You Only Get One Shot! That's Why You Hire a Professional Photographer.

I get phone calls all the time from a Mom or a Dad, asking me to give a price to come out and photograph their son or daughter playing a particular sport or a coach will call me to come and shoot a team in an event.

My prices are not the cheapest. I generally charge between $250-$400 per event, depending on the circumstances.

While I don't get a lot of resistance to my pricing, due to the reputation I have as a sports photographer, I still occasionally do get the; "Wow! That's pretty high."

My response is always one of two questions, depending on what mood I am in.

Response one: "Are you referring to price or cost?" or "What criteria do you use when choosing a professional sports photographer?"

Are you paying for photos or are you paying for memories?

If you are simply buying pictures, find someone with a camera from Best Buy and give them $25 and let them post 400 shots on their website.

If you have a special occasion and you want it captured for a keepsake, you need a professional.

When you hire a professional sports photographer to shoot action photos of a sporting event, you are not only paying for their time and effort, you are paying for their experience, knowledge of the game flow, understanding angles and momentum and anticipation.

You paying a professional sports photographer for their professional grade cameras with extreme low light capabilities. You're renting their high speed professional grade lenses that can run $8000 to $10,000.00.

I've shot tens of thousands of action photos in little league baseball, select ball, football, basketball and other sports.

Every now and then I capture a moment like this.

Eaton, Ohio 8th grade basketball player Donnie Nicodemus was driving to the hoop in the Southwestern Buckeye League Championship game in Camden, Ohio at Preble Shawnee High School recently.

The lighting in the gym was not the worst I've shot in, but it wasn't good either.

I was shooting a Nikon D700 with a Nikor 80-200mm 2.8 lens and 5000 ISO and 1/800th of a second.

When I grabbed this frame and looked at the image, I realized that I had gotten Donnie's Mom in the background.

This wasn't just a picture, but rather a lifetime keepsake for Mom and son.

There is no greater satisfaction as a professional sports photographer than presenting a parent with a shot like this. I've shot a lot of pictures of Donnie as a result of little league photography. One I shot of him this past year was this pitching photo, with the Eaton Express, which became one of my favorites.

Why do you pay a professional photographer vs "Mom or Guy with Best Buy camera", you don't pay a professional for pictures and images. You hire a professional for memories that will hold a special place in your heart and soul for years to come.


Posted by Monroe Ohio photographer Vincent Rush, Cincinnati Sports Photography and Dayton Sports Photography of Monroe Ohio. Vince Rush can be contacted by phone at (877) 858-6295 or by email at vrush@rushintl.com or visit http://CincinnatiSportsPhotography.com

Vincent Rush is a an Ohio based professional sports photographer that primarily serves as a Dayton Sports Photographer and  Cincinnati sports photographer.

Tips on Becoming a Great Sports Photographer Part 3

   Big East Track Championships at University of Cincinnati by Cincinnati Sports Photographer Vincent Rush

...Part 3

Freezing Action Shots

So far, we have discussed each event and they types of shots to be taken. Safeties generally are taken at times where the action is minimal, and we don't have to concentrate as much on freezing the action. But what sells, and what the viewers want to see are people suspended in mid-air. They want to see the crisp ball laying just off the receivers finger tips. To do that, we must freeze the action.

Freezing the action requires fast shutter speeds. Most modern, high end 35mm SLRs have a top shutter speed of 1/8000th of a second. Except for a speeding bullet, this is about fast enough to catch anything you or I are likely to shoot, even an Indy car blasting around the track at 230mph.

But it isn't that simple. Lets first discuss a standard photographic rule of thumb, which is the minimal speed for hand-holding a lens. The minimal shutter speed for hand holding a lens is 1 divided by the focal length of the lens. Thus a 50mm lens should not be hand held any slower than 1/50th of a second. A 300mm lens should not be hand held at less than 1/300th of a second. If your camera does not have shutter speeds between say 1/250 and 1/500, then you round up. So for a 300mm lens, your minimal hand hold speed may be 1/500th of a second. The more proficient you get, the more likely you are to be able to cheat by one shutter speed. A monopod is the preferred way for action photographers to gain additional steadiness. It can generally buy you one to two shutter speeds of hand holding.

