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Apogee Photo Magazine

Decisive Moments

by Bill Miller   

Personal  Sports 

I've been shooting sports for over thirty years. Some have been professional sports, some college and high school, but many have been my children and their friends’ athletic events over the years. Despite a stint with the International Olympic Photo Pool at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, I had the most fun taking pictures of my kids from T-Ball through high school. In fact, high school sports were the first events I was assigned when I began my career as a photojournalist, and that opening proved to be a great training ground for all the sports photography - professional and personal - that followed.

No one gave me any directions, hints, tips or suggestions on how to do my job. I was expected to either already know how to shoot sports or to figure it out on the spot. Depending on the sports season, I would shoot up to eight events a week and that gave me many opportunities to hone my skills as an action photographer. I watched where other photographers stood and what lenses they used. I searched the papers for their photos to see what they looked like and took the lessons where I found them.

Look and Learn

Whether your goal is to become a professional sports photographer or just to take better shots of your kids in their sporting events, you'll learn best from practice, practice, and more practice. The first step is to study photographs published in newspapers and national sports magazines to learn what elements produce photos you like. Notice that most photos from specific sporting events are all about the "moment," the action, the composition, and being great stand-alone photos.

Create Close-ups

The second step is to note that sports photographers usually use long lenses, so their pictures are close-ups of action. A long lens (300 mm to 400 mm) is usually the best lens for outdoor sports like baseball, softball, football, track, and soccer, while a 28 mm to 85 mm lens will serve you best for indoor team sports like basketball. Lens prices have dropped in recent years, and two hundred to three hundred dollars is a small price to pay for better sports photos.

I learned to be aware of facial expressions, where the ball or peak action is, and how competitors react to the action and each other. Interesting personal interaction is always occurring during team sports. Individual sports require special skills, attitudes, and equipment such as a 300mm lens to capture peak action and athletes’ faces. Also, a long lens ensures that your activities won't disrupt anyone else’s concentration. Keep in mind that if the action is hot and the concentration is extreme, great facial expressions will happen on their own.

Use a Motor Drive

"Peak action" shots are the best and will usually come from a series of shots made with a motor drive. In fact, you'll often catch shots you didn't expect. Learn to anticipate the action by starting a series of shots before you see the action you expect, and then shoot through the action. I learned early that if I saw an action through my viewfinder, I had already missed it.

After you learn the basics of action photography, you can explore new types of sports photography, develop your own style, and get the shots you want. Believe me, your results will be worth the effort.

See last month's Decisive Moments

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Bill Miller is a photographer, teacher and writer. He is the founder of PhotoTreks and conducts workshops in the Oregon area. You can learn more about Bill and his workshops by going to www.empnet.com/imageworks/PTREKS/index.html.