Hitting your Next Baseball Photography Shoot out of the Park

//Hitting your Next Baseball Photography Shoot out of the Park

Baseball photography can be a bit of a challenge for a new comer, but it doesn’t have to be. Following these basic pieces of advice you will be getting top pictures of baseball players, and can add capturing baseball to your sports photography repertoire.

Location and Timing

When it comes to photographing any sport being at the right place at the right time is a big part for success. For baseball you either want to be behind home plate or along the third base line. These positions give you the best angles to get top action shots. The main action for baseball is the pitcher throwing the ball. Getting a good photograph of the pitcher isn’t a challenge however you want more pictures than just of the pitcher. Other areas to focus pay attention to on the field, to get top action pictures of baseball players, is players running on the base path. Primarily from first base to second base and from third base to home. This is why the positioning of being behind the plate or along the third base line are top spots. From behind the plate you can get great pictures of the pitcher, and also still have the opportunity to get photos of players sliding into second. If your focus is plays at home though or getting batteries swinging, than along the third base line is where you want to be. Remember action sports photography requires moving around, during the game, to get top photos.

Top Action - Kentucky vs. Kansas

Top Action – Kentucky vs. Kansas

 

Finding Interesting Photos

One reason why baseball photography can be a challenge for new sports photographers is action doesn’t always happen. This is when you have to try to find as much action as you can. Instead of just taking a normal photo of the pitcher throwing the ball, try to get something interesting going on in the background like a runner trying to steal second base as the pitcher throws. Anticipating the action is a key skill in any action sports photography job if you want to get be successful, but it is especially important for baseball sports photographers since baseball is a slow game and sometimes so little action happens. Baseball being a slow game does make it a good game to practice photographing sports though, and the action is a lot more predictable than with other sports.

More than just pitcher - Louisville vs Cincinatti

More than just pitcher – Louisville vs Cincinatti

 

Emotion

One last thing to keep in mind when photographing baseball, or any sport for that matter, is it doesn’t always have to be about the action on the field. A good sports photographer also catches the emotion of the players. When something big happens like a home run get photographs of the teammates on the bench celebrating. If a bad call is made, than get a photo of the player’s reaction to it. Action sports photography is great, but capturing the emotions of the players really brings them alive and makes them relatable.

Great Emotion - Louisville vs. Kentucky-1

Great Emotion – Louisville vs. Kentucky-1

 

Conclusion

Capturing the moments in a baseball game and getting top pictures of the baseball players can be really rewarding. Keeping in mind that you should move around to get different shots will help you have variety. Also, don’t just focus on the action on the field instead get players’ emotions, and lastly developing your anticipation skills will help you become a great sports photographer for any sport. Baseball can be a slow sport at times, but when the action hits it is fun, and since it is a slower sport baseball photography is a great way to get experience in the action sports photography realm.

By |2017-01-17T10:42:39-08:00January 17th, 2017|Categories: Pro Photography|3 Comments

About the Author:

mm
My name is Brenden, and I am located in Louisville, Ky. My favorite thing to photograph is sports and have had the opportunity to capture baseball, basketball, football, hockey, and soccer. I don’t really know what my favorite sport to photograph is however. I also enjoy time outdoors and doing nature photography. Macro of fungi and insects is a side interest of mine. I do shoot the occasional wedding, or portrait shoot as well. I just like staying busy, and keeping the shutter clicking.