AmSnaps - Digital Photography Basics For Amateur Snappers

We Reveal The Passions And Pitfalls Of Digital Sports Photography

Digital sports photography is an area of photography where the sports event or subject involved is moving around or creating some form of action.

This kind of fast action photography is usually required during sports events such as basketball, baseball, soccer, football, volleyball, racing and many other forms of action packed sporting events.

The main goal of the sports photographer at these high action sports events is to capture as much of the action as they can as and when it happens.

They have to anticipate every move before it happens.

The typical best shots in sports photography include jump shots, hitting the ball, kicking the ball, fast moving race cars or motorcycles, heavy clashes on the field as well as anything else that is action related.

Many times with these great shots, photo books and calenders can be created. Picture.com is a great place to go to design and create your own photo books with your own sports photos.

Before the age of digital cameras, capturing a subject in motion at a sporting event was difficult and was usually only done by professional sports photographers.

The usual result of trying to capture the action using the old compact film cameras would most likely have been a blur. Thanks to new digital camera technology with sports presets, anyone can participate in digital sports photography.

The best place to start learning sports photography is in your own back yard. Practice getting shots of them swinging. This will help you get to know what settings to use.

A really good book I recommend on sports photography is called Sports Photography: How to Capture Action and Emotion. It is written by Peter Skinner, a top sports photographer and journalist, who is also a contributing editor for Rangefinder magazine.

It will really help you master your action shots!

5 Tips For Digital Sports Photography That Guarantee You Amazing Shots

Does your kid have the potential to be a future professional athlete? Do you want to capture his moves and grooves on the field right as they happen?

No need to hire a professional sports photographer or pay money for these important shots because you can capture all the action yourself with a little help. All you need is a digital camera, a little practise and you can start shooting like a pro!

Just follow these simple sports photography tips to capture a piece of the action.

First tip is, be ready. Before trying to capture any sports event, make sure that you know what kind of pictures you want.

Find out simple information about the sporting event such as how players score a point or how players move during the game will help you anticipate the shot and focus on the right players at the right time as the action unfolds.

Once you know what type of shots you want, you can start learning the camera techniques you need to acquire the perfect shot.

Nearly all digital cameras have a certain amount of shutter lag. It is more apparent in compact digital cameras rather than digital SLR's.

Shutter lag is the time that your camera takes from when you press the shutter release button to the picture actually being taken. Being aware of the shutter lag will help you time your shot better and help you understand how much anticipation you need to allow in the build up for the shot.

If your digital camera takes a second or two before the actual photo is taken, you can always half press the shutter and focus on the point where you think the action will take place.

This saves you the auto-focusing time of the camera, which is not going to be accurate anyway when your subject is moving at speed. This is particularly useful for motor sports or horse racing.

If you're ready to really get into sports photography and take dramatic action shots, then watching this DVD is one of the best places to start. I bought it and have never looked back.

Digital Sports Photography Made Simple is a 70 minute DVD teaching you all the fundamentals and advanced techniques you need to know for shooting awesome sports photos using any digital SLR camera and a basic zoom lens.

Get it now, you won't be disappointed!

Do You Really Understand Your Digital Camera?

Familiarize yourself with your camera's settings. Most digital cameras already have a sports photography preset option. This sports mode automatically adjusts the shutter lag and settings for taking pictures of action in motion.

Another great tool is the burst mode. This mode is an automatic option for digital cameras to take a continuous burst of two or more shots in quick succession. When you feel that a piece of action is about to occur, you just press the shutter release and let the camera keep shooting. Afterwards, just keep the best shot from all the action.

Another technique that can be used for digital sports photography is called panning. Using this technique, the photographer freezes the subject while it's in motion. This results in a very clear subject frozen in time and a blurry background that gives the feel of motion.

How to pan when taking sports photography

As the subject moves past a fixed point in your field of view, follow the subject with your digital camera. Whilst panning at the same rate as your subject, take the shot. Make sure to keep the movement of the camera smooth and controlled.

To begin, focus your camera on a point where the subject is going to pass. You can use manual focus or half-press the shutter release button to auto-focus on the area. When your subject is approaching, point the camera at it and follow it until it reaches your original focus point. Take the shot. This kind of digital sports photography technique requires practice but once you get used to it the results are amazing.

You can also get still photos from video footage that you take. It is easier to get a good action shot, but the resolution isn't as good and you need video editing software that lets you do this.

Aside from panning, you can always take close-up pictures of the subjects using a tele-photo lens and zooming in. In this way, if your subject is a football or baseball player, you can showcase the emotions and intense feeling of the players as they play the game.

In action photography it is important that photographers capture all the sport as well as the emotions and overall feel of the game. Combining all these elements will create great shots.

If you want to improve your overall photography skills, then a "must have" package is: Scott Kelby's Digital Photography Boxed Set, Parts 1, 2, 3, and 4.

The guy is a legend in the world of professional photographers. Don't take my word for it. Google him. He is the top man. Click on the link above to check out his five star Amazon reviews.

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