Shooting soccer for the first time....any tips

Hello, I'll be shooting my first soccer game in about a week. Never shot soccer before, any tips. Any advice would be helpful.

tennfan1125 wrote in post #17162146
Hello, I'll be shooting my first soccer game in about a week. Never shot soccer before, any tips. Any advice would be helpful.

If you search for the word "soccer" in the sports talk subforum, you will find bunch of good tips.

What kind of access do you have? Whaqt will you be shooting with? What time of day?

Have you covered any other field sports? If so, the basic premise is the same...

Mind your backgrounds, get down and shoot low, be ready for jubilation and dejection shots, etc.

As far as soccer specific tips...

• Take my advice with a grain of salt... I generally only shoot about 8 of these a year. But from my experience...
  
• The endlines and corners are good for general action for the forwards and midfielders, and of course, any action happening around the goal. If it's a day match, I'd experiment with the 1.4 extender on and off the 400mm from that position and have your 70-200 on the second body in case action gets close to the goal.
  
• The sidelines provide good action for most positions, especially defenders and midfielders. I'd probably stick with the 400mm from that position. You can get some cool stuff with the 70-200 from that position as well. Most of the fighting over the ball is going to happen in this general area anyway, and that fighting makes for the best soccer photos. If the backgrounds aren't too bad, it can be a great position.
  
• Have your second body ready to go at all times... things can happen fast. I double check exposure/zoom and general position of the second body every once in a while so I know it's ready to go.
  
• Like I mentioned before, be thinking about jubilation/dejection shots if something major happens.
  
• Bring a short bench if you have one.
  
• Keep your distance from the line and goal.
  
• Practice beforehand if you can.
  

Thanks for the info, never shot any field sports before so I'm hoping to start off on the right foot. Hoping to get some good shots. It's a college so hopefully there will be plenty of action.

Thanks for the info, never shot any field sports before so I'm hoping to start off on the right foot. Hoping to get some good shots. It's a college so hopefully there will be plenty of action.

abruckse covers most of the basics well...a couple of other things...

When I shot my first soccer game one of the biggest struggles was getting the timing right on header shots (like his 4th example)...you have to anticipate where the ball is going to land, point that direction, ensure you are shooting wide enough, or pan upward slightly to ensure players don't jump out of frame and then click away!

Also, when on the sidelines, be aware that on each side of the field, the linesmen run up and down frequently and often. Stay out of their way! Fortunately they only patrol one half of the side they are on and the other half is clear for you to stand in.

Be patient and let the play come to you so that you can fill the frame.

Use the sun to your advantage and be sure to have it at your back so it is nicely lighting the players...i.e. avoid backlighting.

With the above point in mind, where possible watch your backgrounds...if field is ringed by parking lots, or other "clutter" try and move so it is not. Fans and stands in BG are good...just be sure to shoot at an aperture that can blur them out a bit (I like f4 and lower depending on light)....a bit higher if using the extender.

Here are a few examples from me if you care to have a look http://christianjstewa​rt.zenfolio.com/f37340​7129

Have fun with it!

keep your camera trained on any goal scorers, the action doesn't stop when the ball hits the back of the net.


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