Not only has it become more difficult to hand hold these lenses, it becomes harder to freeze the action as well. The lenses get heavier and harder to hold. Your breathing and heart beating and muscle strain are enough to cause still objects hard to capture. Longer lenses not only magnify the scene, they magnify the apparent movement. If a runner passes through the viewfinder with a 50mm lens attached in one second, then at 500mm, the same person moving at the same speed will pass in 1/10th of a second.

Generally, to freeze action, you need at least two full shutter speeds if not more faster than the hand hold speed. So for our 300mm lens, you will need at least 1/1200 to 1/2400 to freeze action with this lens (rounding up, that's 1/2000-1/4000th of a second). Even at these speeds, you may have to follow side to side movement, called panning to have the movement crisp when you expose the film Lets say you are shooting a car racing event. Even at high shutter speeds, if you hold the camera still and wait on the car, you will capture a blur. By matching the movement of the subject with the movement of the lens, you minimize the relative motion between the two.

For subjects coming to you or heading away, their apparent movement isn't as great. Many people make up some of the action freezing by getting things coming toward them.

Film is critical in freezing action. Each increase in film speed gets you one more shutter speed. So if you shoot an event with ISO 100 film and the best you can get is 1/500th of a second, switching to an ISO 400 film gets you to 1/2000th which may be enough to freeze the action. Going to ISO 1600, will take you to 1/8000th of a second.

Adding high shutter speeds, fast films, monopods, panning, or shooting objects as they come toward you, and capturing action at its peak will let you freeze fantastic shots.

Giving the illusion of movement.

Many new action photographers worry about freezing action, trying to get the crispest shots possible. Even veteran photographers will try for crisp shots, but they are not afraid to allow some blurring.

Stop and think about it for a minute. A baseball pitcher throws the ball, the batter swings the bat. Your eyes don't freeze the action precisely, so why should your pictures. A blurring bat, or an elongated ball leaving a blurry arm imply movement. As long as most of the body and the face is crisp a little motion in the hands, feet, and projectiles is acceptable and in many cases desired. This is another little cheat in not having that fast of a shutter speed.

Some times, we slow the shutter speed down intentionally to amplify the movement. We have all seen shots of runners where the background is a blur their arms and legs are a blur, but their body and head are fairly well focused. Combining panning, slower shutter speeds, and predictable movement and you can capture some very dramatic pictures showing all kinds of movement.

These types of shots require patients, work, and a lot of experimenting. Don't hesitate, when at an event to experiment with different techniques . . . after you get your safeties and your primary shots.

Emotion

Shots that lack emotion are ho-hum. They lack energy. They lack story telling ability. If there is no emotion, then there is little desire to view it. Most tight action shots of players will be emotional. Regardless of level, these players, when they are exerting themselves, exhibit emotion. From the little tee-ball player messing with her hair and her helmet, to the strain of a pole vaulter working to get over the cross bar, there is plenty of emotion to be found in sports. You will, from experience be able to edit out the shots that lack emotion and do not tell the story. But it requires shooting and shooting.

You should also look for emotion from other sources. As years of ABC's Wide World of Sports told us . . . The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. Make sure to save film to shoot the players after their events. Or during their events, don't always focus on the ball, but on the emotion after the big 360 degree slam dunk. Don't forget to look for emotion in the coaches and the fans. A lot of the best shots come from the crowd.

Where to Start

 It's important to understand that not every photographer will be able to take this information and expect to step onto the field at Great American Ball Park, sit in the press gallery and expect to capture Grade A shots of Jay Bruce and Joey Votto. To get to that level, you have to have a proven sports portfolio and work for an agency who can get you access.

