Better
Photos
Better
Photos of sports events
Those who have made a career of photographing sporting
events have a different style of operation to capture
the high action of dramatic moments in a game. The length
of the lens, the location of the photographer taking the
shot and the need to limit blurring are the three critical
aspects in sports photography.
Sports photographers use a telephoto lens. This type
of lens magnifies the subject. The focal length to choose
from in telephoto lenses varies from 60mm to 1000 mm.
A lens with a high focal length can give you a wider visual
area which is a necessity when you photograph field events.
Sports photographers by and large prefer 35mm cameras
and use focal lengths of 300-600mm especially for field
events like soccer.
The
location where photographers position themselves to take
different shots is directly responsible for capturing
the relevant high-points in a match. It also helps if
you have a good knowledge of the sport. This ensures that
you identify the right moments and are alert and ready
when a memorable situation occurs during the sport. You
can get the right shots if you are able to move around
and use the right location in different points in a game.
However, quite often the areas of movement are restricted
for photographers and the best way to tide over this problem
is to use a lens of focal length in the region of 600mm
to enable shots of the far end of a court or field. Though
a good location is usually described by the angle and
distance from the court or field, the other aspect of
a good location is also the play of light from your vantage
point. Most photographers have the task of avoiding shadows
caused by the quality of light. The intensity of color
in a photograph is reduced in dull light conditions while
bright sunlight can create shadows in certain angles.
To
limit blurring and capture action during a special game
moment, you need to have fast shutter speeds at your disposal.
A 35mm camera that is generally favored in sports photography
can provide the high shutter speed necessary for action
shots. Besides shutter speed, the speed of the film also
plays a role. Higher film speed enables higher shutter
speeds. A film speed of 100 is inadequate in sports photography.
You need a 400 and above speed film.
The
autofocus mechanism in is also useful in sports photography
especially when manual focus is difficult to achieve quickly
in certain sports situations.
An
interesting technique called panning is applied in capturing
action shots. You have to avoid holding the camera still
when you shoot action. A rule-of-thumb is to hold the
camera steady but move it along with the action rather
than attempting to hold still. This steady movement of
the camera along the path of motion of the player; incredibly,
has the effect of minimizing blur. On the other hand,
you will get a blur if you hold your camera still while
the action is taking place. This technique is actually
based on sound scientific principles.
It
should also be mentioned here that the art of sports photography
actually goes beyond capturing action or high points in
a game. The readers who view these photographs in newspapers
and magazines want to see player expressions, the thrills,
the disappointments, the concentration that players display
is something that readers find captivating and it becomes
a talking point. Readers also like to see crowd reactions
and reactions of family members of the players in certain
critical game situations. To cater to the public sentiment,
a photographer has to also attempt to click these special
poignant moments during a game by capturing reactions
and facial expressions.
-->Photo-journalism
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