports photos.

The Moment of Action

In any sports and sports photography timing is everything. Photographers must know when to react to changes in a game and execute taking the shots. All sports have a predictable pattern and it is under standing how to follow the game to photograph the important sporting moments.

By knowing these moments you can judge when an event is going to happen. This gives you time to try and anticipate when to snap the shutter to achieve that image. Often shots are lost when the sports photographer missing the speed of the action.  Being human we have to mental delay when to take a shot so we have to make allowances for this factor.

Some action pictures especially Sports Pictures NBA stars are done remotely for images, that involve slam dunking or of the winner of a horse race. Some sports images are hard to take and technology is used to maximum effect.

Location

With having large crowds at events this causes further problems limiting where you can take sports photos. The closer you are to the sports action the higher chance you have shooting sports pictures suitable for both traditional media and the digital world. At most sporting events sports photographers are given space to take pictures the problem is you are sharing this area with lots of other professional photographers. To get a "Press Pass" is very hard obtain so it many instances it is advisable to focus and learn from taking shots of sports you can get permission to take photos, by taking images from the right location.

In taking any sports photography knowing your sport is really important if you are to capture the critical moment. The background as well as the image is important so location is everything if you are going to take that fantastic shot.

Understand the Sport and the Players

Every sport has it own technique to capture that sports picture. What makes this worse in any sports there are a limited number of commercial shots wanted by the media. Sports images have to capture all elements and the action. Then like any job there is the boredom of been there done that is associated with many jobs. The key is keep focused or many sports event images will be lost. It is a good idea also to take safety shots if you miss the action. Safeties include everything from batters batting, basketball players shooting throws, pitchers pitching, and the quarterback under the centre. It is a good idea to shot both throughout the game to use if the sports image you wish to capture does not happen.

In most cases many photographers obtain one suitable picture out of every 20 frames. Spending time taking sports photos makes all the difference in obtaining the right licensed image to sell. It is normal to shoot at least 72 (2 -36's) frames per event many will not even make the grade and all will have to be indexed before the best shots are selected. If you go to a soccer game and shoot 36 images, remember you are only likely if you are very lucky to get one or two shots.

Understanding the sports you are photographing is the key in photography. Unless you know the style of the players and the coach at basic level you will be very disappointed in the images taken. Anticipating the action and what is going to happen in the game is carousal. Many players have habits and styles of play that you can use to anticipate dramatic sequence shots. You will also wish to capture fans emotions and crying cheerleader after a loss, to fans in costumes going nuts to explain the story of the event.

The best shots requested by photo editors are ones that “show faces”. The reason for this is the face is the key way of showing emotion that is critical in separating shots that are suitable for publication. Most other images are not suitable so 99% of images are never used in publications.

Without a face in football, basketball and Tennis as an example you do not have a shot. It is a hard fact which separates good and bad photographers being given prime positions, being able to make the grade time and time again.

Some sports such as Football, Hockey, and Baseball tend to be difficult to catch faces due to head protection. This is often overcome with a fill flash revealing the faces even when helmets are warn helping capture that sports image. The disadvantage is a flashes use has to be controlled due to upsetting player’s performance.

Basketball Photography

Basketball unlike baseball is the simplest sport to take pictures. Shoots are taken in a 100 foot x 50 foot area making it easier for photographers. You are focusing on two objects (the nets) where the action often happens. The main shots are jump shots, lay ups, free throws, blocks, dribbling, and defence so there is not much scope to be different. Due to most of the action happening near the net, most sports photographers focus on the nets waiting for the action and face shots. If you are shooting along the side, you can follow focus when taking your shots or if you are on the baseline, zone focus. The best safety shots are and players dribbling or looking to pass with free throws. In some cases it is possible to get tight pictures of players.

Lighting as found in most gym sports causes so many problems for photographers. Camera setting and flash setting must be adjusted to reduce noise and improve light levels. The best shots are when players take jump shots, they almost pause at the top of their jump giving the chance of a face image and showing emotion.

In most cases you can shot basketball photography with a 50mm and 135mm lens with 85-105 being optimal. This allows you to shot to mid court. For shots involving the far basket a longer lens will be required. In situations a fast lens, like an 85mm F1.4 can deal with most basketball shots.

Baseball Photography

Shooting baseball photography is the hardest type of sports to take pictures. Predicting the action is almost imposable and photographers are often off guard when the sports action happens. To capture good baseball pictures you will need a long lens as most shots are out of range with the normal zoom.

The distances you will be shooting will be between 90 feet and 350 feet to the wall, from the dugouts its 400mm. To capture a good baseball picture you will need to be in the press area if shooting with a 200-300mm lens. Night baseball is again poorly lit and you need professional long telephotos to capture good images on your DSLR Camera.