Before you get to that level, you have to shoot a lot of minor sporting events. The best place to start is your local youth leagues. Early in my career, I got broken in on high school sports, but through my experience there, I got to shoot for my college papers and year books. That allowed me access to shoot NCAA Division I sports early on. But I would not have had that opportunity without having developed a portfolio from my early days of shooting.

Local youth leagues provide you great access and opportunities to use smaller lenses to capture shots. As your portfolio develops, you can approach shooting at higher levels. You can get a lot of practice and experience here which is valuable when going to "The Show".

Today, I am back shooting for a small town paper and the highest level of sports that I have reasonable access to is high school. Even though I have been to "The Show", I still enjoy getting pictures of 5 year olds when they catch their first ball or score their first goal.

You may however get opportunities to shoot pro games from a fan's perspective. Depending on your location in the arena, you can get some reasonably good shots. Take your long lens and some high speed film and make the most of it. In these situations, freezing action isn't as important as being able to hand hold the lens. The players will be at such a distance that their movement will be like a person closer to you with a normal lens on. As long as you have enough shutter speed to get a steady shot you should be able to get memorable shots.

Summary

One final note. Don't rush your action assignments. Spend some time, and expect to burn some film. Only through practice and looking at the results and going back to it will you get the timing and skills needed to one day capture world class shots.


Written by Rob Miracle in 1998

Written by Sports Photographer Rob Miracle and posted by Cincinnati Ohio Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Cincinnati Sports Photography.

Posted by Monroe Ohio photographer Vincent Rush, Cincinnati Sports Photography and Dayton Sports Photography of Monroe Ohio. Vince Rush can be contacted by phone at (877) 858-6295 or by email at vrush@rushintl.com or visit http://CincinnatiSportsPhotography.com Check out my about.me profile!

The A List:: Super Sports

 Little League Sports Action Photograph of Eaton Ohio Little Leaguer, by Vincent Rush of Cincinnati Sports Photography

Robert Beck is a Sports Illustrated contract photographer with over 25 years experience shooting all manner of sports events. He's as comfortable applying his skills to his son's flag football game as he is to prowling the sidelines at the Super Bowl. We recently asked him to share some tips from his A-list of sports shooting advice.

• The first thing I look at is the background. Whatever the action is, the background will complete the picture. I don't want a busy background—a lot of fences or light glaring off a fence. A lot of people in the stands are okay, but I don't want one person walking by or just standing around. Some sports are good with the bench as background, like lacrosse or football, with coaches and players behind the action. Shooting Little League is trickier. The field is an odd shape, and I try to crop out distractions. I shoot the batter so the bench is in the background as opposed to two parents and otherwise empty aluminum stands reflecting light. The rule of thumb: real clean or real real.

• The first lens in my kit is the 70-200mm zoom lens [AF-S VR Zoom-NIKKOR 70-200mm f/2.8G IF-ED]. Very sharp, very fast, and if I have to shoot through a fence, I shoot wide open and the fence won't even show. It also offers me a lot of flexibility in composing; too tight, I zoom out, too loose, zoom in. My next lens is the 200-400mm [AF-S VR Zoom-NIKKOR 200-400mm f/4G IF-ED]; fabulous for any sport, just perfect.

• I'm shooting D3 right now almost exclusively. I also have a D700 and a D300. Focusing is quick on all, but the D3 is a little faster in its burst. But I suggest you don't get caught up in shooting sequences. In reality the high point of action is really one or two frames, especially in sports where a ball is struck. The ball is only going to be in there for one frame, and if a kid is fielding the ball, the ball's only there for three frames. Generally, five frames per second is fast enough.

• The truth is that professional sports are almost easier to shoot. The younger the kids, the less you can anticipate—they don't have a sense of timing like the pros or older kids; the young kids are all a little bit off the timing. Be prepared.

Posted by Monroe Ohio photographer Vincent Rush, Cincinnati Sports Photography and Dayton Sports Photography of Monroe Ohio. Vince Rush can be contacted by phone at (877) 858-6295 or by email at vrush@rushintl.com or visit http://CincinnatiSportsPhotography.com Check out my about.me profile!

