[Photo: Jeff Fox]
Whether you’re photographing a World Series game at Yankee Stadium, as I did last night, or your child’s soccer match, capturing sharp images while freezing the action in a sporting event poses two special challenges: You’re typically far from the action and your subjects are usually moving quickly and unpredictably.
The only practical way to conquer the distance problem is to use a powerful telephoto zoom lens. Unless it’s a very pricey one, though, extending a telephoto lens to its maximum length can introduce yet another problem, a significant reduction in the light that reaches your camera’s sensor.
To avoid an overly dark picture, you need to either use a relatively slow shutter speed (which would cause moving subjects to appear blurred) or crank up the camera’s ISO setting to increase light sensitivity. The latter can easily introduce graininess into an image, as we’ve found with many of the point-and-shoot cameras in our Ratings (available to subscribers).
If your camera has the necessary features, as virtually all SLRs and some point-and-shoots do, there are a couple of ways to cope with the unpredictability of your subjects’ movements: Set the camera’s autofocus to “continuous,” which automatically maintains focus on a moving subject, and shoot using “burst mode,” which takes several shots per second, increasing your chances of capturing just the right image. (The icon for burst mode is usually three overlapping rectangles).
Here’s how I shot this image of Phillies’ outfielder Shane Victorino striking the ball in game 1 of the World Series between the Phillies and Yankees, from a distance of roughly 330 feet: I used a Nikon D300 SLR, which our SLR Ratings indicate can capture quality images suitable for enlargement at ISO settings up to 3200. I also used a Nikon 70-200mm. telephoto zoom, which has a maximum aperture of f/2.8 when set to 200mm. To get even closer to the action, I also used a Nikon 1.7x teleconverter which, allowing for the D300’s crop factor, gave me the capability of a 510mm. lens on a film camera, with a maximum aperture of f/4.8.
When shooting, I set the lens to its maximum focal length and aperture and the D300’s ISO to 3200, autofocus to continuous, and burst mode to its maximum setting (6 frames per second). Based on some previous test shots, I determined that a shutter speed of 1/1250 of a second would freeze subject motion without unduly darkening the image.
When the pitcher began his delivery, I pressed and held the shutter, following the ball until it reached the batter. The image shown is the only one of the sequence that shows the ball and bat together. Without burst mode, it’s unlikely that I would have been able to accurately time such a shot.
Have you taken a great shot at a sporting event? If so, share your technique by describing it below. —Jeff Fox
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