The key sportsman to photograph in baseball consist of the pitcher, delivering the ball, the batters batting, the catchers catching who are controlled by the dugout. From here on in for photographers the game is very hard to predict.

The normal stage of play is the batter hits the ball to an outfielder and by the time this happens it’s too late to focus and aim the camera. Getting a good shot is often luck and keeping the camera pointed towards the second baseman. You cannot afford to remove the camera from your face and watch every second of play.

Your position on the field is critical as if you are standing near to a batter's stomach; it is possible you might be hit by a foul ball destroying your $8000.00 lens. If you are viewing the batters back, you will rarely see a foul ball or the face required for that highly commercial shot. The advantage with DSLR cameras is you can take shots in rapid succession in digital format though you still need be able to focus for different bases. For Baseball Photography you have to wait and be patient. Baseball games are long and you will have opportunities to take shots. The key is you take safety shots if you miss the action.

Volleyball Photography

Today gym volleyball is not often covered as much as beach volleyball now receives more press coverage. Where volleyball comes into its own is it can yield some excellent chances to photography dramatic shots. The only way to get decent footage if you are not on side lines is with a telescopic lens. The big problem is getting permission to shot images at schools and even with beach volley ball.

The main problem for sports photographers in AF or Auto Focus will not always work due to nets messing up the shot. This means you will have to learn to shot with manual focus. With all photography do not forget to take safeties of player’s servers and setters.

Football Photography

Football pictures are easy to shoot the main problem is the cost of equipment. As most of the games are in the evening shots must be taken using fast glass. Passes are predictable and even a student of the game can guess the game play to take decent sports pictures. The key thing one must learn is the difference between a passing situation and a running situation so you know where to focus your camera lens.

Where in a football game it is 3^rd down with 1 yard to go you can predict that a running play is happening. At this point focus your lens at the backfield and get ready to shot pictures.

In football you need to spend less time taking safety shots as there are plenty of action images. The will be lots of chances to photograph the quarterback throwing the ball and running backs running the ball. These are essential shots that must be taken. The harder shots hunting pass plays to receivers

Using big glass is important to football photography. The best lens if you have freedom of movement is a 300mm F2.8. Where you have restricted movement to take shots you will need a 300mm or a 600mm to reach plays at the far end of the game.

The style of photography used in football is normally a follow focus sport. This means the camera distance changes, so once you start focusing you will be able to time focusing the ring with the movement.

Football Photography – Europe

Football photography requires a long lens. Access to view the pitch is often available to the press on the side lines. There are other important areas to take shots from behind the net or along the goal lines. In most cases for football a 400mm F2.8 or longer lens in needed. This has lead to photographers often carrying two cameras. A camera with an 80-200mm zoom and another with a long lens mounted.

The main advantage in shooting football is you can get some exciting action shots with faces and just as importantly emotion. Safety shots include throw ins and players dribbling. Once you have your safeties you can focus on photographing headers, goalie saves and corner kicks.  The big problem of focusing on these shots getting the right shot that is commercial you need a lot of luck and skill guessing on timing.

Football Photography – Europe

Football photography requires a long lens. Access to view the pitch is often available to the press on the side lines. There are other important areas to take shots from behind the net or along the goal lines. In most cases for football a 400mm F2.8 or longer lens in needed. This has lead to photographers often carrying two cameras. A camera with an 80-200mm zoom and another with a long lens mounted.

The main advantage in shooting football is you can get some exciting action shots with faces and just as importantly emotion. Safeties include throw ins and players dribbling. Once you have your safeties you can focus on photographing headers, goalie saves and corner kicks.  The big problem of focusing on these shots getting the right shot that is commercial you need a lot of luck and skill guessing on timing.

Golf Photography

Golf photography on the surface is easy to shot, though due to the courses and getting to the next shot is where photographers have problems with the sport. Playing golf is a one direction game and long distance. Sport is played over thousands of yards from hole to hole. The other problem is noise or distraction is not allowed. This is topped by swing areas to take shots are limited for your safety reducing your safety shots if everything goes wrong on the course.

There are only two options to shot golf photography correctly. The first is to set up base on one hole and shoot multiple players as they come to you. Next if you are given permission is to use gold cart and follow players. In shooting golf you need to learn where the best spots are to shot green play and tee box from the same position.

The big problem with golf as an example at 400mm you are not close enough for good tight shots. If you are shooting friends you will have their permission to get closer. The problem is in professional golf players are very sensitive to sound. Many shots can be shot on silent manual rather AF, as golfers will do anything to stop anything that creates distractions.

In golf the main shots are back-swing for action shots, a near action shot of the ball, a golfer looking at the ball during the put (must be silent). The good thing is that there are lots of chances of safety images. Everything from golfers looking around the course, from scorecards to players messing up their bag or talking to the caddie.