You Can Bet Your Glass!

Ever wonder how it seems that the guys with the big cameras and huge lenses get the outstanding shots time after time? Must be the camera…right? I mean, you were in almost the same position, taking the same shot with your point and shoot or your Nikon D90 with the provided kit lens.

In my opinion, all things being equal, such as position and angle, it is more often than not, the lens. You don't need a Cincinnati Reds Press Pass to get outstanding baseball shots, if you have great seats and an even better lens.

I get people ask me all the time about upgrading their cameras for several hundred dollars to get 1 or 2 more mega pixels.

Many times, weather you’re shooting portrait photography of sports photography; you may already have a camera suitable for capturing the same quality of sports photography that I will typically display. What you don’t have, is a quality piece of glass, or lens on your camera.

I shoot the same quality sports action pictures with my $1700 Nikon D200 as I could with a $5000 Nikon D3.

The glass, along with a choice selection depth of field, say 5.6 or higher, will go a long way to capturing that sharp depth of field in your sports photographs.

The length of the lens, will give your pictures that compression factor that is a trade mark in professional sports photography.

In other words, a 50 millimeter lens will give a more accurate relationship between your subject and the background. A 200 millimeter lens will draw that background in close to your subject matter giving it the “Pro” look and feel.

In this picture of Go-Kart racers, I was at G&J Kartway in Camden, Ohio, a nationally recognized professional go-kart track where the likes of NASCAR driver Tony Stewart have gotten their starts.

I used a Nikkor 80-200 millimeter lens and a mono pod and set this shot up where I knew there would be close competition in an S curve.

It took me about 6 attempts to get these guys in just the right position as they were racing.

The 200 millimeter lens gives the illusion that the back two racers are literally hooked up bumper to bumper and makes for an intense action shot.

Any other camera or lens would have shown you that there was ample separation between the three of them.

I you aspire to be a quality sports photographer, the one investment you’ll never go wrong on would be your lenses. You can “bet your glass” that the photographer with the better lenses will always capture the best sports photographs of your event.

Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

Capture Cincinnati 2009

Well Capture Cincinnati 2009 has almost officially wrapped up for this year and to be hones with you, I’m kind of glad. It routinely takes up too much of my already limited attention span as it is.

I first jumped on board with the program last year after seeing an article in Cin Weekly while at my local Fitworks Health Club

I thought it would be a good way to see how I could stack up against the masses of photographers from the area and assumed it was a legitimate well respected publication.

I’m not saying that any of those things aren’t true, but what it really is amounts to a very clever marketing idea that steals a page from the old high school “Who’s Who, Among American high school Students” books.

I was a marginal C & D student in high school at prestigious Preble Shawnee in Camden, Ohio in the late 70’ and early 1980’s when I received a notice in the mail that I, Vincent Rush, had been selected as a member…and for only $35 dollars my picture and a copy of the book would be delivered to my home.

Well, what parent could resist forking over the $35 dollars for the bragging rights of her specially selected son as one of the top high school students in America?

So along comes Capture Cincinnati and without pontificating through several long arduous paragraphs, what aspiring photographer could refuse to fork over $29 to see his or her picture published in a hard bound coffee table book? Possibly even buy a few for friends and family!!!!

Enough photographers get one picture in the book and the publishers are already profitable. All the extra books are “gravy”. It’s a can’t miss scenario. I work in commercial print and I can tell you that each book costs very little to produce. WISH I HAD THOUGHT OF IT!!!!!

Now there is a voting system in place where supposedly your work will be published based on it’s acceptance by the photography community who approves your shots or rejected as a result of the masses of negative votes, cast by all those who either genuinely do not like your pictures or try to “vote you out of their way”.

I believe there is some validity to the seemingly sophisticated algorithms they use, but I have to be honest with you, I think the editors then actually choose among the best and put a book together that is attractive.

