Hi All

An the eve of my 2 day event trip to Deer Park Country Club as one of 2 commissioned photographers at a PGA golf tournament, I thought this would be a good time to go through some do's and don'ts for sports photography.  One of the main things is to study the sport.  Although I have been working around Edinburgh and throughout Scotland as a professional freelance event photographer, I am also a sports fan and as a previous track athlete, tennis player and golfer, I have a good idea about these particular sports.  Like a lot of guys, I am also a big football fan.  There is no substitute for knowledge when it comes to the sports photographer and if you don't have it, them acquire it, watch clips, read up on the sports etc.  It would be difficult for a non golfer to photograph the sport for instance.  You need to know where to stand, when not to click the shutter etc.  One of the main issues in sport is to be able to anticipate what is going to happen next and have your camera move to that position in advance, this is particularly relevant in football and rugby photography.  Focus on the crowd sometimes, or the players celebrating, or an off the ball incident - don't just relax after you have caught the goal in football.  My best selling images have not been goals or dramatic action shots, they have been celebration shots - see attached.    Take most sports at a fairly fast shutter speed ie at least 1/800, unless you want to create motion through an intentional blur, then move the camera smoothly in line with the subject using a slower shutter speed - this is particularly useful in motor racing.  Try and get some close ups of the participants faces if your lens is long enough, emotion is a key aspect of sports photography. 

More tips for the professional sports photographer later, but for the moment, here is the final one - enjoy the day.  

Kind Regards

Colin wright

www.edinburghphotographer.com

www.colinwrightphotography.co.uk