Track and Field Photography

Track and Field photography allows for multiple opportunities to take a great variety of pictures. Its fun to shot as you can capture not just the action though the emotion. The big problem is restrictive access at major events and so many competitions at the same time. The good news is it is often easier at schools as long has you have permission.

Photography at Pro level, Olympic, or Major Events is highly regulated and access is often restricted to designated areas. This also affects the number of events you can shot.

Overall there is not many chances to shot safety shots at an event the good news is movement is predictable in one direction. The most important moment is the action and emotion at the end of the race.

When trying to catch players at hurdles it is quite easy to time. Relays and baton changes are hardest to shot because handover and photographing two people getting in the way of a clear image. The best control is follow focus at catching runners if you need shots by the finishing line.

Events like high jump as you are focusing on a single sportsman are predictable. With high and long jump it is best to focus at an object and shot a series of shots as they start up and go over equipment. This is helped further by each participant trying 2/3 times giving you plenty of chances to obtain footage.

If you are close enough too the take sports images you will need anything from an 80-200mm lens up to 400mm depending on the distances from the athletes.

In shooting the Long jump, the triple-jump this is quite straight forward. The key thing is to focus on the zone areas. If you are taking shots from the end of the pit fire has they hit the board a rapid succession of shots. The more you practise the less shots you will have to take. In taking shots from the side focus on the middle of the pit, then track the runner head down the track and fire mid air over the pit.

In all photography face shots are important. Where shooting track sports helps is players have to stay in defined spaces and you need to catch emotions just after they make the throw.

Gymnastics Photography

The main problem in shooting Gymnastics is it is a no flash event due to safety. The reason is the participants can easily be distracted and in most cases in not tolerated. What makes it worse like most school halls are poorly lit causing problems in taking sports photos.

Most gymnastics events are a series of events with multiple individuals performing that causes problems in shooting everyone performing. You level of access also causes restrictions so this might stop you being able to shot pictures of the sports event. If you get access taking images is quite straight forward as movement follows a set pattern.

The main advantage of gymnastics photography is the event areas are small making understanding movements and focusing predictable. With the vault your objective is to catch either the landing or the Vault. The camera setting will require you to auto focus or follow focus. Using fast glasses is very important and lens choice is dictated from you distance from the action.

When shooting balance beam, rings, parallel bars there will be lots of opportunities to capture emotional poses. With floor exercises the key catching pictures of smiles and ballet style positions as the art is telling the story.

Ice Hockey Photography

The main problem shooting hockey photography is the rapid change in movement. The play and the direct of the spots changes so fast and in an instant will change again giving the photographer time to focus and shot. Improvements in camera technology have helped photographers as most professional cameras have auto focus often known as AF that tracks the action allowing you to take that shot.

Hockey even though it is not predictable is played in a small contacted area. This means an 80-200mm lens is suitable for taking action shots anywhere on the ice rink. For that close up shot at the other end of the rink a 300mm lens may be needed. The main problem in shooting hockey is often shots are taken through fences and glass. Where there is an area for photography with no restrictions you will be competing with other sports photographers for this space.

Lighting levels are hard to predict in hockey due to ice rinks being white. There is a need to overexpose as an example to create the illusion of white ice using a light meter. The main safety shots are players skating with the puck/ball and face-offs.

Figure Skating Photography

The art of figures skating is to capture the grace of gymnastics on ice.
Lighting levels are hard to predict in figure skating due to ice rinks being white. There is a need to overexpose as an example to create the illusion of white ice using a light meter.  This is made harder by the fact that light levels are lower in ice skating so understanding stage lighting is important for your pictures and protecting the contestants.

The main problem in shooting ice skating is often shots are taken through fences and glass. Where there is an area for photography with no restrictions you will be competing with other sports photographers for this space.

Even in Figure Skating an 80-200mm fast glass lens is suitable for taking sports shots anywhere on the ice rink. For that close up shot at the other end of the rink a 300mm lens may be needed. The best camera settings are Auto Focus for Figure Skating, though in some circumstances excellent images zone focusing.

Motorsports photography

The advantage of motorsports photography is it can be easy to shot. Even with the advancement in camera technology the three Ps, Pre-focus, Pan, and Practise are important. The main problem comes in being in the right position and understanding both timing and camera settings to take the desired shots.

With racing being in daylight you do not need to use fast lenses as the action is predictable you can follow the sport. Getting safety shots is photographing racing cars going past you. The hardest thing to show is motion as you do not want to show a formula1 car going looking like it is not moving. This affect is created by creating blur on the camera that we will look at later. The pit stops allow for some of the best shots and also accidents that can happen at any race. The key is to use big telescopic lenses on the track and shorter lenses for the crowd.

