Sports Photography: How to Capture Action and Emotion

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 160 pages
• Published by: Allworth Press May 29, 2007
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 1581154801
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-1581154801
• Book Dimensions: 9.9 x 8.4 x 0.5 inches
• Weighs: 1.2 pounds

Reader Reviews
At one time or another, a serious photographer will be asked to take pictures of a young relative at a sports event, or of some local team. There will also be times when a photographer will attend a major sports event and have the urge to capture the event on film or digital media. The photographer may realize that sports photography may be just different enough from his regular fare to warrant some additional study. This fast-reading book is aimed at filling that gap. After a general introduction, the book starts out with a consideration of necessary equipment, including a comparison of digital media and film, and then goes on to a brief discussion of light and exposure. Thereafter the book is mostly concerned about the content of sports photographs. The author points out such considerations as selecting the best position, capturing the peak action, and the importance of the direction and speed of the action. There are discussions of the most important aspects of photographing specific sports, like cycling, ice skating and surfing. These discussions are necessarily brief but usually provide good tips for the inexperienced sports photographer. The book also has sections that deal with the emotions of sport, the aesthetics and moods of sport, getting access and working with sports groups, and self assignments. After discussing the possibility of making money photographing sports, there is an examination of the careers of several sports photographers. All of the pictures in the book, taken by top-flight sports photographers, are excellent, and the writing is simple and clear. Indeed, I suspect it may be too simple for anyone but the neophyte sports photographer. Experienced photographers are more likely to benefit from studying the pictures in the book, but that can be done as easily with a subscription to a magazine like Sports Illustrated. I thought that there were technical issues relating to sports photography that the book scanted. For example, many sports photographers shoot JPEG's not just because they can quickly be sent to an editor, but because it means that they can shoot a larger number of pictures without pausing. Similarly, while the author advises using fast lenses for reduced depth of field, there is less mention of the fact that sports photographers usually need to shoot at the faster shutter speeds that the larger apertures allow. Although it's certainly not required, there is no mention of post processing in the book. I was also startled that the author spent substantial space telling readers that it was okay to shoot with film. While I would never discourage a person with a film camera from shooting sports, I would find it very difficult to encourage any one to buy a film camera. I recognize that probably represents my own predisposition, but certainly, no arguments were made for the advantages of film. For the individual who knows nothing about sports photography, but does understand how to use a camera, this book may prove useful. For those who have already started to take sports pictures this book will be less useful. Comment | | (Report this)