First attempt at sports photography

Last weekend was the Easter holidays and we went to watch a cricket match at the Old Trafford cricket ground. It was the County Championship division one, Lancashire Vs. Warwickshire match.

Below are two images from the day:

 

Ian Bell’s leg stump uprooted by Wayne White

Oliver Hannon-Dalby defends the ball as Jos Butler and Jimmy Anderson look on

Settings used:

Canon 600D in Shutter priority (Tv) mode, f/5.6, 70-300mm lens at 300mm, 1/200 sec, ISO 100.

AF manually set to centre point only. Camera was set on continuous drive mode.

It was at about 5.30pm on April 21 and the natural light was fading with the flood lights just being turned on.

Points to note about sports photography:

There has to be a feel for action in the pictures. Position yourself to tightly group the action elements. Crop to keep only those elements that show action or players where emotion can be seen in the face.

Focus on either the batsman or the bowler depending on whose face is visible. This can be determined by the side from which the bowler is bowling. In a good photograph, the ball has to be visible in the picture with just a bit of motion blur to show action but enough clarity to clearly see the ball.

Note for next time: Unfortunately, empty stands are a shame in the above pics. If possible, position yourself such that the action on the field and also the people in the stands can be captured well.

Have you done any sports photography? If you have any tips on the topic, please feel free to drop a line in the comments. I’d love to hear from you!