The advantage with digital cameras is you can review your shots and critique the affects. It is often advisable to start at local car club or racers and shoot their events as you cannot beat practise.

In shooting motorsport photography in the past Pre-focus setting on cameras was very important. Today it is not as important though it depends on the type of image you are trying to create as many people photographers still like manual focus.

The main advantage in understanding manual focus is it allows you understand the basics of photography. It also helps to understand lighting levels when shooting outside using a light metre. You can make the camera do all the work though it helps to understand the basics if you wish to improve your motorsports images.

Some of the best racing images are panned shots the key is choosing the best background location for the photography. Location is often limited though it must be considered.

The next step is to focus the camera on the area of the track as the car passes. Then you have to select the background object to gives a shutter release reference point, and pan and shoot away. It is advisable using digital to take a number of shots and see which gives you the best sports picture.

In taking straight-on shots this becomes a lot harder, the reason is with a long telescopic lens you have limited depth-of-field. Planning and timing is everything. The best shots come from realising the shutter before the car comes into view so you can shot at the right focus point. Practise and the right modern camera help. The key is learning when to focus on the car so the shutter opens at just the right second.

Understanding the basics and then combining with high tech tools makes all the difference from creating a good or a brilliant photo image that could be licensed with professional photographers

With motorsports photography shutter speed setup’s for panned shots range from anything from 1/15sec and as high as 1/250sec or even 1/500sec. ideally shutter speeds in the range of 1/125-1/250sec depending the estimated speed of the car. Changing the speed increases the amount of artistic blurring effects you can create with in the images to create the illusion of speed. The concept is to focus in on the attention of the driver and the car and remove detail from the background.

Action & Adventure photography

Of all sports photography Action and Adventure is predominantly shot by participants in the activities.  There is no way of taking all the best adventure images unless you are involved to be able to focus on the events as they happen.

The main aim in adventure photography is to tell a story using images. The best adventure images have a beginning a middle and an end. The best shots often start at a distance as you start your trip progresses and become more intimate as the adventure advances.

The most important thing is protecting yourself and your equipment and anyone around you participating. No image is worth harming yourself or others to take a picture.

Hiking, Biking, Backpacking Photography

In selecting the right camera equipment trip weight and bulk must be your main priority for hiking and biking. Camera and lens selection are dictated by the photo opportunities trail walking. The best place store your camera is at the top of your hydration pack to allow easy access. When biking it is advisable to keep your camera in a or bike pannier for protection.

When hiking it’s a good idea to have a small fanny pack round your neck protecting your camera. This means your camera is always ready when going through villages or unique terrain. The key thing is picking times to shot photographs in good day light there is little point shooting at night unless you wish to take evening shots. The other most important thing to remember is your camera is a delicate instrument and you must avoid getting dust and sand on your equipment.

Photographing Skiing, Snowboarding, and Winter Camping

The best skiing and snowboarding shots are normally taken when you are ahead of the skier or boarder ready to take a location. Your ability to access your equipment and speed to take shots is key in ski photography. Your camera is best carried in either hip camera packs that integrate with your daypack. The other advantage in carrying in pack is your can store ford, waters and alternative lens ready for use.

Home-Field Training Photography

The great thing with adventure photography is you do not need to do it full time, it is something you can do as a hobby at weekends. The other advantage is you can practise taking your sports action pictures as you do not always need to shot mountains or wild rivers. It’s the people, actions and emotions which is really important.

Places you can shot outdoor activities close to home range from sports teams where you can practise photographing adventure action images. The objective is to improve your reactions and speed with the camera as you cannot get enough practise. Professional photographers must prepare for an event or an expedition there is not way of getting round this exercise if you wish to improve your adventure images. In participating in the activity you are able to shot images from the beginning to the end that tell the sorry of the activity. As in all photography planning makes all the difference in making a good picture. You need to have an idea in your mind what type of images you wish to take from the beginning to the end so you know if your own mind what you wish to capture.

Water Sports Photography

The main problem of water sport photography is the damage to your camera due to water. It does not matter if you are taking images in fresh or saltwater this can still damage your camera. It is a must to protect your camera in a dry bag for protection.

In most situations a camera with a 17-35 wide-angle zoom lens is ideal for shooting in a boat. You have the chance of some fantastic shots on moving water once you have adjusted your camera shutter speeds to achieve your desired image. In all water photography your best shots will come from reflections on the water and this changes in calm water during sunrise and sunset.

If you are taking pictures around saltwater it is far more corrosive than fresh water and will destroy your camera unless you clean your camera immediately after use. Surf spray can equally be damaging so keep your camera protected as salt is not just in water but in the air.

If you are shooting around salt water remember that salt water is far more corrosive than fresh water, so you should dry and clean your camera carefully each day. Ocean surf causes saltwater spray to be suspended in the air.