Now I’ll admit that it was pretty cool to get 5 of my pictures published last year and win a 3rd place award, but one of my pictures that they used was not that good and did not garner a lot of votes, rather it “just fit” the theme.


And there were also some pictures I remember that literally kicked butt in popularity, were far better than mine and never even got into the book.

So this year I shifted my focus of what I was out to accomplish. I used the contest to showcase my sports photography.

Not to the large percent of photographers in the book, because why would any of them ever call you to come shoot pictures? But rather the small handful of professional sports photographers that enter their own and people from marketing firms and local media that actually see the work.

Last year after the contest was over and I got my $25 gift card to Dillard’s for a 3rd place prize, I started getting a few calls from people such as “The Cincinnati Business Courier”, WLWT, Cincinnati Convention and Visitors Bureau, Cincinnati Reds, etc.

I then realized that Capture Cincinnati was not so much a legitimate photography contest, but another marketing tool for me to establish my brand.

So in 2009 my focus was totally removed from getting pictures “published” (although I will be flattered) but rather “displaying” an assortment of stunning action and sports photography, Cincinnati or not, for the eyeballs that really matter when it comes to achieving my own long term goals of shooting professional sports…professionally.

Because as I said before, what photographer in the book is going to call me up and ask if I will come shoot their family portraits or senior pictures?

Because of my posts this year alone I have gotten calls to shoot NCAA Football, Division 1 High School football and a few newspaper assignments. I have even had further talks with the Cincinnati Reds.

As I’ve said before, “if you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there. The difference between good photographers that make money and good photographers that would like to make money is marketing and knowing what you’re trying to accomplish.


Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

War Paint

One of the differences between a professional sports photographer and a sports picture taker is a creativity.

When I am shooting sports photography in the Dayton, Ohio or Cincinnati, Ohio regions, I not only will shoot the stop action pictures, but I also never quit looking for the art of the sport of in some cases, the strange and unique.

I was covering an NCAA Division 3 College Football game on a recent Saturday at the college of Mount St. Joseph. I was watching players warming up at pre-game and caught a glimpse of "The Beast".

This dude was a beast on the field as well! For a Division 3 football team like the Mount. St Joseph Lions, this guy was a Lawrence Taylor on the field. A strong side defensive end that was more than a handful for the visiting Wisconsin team.

Back to topic...

The "war paint", which is becoming very common these days, and the menacing look when I yelled, "Hey 99!", and for a great "Faces of the Game" picture. I already had my Nikon D200 and Nikkor 200 millimeter lens focused on him. After I got my shot, I gave him the thumbs up and he smiled and acknowledged.

As a photographer, I am generally very aggressive when I'm going after my shots. A lot of camera carrying picture takers will stand in one space and hope the picture comes to them. I'm a big believer that you have to go after your shots and you have to have the creativity to know what makes for good pictures and what doesn't.

Standing out and being unique takes work and effort, but it pays huge dividends when people begin to separate your art from the masses.

Lesson is, always have a game face on.


Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

Colerain Cardinal Football

For more Colerain Cardinal Football Sports Photography, visit Http://CincinnatiSportsPhotography.com

Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

Angles are Everything

I was asked by an aspiring SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHER the other day, what I was referring to when I talk about the "pro style angle"

In this CINCINNATI sports photo, I use a picture of my own son, taken at the Cincinnati vs. Indianapolis I-74 Series baseball game held in August at University of Cincinnati's Marge Schott Stadium.

Now, like any Father, I love my boy and I love watching him play baseball, but I'm also realistic about his skill level. He's a "happy go lucky" kid that has a lot of heart, but he is not exactly on BASEBALL AMERICA'S Magazine's Top 100 10 Year Old's radar. In fact my nickname for him is "John Kruk Gump" (Hits like Kruk, runs like Gump. A take off on "Willie Mays Hayes")

In SPORTS Photography, a low shot angle gives the players a more majestic grown up look. If you study SPORTS ILLUSTRATED, ESPN MAGAZINE, CINCINNATI REDS or CINCINNATI BENGALS SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY, you'll notice that very rarely, are the pictures ever taken above eye level.

