Track & Field advice requested

A friend of mine asked me to photograph some of her son's track and

field meets. He is a runner and high jumper.<P>

 

Any advice on photographing track and field events?<P>

 

What are some moments to look for?<P>

 

FWIW, I'm using a 28-200mm, D100 and monopod.<P>

 

I have access to a 300mm AI lens, but then I lose the light metering

and am not sure I want to risk that.<P>

 

Thanks!<P>

 

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For high jump, I'd move in closer, go with a wider aperture (maybe wide open with the lens you have) and manual focus on the 'bar' at about the point you expect him to cross. The wider aperture helps to 'zero' distracting backgrounds, and AF can do some wild 'excursions' as the jumper crosses the bar. You can go for the 'peak moment', or you can shoot three frame 'bursts'.<div></div>

Diana, at track and field events you have one great luxury: you know ahead of time where the action is going to occur. Take time to position yourself so that the background behind that place is as featureless as possible... to avoid distracting from the action.

 

Jim

Consider using the 300. Shoot Raw, and if its a sunny day outside, you shouldn't have a problem shooting in Manual mode.

I stayed behind a fence at the event and didn't come close to where the action was. What are the rules regarding this sort of thing? Who should I ask regarding moving closer?

 

Thanks for the advice and photo sample. I appreciate it.

Rules? I'm sure it varies from locale/locale event/event. Ask.

 

I do volunteer shooting with Special Olympics here, and they offer me an 'official photographer' badge thingy. I don't think it has ever been asked for or offered for inspection. I simply show up, and I look like I 'mean business' (photo vest, couple of cameras). The flip side of this is that I maintain a 'situational awareness' where I'm often doing a quick 'look around' to make sure I'm not stepping onto the track during a race, wandering into the 'javelin catching area', etc.

 

I'm reaching here, but maybe offer to share photos with yearbook, student newspaper, local newspaper? That may get you some 'accreditation' if you need it.

In my experience with photographing local sports, wandering up to anyone who looks like they're official, looking like you know what you're doing, introducing yourself and asking politely will get yourself just about anywhere you might want to be - just don't get in the way and you're fine.

 

For track and field, auto-focus generally isn't necessary and may even be a hindrance. A little bit of practice at timing, pre-focus and tracking pays off a lot. Backgrounds are always a nuisance - a camera that lets you shoot aperture priority wide (or nearly wide) open works well - along with keeping a close watch on what's creeping into your frame - more practice helps here, too. Don't be miserly with the number of frames you take.

 

Lots of local sports seem to happen in late afternoons and the light can have lots of contrast between sun and shade. I use an incident meter to get a general feel for 'overall' exposure into and away from the sun, set the camera accordingly, then make small adjustments in manual mode for fine-tuning. Somewhere around 1/500th @ 2.8 +/- a stop (iso 100) is never far off in hazy sun.

 

Try getting angles the average spectator isn't going to see: Down low beside the high-jump bar with a wide-angle, or a long shot down the finishing straight with a telephoto are a couple of the classics, for example. Get a couple of sports photography books and check out a few issues of Sports Illustrated to kick-start your imagination. You'll notice that many of the most striking pictures are often not taken from a 'normal adult standing' kind of position. Sports photography done well is a work-out for the photographer, too.

Your 28-200 (25-300 35mm equivalent) should be a good lens to use for track and field. High jump can be tricky to photograph because over the bar the face can be hard to capture. Since each jumper gets multiple tries, observe the first jump and watch the jumper's style. A low position can get rid of distracting backgrounds, but be careful metering into the sky. You didn't mention which running events, but zoomed to 200 you should be able to get some good shots of people coming out of the blocks. If it is a staggered start, use the lens at 200 and angle yourself to compose all the competitors in the frame. You will get the full compression effect of the lens and focus on the one individual you are interested in. You can also position yourself a ways down the track and use the zoom to catch the finish in such a way that it will look like the runners are coming right at you. And don't stop shooting when the race is over...some of the best shots are the looks of victory, defeat and exhaustion after the race is over....<div></div>