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Monday, 18 October 2021

Taking photos at a sports event

 Hi everyone. I hope you and yours are doing well. 

Over here in Western Australia we have the luxury of having next to no Covid numbers due to strict border controls, and hence we have been going about our lives relatively normally. 

Hence on Sunday I had the opportunity to be one of several photographers from the photography club, the Photography Group of Bunbury, to take photos for the Bunbury Tri Club's Bunbury City Classic Triathlon event (swim, bike, run). 


I was stationed out along Ocean Drive on our Indian Ocean beach front, and it was a great opportunity to practise panning as I photographed the bike leg. With over 500 competitors I certainly had lots of practise. 

I won't pretend to be a sports photographer, but I have photographed a few sports events in the past, particularly dragon boat racing which I have been involved in for many years, and I also photographed the bike and run leg of the Bunbury City Classic a couple of years ago. 

Please click on the link for few sports photography tips from Geosnapshot website: Taking-photos-that-sell

Lighting - Background - Fill the Frame - High emotion - Capture everyone 

The weather on Sunday was perfect for photography - no wind and total cloud cover which meant no bright hot spots and even colour. 

Another few tips from me are: 

  • Know your camera, 
  • Check your settings, 
  • Make sure your battery is charged and you have a spare battery, 
  • Make sure you have several memory cards for your camera. 
  • A backup camera is also a good idea, as I discovered once before. 
  • Check out the site beforehand to work out where is a good place to stand. 
  • Check the weather report and rain or shine be prepared. 


So what is panning, and how do you achieve it? You know those photos where the moving subject appears sharp while the background appears to be out of focus?

Here are 6 tips from the Digital Photography School - pity I didn't read this article before going out on Sunday! However, I am still happy with my results. Do yourself a favour and click on the link for great info and advice: Digital photography school - 6 tips to master panning

6 Tips to Master Panning Photography from Digital Photography School
  1. Set your camera to Shutter Priority mode. Before you do anything else, I highly recommend you set your camera's Mode dial to Shutter Priority. ...
  2. Choose a slow shutter speed. ...
  3. Move along with the subject. ...
  4. Use a tripod. ...
  5. Focus accurately. ...
  6. Position yourself correctly.


I was photographing hand held. A stance with my feet apart in a comfortable position. My elbows tucked into my sides. I used my viewfinder. Try not to not use a digital screen with your arms held away from your body - though my husband got some good results doing this. Swivel from the hips and follow the bike rider, taking 2 or 3 shots as you swivel. A sports mode might help, but I found my camera couldn't keep up as I was photographing in RAW and don't have a high end camera. 

I used a zoom lens. These were my settings if they are any use to you: Manual mode, 1/500 shutter speed, Aperture F6.3, ISO 250, auto white balance, auto focus. 

I need to go back and straighten up some of these horizons before I share them to the photo sharing site for the event. 

The bikes were coming in fast and I didn't always get the shot right....but I must say I rather liked this effect... 


And I didn't always get the whole bike in. 


Though coming into the shot is better than going out...


And sometimes.... hopefully I got a pic of this guy on this second lap 


There were all sorts of levels of competitor - young, old, new, experienced and levels of bikes. Take a look at this guy working the bike with his arms. That looks like hard work. 


That's it from me today. I hope this has helped you with some tips for next time you might like to take some photos at a sports event. 

Don't have a fancy camera? Don't worry. The camera you have is better than no camera. My husband took this photo with a more basic camera, on all automatic settings, and looking at a screen not through a view finder. 


Please do go to the links. There are lots more on the web. 

Geosnapshot website: Taking-photos-that-sell

Digital photography school - 6 tips to master panning

Thank you so much for stopping by. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week. 

Hello there! I love reading your comments. If you scroll down to the bottom you can comment too! I would love to hear from you.
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10 comments:

  1. Fun6019 October 2021 at 23:36

    Excellent photos. It was interesting to read about all the preparation you do prior to taking any photos.

    ReplyDelete
  2. EricaSta20 October 2021 at 13:09

    You are a very good photograph, Jill, indeed of this sport event, in my opinion. Well prepared and with great enthusiasm. I learnd by the way to photograph with a Nikon by a food photograph in Munich, I believe it was 30 years ago. This was of course in analog photograph. And your description seems perfect. Your captures are fantastic!

    By the way... I think the pink bloom is a Black Susann too. I'm not really good in botanical questions.

    Have a good week, dear Blogfriend, stay healthy and well.

    Happy MosaicMonday

    ReplyDelete
  3. Lillian "sognafaret"20 October 2021 at 18:24

    Thank you for showing me this journey

    ReplyDelete
  4. Shiju Sugunan21 October 2021 at 14:19

    Interesting action shots! I especially like the ones with motion blur.

    My latest post:
    https://craniumbolts.blogspot.com/2021/10/a-staycation-during-rainy-season.html

    ReplyDelete
  5. Rosie21 October 2021 at 17:08

    Great shots and thanks for the tips. I have not tried to take sports events like that but have taken a few of my grandson's soccer team but have not been very successful, usually I am too far away.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Peabea Scribbles21 October 2021 at 19:49

    Yelp, do like the effect of the 6th photo, but all look good to me as I'm not good at settings, etc. The tips are helpful, thanks so much for sharing. Nice to see you at Pictorial Tuesday.

    ReplyDelete
  7. NCSue22 October 2021 at 22:56

    That recumbent bike looks horribly uncomfortable. But you got some great shots!
    Thank you for sharing at https://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2021/10/i-dont-like-that-there.html

    ReplyDelete
  8. betty-NZ24 October 2021 at 15:05

    We are fortunate in Taranaki to have no covid for a long time, too. Great images and tips.

    Thanks for sharing your link at My Corner of the World this week!

    ReplyDelete
  9. ~Lavender Dreamer~26 October 2021 at 01:59

    Oh, these are all really good and I appreciate the photo tips. I see lot of bikes on the paved trails that we hike sometimes and usually get them as they are riding away from me. Love their bikes and colorful clothes. Hugs, Diane

    ReplyDelete
  10. Angie26 October 2021 at 05:42

    Jill - fabulous tips! And I so admire triathletes! Thanks for linking to Mosaic Monday!

    ReplyDelete

I hope you have enjoyed your visit to my blog. Thank you for stopping by and for taking the time to comment. I read and very much appreciate every comment and love hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return.