Runners Ready…
Sony a7Riv - Tamron 70 - 180mm @ 180mm f/2.8 1/640 iso 100
There’s always more than what meets the eye in sports photography. Second from the left is Newton High School athlete KJ, the only one from his team and obviously in the top three teams to make it to the finals.
Newton High School had won the 7A State Title in 2017 on the back of now Olympian and World Champion Elija Godwin (4x400). Then and now, Newton had always been heavy favorites in sprinting events - Making KJ’s appearance in the finals that much more special.
KJ’s performance would further drive Newton’s success in the middle distance and Cross Country. Supported by his teammates and coaches he would continue to represent his school in the 800m, 1600m and the Pole Vault.
I don’t find shooting Track & Field particularly difficult. Having an understanding of the sport your shooting is crucial - I have coached it for over a decade and have competed. The most critical part of photographing this sport is staying out of the way of the officials and starter. They want the best view of the start and finish and obviously so do I! The hero angle and sports photography go hand in hand - shooting from waist height looking up to your subject but not from right under them. Most of the time I am shooting while on one knee or just sitting on the ground. Opposed to a basketball game where I’m typically in only a few spots and the game lasting a couple hours, track & field is an all day event. I’ll easily walk 8km in a day shooting track and field, the throws and far from the horizontal jumps which are on the other side of track from the vertical jumps. However, the easy part of shooting track is the preparation. Before the event you can use google maps to figure out where each event is. If you’re shooting for a particular team you can get access to the heat sheets to know when and what lane you need to focus on. The athletic movements are far more predictable than basketball or football. That said, despite the smaller court, volleyball is one of the toughest sports to shoot but more on that another time.
