First Time Shooting Pro Soccer

I have the opportunity to shoot my first pro soccer game this Saturday. I've been browsing the forum for pointers on Soccer, anything I should know specifically for pro soccer or is pretty much the same all around? I'm all ears, I've never done soccer from the sidelines before so it will be quite the experience. I have a 5DII, 7D, 24-105 and a 300 2.8 at my disposal. Thanks for your help.

At the very least, rent a 7D. I shot American football with the 5D2 and 400 5.6 and struggled a lot. Between each burst frame the balled moved 10 yards. I can't imagine shooting soccer with that setup. Not saying it's impossible, but it will be quite difficult.

The 24-105 is close to useless for action photo of soccer because of it's short focal length. I only use it for the interview photos after the match and for the cheering photos after the match.
The 300mm f2.8 is a great lens but might be either too tight or too wide most of the time on a FF-body to cover soccer. It's limited how much you'll be able to cover with one Tele-prime.
The AF on the 5D mkII is, in my experience, waay to slow to follow Pro soccer. Both the slow-ish AF and 3,9 fps is not suited for fast sports and my guess is that you will struggle to get the mkII to drive the heavy glass to follow fast players. It's a good camera for landscapes and portraits, but sports..... Little league; yes. Pro; no

My recommendation is to get a better body, maybe 2 bodies, and add a 70-200mm for the around-goal-action. You'll have very little time to change lens during the game if you want to cover the action. Understand the game and anticipate when the action is coming. Someone told me once that "If you can see the action happening, you missed it". Take lots of photos and find your style. Shoot tight and crop tighter. My soccer photos here : http://www.flickr.com/​photos/radarfoto

Good luck

aviator.4.life wrote in post #16133466
I have the opportunity to shoot my first pro soccer game this Saturday. I've been browsing the forum for pointers on Soccer, anything I should know specifically for pro soccer or is pretty much the same all around? I'm all ears, I've never done soccer from the sidelines before so it will be quite the experience. I have a 5DII, 7D, 24-105 and a 300 2.8 at my disposal. Thanks for your help.

For much of the action you encounter, the longer the lens the better.

If you know the game (well) and can predict movement then you will get better shots. That can be said for whatever sport you're shooting. As others have said the 24-105 won't be much use to you. 200mm will be about as short as you want and 300 will be short when the action is on the other side of the field.

Since the 5DII isn't the best at focusing I would put the 24-105 on it and pre focus right in front of you then sit it beside you just in case the action ends up at your spot. You probably won't touch it the whole game but you might get 'the shot.' Plus that set up should be good for the pre game line up pose if they do that.

You can't just follow the ball to the action you have to see where it's headed and get the lens on those players way before the ball gets their. By watching the players through the lens you'll be able to see what the ball is going to do.

All good advice here.

Are you able to move on the sidelines or do you have a designated spot? I have successfully covered soccer with only a 70-200 but I was able to move around. Being able to anticipate the play (and sheer luck) will determine appropriate reach more than any focal length you can have at your disposal.

If it's pro soccer you are going to be stuck at the ends. Usually 1 end per half (meaning you can't go back and forth).

If that's the case, you want a long lens (300-600mm) and a medium telephoto (70-200). The long telephoto will let you get action form the center to about 25 yrds out and then you can switch to the shorter one.

xchangx wrote in post #16136409
If it's pro soccer you are going to be stuck at the ends. Usually 1 end per half (meaning you can't go back and forth).

Are those MLS rules? The local team is in the NASL and they allow photogs free access up and down the sideline in front of the grandstand and behind the goal lines. No one except the team photog is allowed on the bench side of the field.

When the Whitecaps were in town last year for the Amway Canadian Championship, it was as you described, behind the goal lines and no movement during play. This year, it was sideline only up to the penalty box area on either half of the field and no further.

Thanks for all the advice guys, I had a ton of fun yesterday. A 70-200 would have been perfect sometimes but I did what I could with what I have. The 5DII did surprisingly good the second half minus the slow fps. Here's some of the photos... https://photography-on-the.net …/showthread.php​?t=1316986

joeblack2022 wrote in post #16139200
Are those MLS rules? The local team is in the NASL and they allow photogs free access up and down the sideline in front of the grandstand and behind the goal lines. No one except the team photog is allowed on the bench side of the field.

When the Whitecaps were in town last year for the Amway Canadian Championship, it was as you described, behind the goal lines and no movement during play. This year, it was sideline only up to the penalty box area on either half of the field and no further.

Those were the rules for the USA women's and men's team. Not sure about MLS

Same rules most places. In Norwegian top league the penalty box is the furthest they´ll let a photographer go between warm-up and until the players have left the field. In Europa League The club is fined by UEFA if photographers wander along the sidelines (So I was told last season during the European Cup)

crop tighter and straighten horizons