Summer brings about a packed schedule and is also prime time for various sporting events. The pressure is on when your job is to capture a sharp, impactful shot of a subject on the move. That is exactly what sports photographers do when they show up to a shoot with gear in hand and burst mode at the ready. While capturing moments where the subjects are not standing still may be an extreme sport in itself, it is possible. We talked to some photographers on Flickr who have figured out what works and what doesn’t while out in the field. Join us for the latest edition of Through the Lens and join us in exploring the challenging art of sports photography.

Josh Trudell Imagery

Photographer and graphic designer Josh Trudell, enjoys a variety of photographic genres but his sports photography is what recently caught our eye. We asked Josh about the challenges and the successes in shooting sports events and he shared some of his tried and true tips with us.

Flickr: When shooting sports events, how do you capture the emotion and story of a game, not just the action?

Josh Trudell: Observation. It’s not just watching the plays – it’s seeing and anticipating how coaches and players act and react before, during and after plays. Every sporting event develops a rhythm and a tension. Sometimes that tension is a little moment – a Little Leaguer looking particularly determined as he digs in, or a race car driver sizing up a track. Sometimes it is huge, like a winning play in the final seconds. Seeing an athlete getting frustrated after being tripped, a crew struggling in the pits, players seeing the clock tick down as sweat drips from their face, and jubilation after scoring the final basket are just a few examples. Observe the faces during those moments – what story are those faces telling? Something that helps here is shooting something you enjoy. If you like the sport, you’ll have a better understanding of when and where strong emotions might be.

Flickr: What’s the most important piece of equipment in your kit beyond the camera body?

JT: Observation, preparation, and anticipation. I covered observation above, so let’s talk about preparation. I always try to get to an event I’m shooting early, especially if it is a place I haven’t been before. Get there early and observe what’s going on in the warm-ups. Take some practice shots – it doesn’t hurt to get warmed up. For something like BMX or skateboarding, see where the big jumps are in practice so you can be ready during the main event.

For team sports, get a sense of the players. If you can, watch games before one you are going to shoot. How do they move? What is the action you might see? Where will it be? If you’re shooting a specific event, can you get to a similar event in the same location to scout it out – and if you’ve never shot it before, see how other people might be shooting it?

By getting there early and seeing what’s going on, it will help your anticipation. Having a sense when an athlete is about to make that split-second move will help you be ready for it. With high-burst frame rates, there is more flexibility in capturing action but you need to be in the right spot at the right time and you need to be ready. That and a 70-200 f2.8, extra batteries and extra memory cards.

Flickr: What makes a sports photo stand out beyond just technical sharpness?

JT: To me, the best sports photos tell a story not only of the moment, but of the people in the moment. The epitome of this, for me, is the famous Neil Leifer picture of Muhammad Ali standing over Sonny Liston. There are very few pictures that sum up an athlete’s personality and skill so completely. From a more technical perspective, getting the crop right on an image is hugely important. A bad crop can really hurt an image, while a good crop can enhance it. Look closely at where you want the viewer’s eyes to go (and what you are showing or not showing them).

Alexander r Markovic

Alexander Markovic is a Canadian based photographer who decided to try his hand at photography in an effort to capture his sons playing sports and that lead to a journey into the wider world of photography. His skill at capturing the emotion, intensity and skill of the athletes he shoots caught our attention so we checked in with him about his process as a sports photographer.

Flickr: What makes a sports photo stand out beyond just technical sharpness?

Alexander Markovic: I think that a sports photo will stand out if it reveals the athlete’s immediate kaleidoscope of emotions through facial and body recognition whether they be success, focus or determination.

Flickr: How do you balance getting close-up action shots with wider shots that show context?

AM: Wide action images should show or give indication of the importance of the presented situation, a third and inches to a first down in football , a crucial face off in hockey, lacrosse, or the determination of the group to score.

Flickr: Do you shoot in burst mode constantly, or are you more selective with your shots?

AM: Shooting in a burst is important if the photographer anticipates a successful play in order to capture a raw moment, going from a wide group shot to focusing on the individual leading the play. I am a former physical education teacher, coach and varsity athlete and knowing the various sport activities I shoot helps in the anticipation of where and what may happen.

Molly Tolzmann

Next up we reached out to Paris based photographer Molly Tolzmann to learn about her process in capturing emotion, her go-to gear and other tips that might up our sports photography game.

Flickr: When shooting sports events, how do you capture the emotion and story of a game, not just the action? 

Molly Tolzmann: I love to look around at what’s happening beyond the field of play, whether it’s athletes that are on the sidelines, pre-game/match/race/program routines, award celebrations, support staff, and especially spectators. Seeing how other people get about sports action can for me be even more interesting than the sport itself! 

Flickr: What’s your strategy for positioning yourself to get the best shots while staying out of the way? 

MT: Have a good zoom lens! While not every venue allows lenses over a certain size, if you can bring in a good zoom, it opens up a lot of different possibilities in terms of positioning. Beyond that, it really depends on the nature of the event. If it’s something without assigned seating, get there early and scope out a good spot. If it is a ticketed event or really crowded, it simply may not be possible to shoot without bothering others, so that for me is a time to put the camera away.

Flickr: What’s your approach to focus tracking for fast-moving subjects?

MT: I let the camera do most of the work on this one! While I really respect people who shoot on manual and/or with film cameras, I personally prefer to use auto and continuous-shooting mode on my DSLR for anything involving fast action. When you only have a fraction of a second to get the right shot, for me it’s not the time to be worried about settings, and taking a bunch of frames in quick sequence will usually result in at least one that’s interesting, and anything else can be easily deleted.

Thanks to these talented photographers for sharing their tips with us. If you want to see more sports photography from the Flickr community, check out this gallery, curated from photos shared to the awesome Flickr Social group. See you next time!