How to Photograph Baseball

Baseball lacks the constant action and excitement of some other sports. While this may limit your opportunities for exciting pictures, when there is something to take a picture of, you have a good chance of getting a good picture with just about any camera. Expensive equipment does help, but because of baseball's slow and methodical pace, it isn't necessary.

Instructions

1. Start out behind the plate. Position yourself at an angle so you can get a picture of the batter and the pitcher without the umpire obstructing your view. From this position you may have to stick your camera's lens through the screen. Fortunately, the pitcher and batter stay in one place, so you won't have to move your camera once you get it in position.

2. Lock your focus on the action. Hold the shutter down halfway so your camera focuses on the pitcher or the batter. Snap a picture of the pitcher as he winds up. Press the shutter button just before the baseball reaches the batter to hopefully get a picture of the batter swinging.

3. Watch for some good pictures at second base. One of the best baseball pictures you can get is a runner stealing second base. From your position behind the plate, lock your focus on second base when you think a runner on first might steal. Press the shutter as the runner begins his slide.

4. Change your position to the baseline. A good place to be is about 20 feet past first or third base. From this position you can get good pictures of runners running down the line to first or rounding second base and heading to third. When on the first base line, you can also capture pictures of close plays at first base.

5. Look for facial expressions. Because there is less action in baseball than other sports, the emotion of the players doesn't come across as clearly. But, if you get as close as you can and zoom in on players, their faces can tell the story.

6. Get the baseball in the picture whenever possible. The ball shows whether the play was close and whether the batter hit the ball. To stop the action so the baseball is not a blur, use a fast shutter speed when taking baseball pictures. For night games, you'll need a high iso setting and a tripod to stop the action.

Tips & Warnings

• Some baseball parks do not allow flash photography. Check the rules before the game and turn off your flash if necessary. Unless the action is less than 15 feet from you, the flash on most cameras won't help anyway.