Basic Sports Photography Tips

By VINCE STALLING

Capturing the action of a thrilling sports event, whether it is football, basketball, soccer, softball and everything in between, is a wonderful feeling for all involved. But just how can we get those shots we see in the magazines and newspapers?
 
You will need a digital SLR camera, or a camera that allows you to set your own shutter speed. Using automatic settings like sports mode rarely captures the action shots we want.
2. Have a lens or zoom range that is AT LEAST 200mm.
A focal length greater than 200mm is obviously a lot better as it will allow you to get close to the action.
 
3. Use manual mode or aperture priority mode.
4. Use a fast shutter speed. A shutter speed of at least 1/500th of a second is required to freeze movement. Try not to go below 1/500th of a second.
  
5. In Aperture Priority mode set your camera to a very large aperture, which is a small f-stop number, such as f/2.8 or f/4. This will ensure that the most possible light is allowed in,  which helps to freeze the action.
  
6. Watch your ISO. Shutter speed is very important. For a sunny day a low ISO of 400 is good. On a darker day you will need to increase your ISO to around the 800-1200. Inside like basketball, you need am ISO of 2500-3200. As you increase your ISO higher you will gain noise. Shoot in Raw.
  
7. Use a fast auto-focus and burst mode. In order for the camera to keep up with the fast movements we must also set our camera to take multiple images, usually referred to as “frames per second” or “burst”. 
 
8. Take lots and lots of photos. There is absolutely no harm in finishing a sporting event with 2000 pictures on your camera. 
9. No Chimping. Don't look at your pictures after every shot. Trust your ability to capture good photos. Keeping your eyes on the action will ensure you capture the action and keep everyone safe.
 
10. Shoot from different angles, high and  low angle, such as your knees.
Different perspective gives the photo excellent depth. 
 
 

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