How to Become a Sports Photographer

The world of sports photography can be a very lucrative one indeed. It is an extremely competitive environment, especially for the top of the line photo journalists. It is so competitive, in fact, that it is not uncommon for one pro to sabotage another's work just to get that one to-die-for shot. Most aspiring sports photographers have no idea how to break into this fast paced, highly competitive field.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• 35mm SLR (digital or film)
• 200m f2.8 lens (at minimum)
• High quality leather portfolio
• Books on the basics and advanced topics of photography
• Press pass

1. Read technical manuals on cameras and photography. If you have no clue of the basics of camera use, you have a lot of research to do.

2. Research the different brands of Single Lens Reflex (SLR) cameras on the market. Decide whether or not you want film or digital. If you already have your own 35mm SLR, you will need to make sure that it can take at minimum six frames per second, but ideally eight or more per second. You will also need an extremely high quality lens of great focal length and huge aperture. A fixed 200 at 2.8 is the bare minimum.

3. Enroll in basic, intermediate and advanced photography courses at your local community college or career center.

4. Join a photography club in your area. You will need to have contacts and build a network for future use. These people will some day be invaluable to you.

5. Use your camera. Start taking photographs of moving objects. Start slowly and build up to faster moving objects such as traffic. Vary your shutter speed and aperture so that you can experience what the books and your classes have taught you.

6. Move up to sporting events in your area that do not require special access or press passes and that allow you to get close enough to the action. Try something fairly basic such as a high school tennis match.

7. Increase the difficulty of the sport, gradually. Do not attempt to move up too fast, as this might lead to discouragement. Your goal is not to get every shot, but to get one great shot. This may mean shooting several rolls, or over one hundred frames; no one cares how many you took to get that one. They just want that one.

8. Move up into your sport. The best way to get really adept at hitting those shots is to photograph the sport that you know and love the best. If that is football, start shooting football games. Since you know the sport of football so well, you have a fairly good chance of understanding the action and where it will be. Sports photography is all about being in the right spot at the right time.

9. Build your portfolio. Do not settle for buying a cheap portfolio either. Go to a local professional camera shop and find a high quality leather portfolio. You will want to have a very professional layout of all your best work. This is your resume so treat it with the highest respect.

10. Request an interview with your local suburban paper. Find one that will work with your format, be it digital or film. Digital is probably the best option right now, as film demand is on the down slide. Meet with the photo editor and be prepared to sell yourself and your work. As you become more dependable in getting that money shot every time, your stock rate will increase and you will be able to start demanding higher paying gigs.

11. Rebuild your portfolio. Get rid of those amateur shots that got you your first gigs and replace them with your published shots and their originals. Now you can consider yourself a professional sports photographer and move on up to the next level.

Tips & Warnings

• Do not settle for low quality, generic equipment. Your camera must be a solid, highly reputable and dependable piece of equipment. Your lens must be of high quality ground glass. Do not settle for a mass marketed plastic lens.
• Always be respectful to the officials, coaches and players. Stay out of their way, and definitely stay out of the playing field.
• Do not abuse the credentials that have been given to you. They can just as easily be taken away.
• Know the rules of the press. Some events will have a designated press area and you must work within these boundaries. Failure to do so will result in your removal from the game and probably result in the loss of your credentials as well.
• If you are shooting anything professionally, you have the rights to use the photos editorially only. You do not have the right to make your own photo album and sell it at your own profit. Make sure you understand the licensing rights of the athlete you are shooting.
• There are certain risks that are inherent in this profession. You must be willing to risk destroying your equipment, injuring yourself or even worse in the event that the action comes your way, and you are not quick enough to move out of the way. Respect the game.