Picking a Location
Step1
Arrive early to allow for setup time.
Step2
Park as close as you can to where you'll be taping.
Step3
Check out sunlight or electrical lighting to be sure neither will shine directly into your lens or onto your viewfinder.
Step4
Select a shooting position where nobody is likely to be standing in front of you or jumping up to yell during the event.
Step5
Check to be sure your pans left and right are equally clear of spectators.
Step6
Try to find an elevated location where you can look down on the action.
Step7
Choose a level shooting position - don't fight gravity by trying to shoot from the side of a hill.
Step8
Bring your tripod (borrow one if necessary).
Step9
Select a place close to house current so you can run your camera off the power supply instead of batteries.
Setting Up the Equipment
Step1
Adjust the viewfinder for sports coverage before you set up your tripod.
Step2
Set the height of the tripod so that when you're looking straight ahead, you're looking straight into either viewfinder at eye level.
Step3
Make your tripod head level by lengthening or shortening the legs.
Step4
Adjust the pan control (if there is one) on your tripod so there's a small amount of drag as you pan and tilt.
Step5
Put a handheld microphone (if you have one) away from spectators.
Step6
Arrange your extra equipment (camera bag and so on) so it's out of your way as you move about behind the camcorder.
Step7
Make sure the power cord (if you're using one) does not pass through the area where you'll be standing, so you don't trip over it.
Step8
Use a plastic garbage bag with a hole cut in it to protect your camcorder if you think it might rain.
Beginning to Shoot
Step1
Be sure you're familiar with the flow of action in the type of sporting event (baseball, tennis, and so on) you're going to cover, so you know what to tape and what to ignore.
Step2
Plan to shoot a fairly wide shot, during the first few events you tape, until you catch on. You can tighten up and shoot closer shots as your skills improve.
Step3
Keep both eyes open when you tape sports.
Step4
Use your left eye for the "big picture" and your right eye for determining what you're taping.
Step5
Anticipate a likely play and be ready to cover it when it happens.
Step6
Note that if most of the action in a potential play will be in a restricted area, you can go tighter for a better close-up of the action. But be ready to pull back to a wider shot if you guessed wrong.
Step7
Aim toward keeping the principal player in the shot all the time. But be ready to switch principal players if the shot calls for it.
Step8
Roll on every play or potential play if you want to get all the action.
Step9
Start recording an instant or two before the play action starts.
Step10
Count "1-2-3" to yourself when the play is over, then stop taping.
Step11
Shoot cutaways sometimes, but not always, in between plays.
Step12
Come off tripod and go handheld if you think you can get access to the field for a different vantage point.
Step13
Bring extra tape and batteries if you change vantage points.
Step14
Change vantage points only at a natural break in the action.