Because of the angle of this shot, Zachary Rush, looks like a jungle cat getting ready to pounce on a hard smash down the first base line. More importantly, if I'm a Dad looking at this shot of my son, it's very flattering and one I wouldn't mind having a framed 8 x 10 of, in my man cave.

This picture was shot with a NIKON D200 and a NIKKOR 80-200 2.8 lens.

Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

Here Come the Elks!

One of my first money making SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY shoots was the Centerville Wee Elks and my good friend Mark Deddens of Centerville Ohio.

I had just gotten a new NIKKOR lens, a 80-200 f2.8, and wanted to test it out on my NIKON D200. I

n my early days of shooting sports photography in CINCINNATI and DAYTON, OHIO, I gave a lot of pictures away. This day was no exception, as I shot a ton of my friends two kids and along with that, I shot a bunch of his friends kids.

After he took the pictures and gave the 4x6's to families of the WEE ELKS, I started getting calls to come and cover individual players and then the team as a whole.

After all was said and done, this one day brought in about $450.

When beginning a sideline in SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY, you may have to give away quite a few pictures to establish your brand and reputation. Centerville just happened to be one of those communities where the parents are not cheap and I knew it was good soil to sew into.

Most photographers fail because the try to build a business while building their reputation and brand simultaneously. Photography being such an easy field to get into, especially with today's cameras, there is not a high enough profit margin in the beginning. In my opinion, if you have a desire to be a sports photographer in CINCINNATI, DAYTON or with the CINCINNATI REDS, go build your name first, then instead of chasing the money, it will begin to chase you.

In this simple picture, I just positioned myself knee level, about 20 yards from the arches and got lucky to catch the first kid sprinting through the tunnel.

Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

Photoshop and Cincinnati Sports Photography

I'm not a big fan of blowing up every sports photography with Photoshop. I have seen some really good sports action pictures that lose the impact of the action or the moment by an over zealous photoshopper that converts every picture into color / black and white combos.

Actually, I don't know enough about photoshop to be a pro at it. So far I can whiten teeth and remove blemishes. A skill that would have paid of handsomely in high school

I used the technique on this sports photograph during a Monroe High school football game, only because I caught a great stop action shot of the Monroe Hornet quarterback, however he was lost in a cluster of dark blue uniforms, and I wanted to draw emphasis to the actual player himself.

In shooting sports photography in Cincinnati or Dayton, Ohio, I try to think like a photojournalist first and a trendy artist second.

It's always important to remember your niche and play within your game. Fancy color "popping" techniques make for some visual eye candy, but you don't see much of it in Sports Illustrated or other sports magazines.

This photograph was shot with a Nikon D200 and a Nikkor 80-200 2.8 lens. A Promaster Monopod was used with the camera and Photoshop CS3 was used to edit the picture.
Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

Average Joe

I often say that the difference between Sports Photographers and Picture Takers is the understanding of the game and the ability to work for the shots that most people never get.

This is a good example of what I see at most sporting events in and around the Cincinnati and Dayton, Ohio area. This "Sports Photographer", covering a baseball game in Dayton, Ohio stood at this position and shot from this one angle the entire game. He never moved and never even changed his lens position.

As it turns out, this was one of the most exciting Little League Baseball games of the year. You can see my shots at www.CincinnatiSportsPhotography.com under Sports
/ Baseball / Eaton vs. Shelbyville

These are the guys that think they are sports photographers, but in reality are nothing more that picture snappers.
Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

Down the Line

Saturday August 8th, had me providing sports photography coverage for the Cincinnati Metro Softball tournament.

This was one of the top sports photos of more than 600 shot on this muggy August afternoon.

Good sports photography is a lot about timing and anticipation as well as luck. I had noticed that the one team in particular was pulling a lot of balls down the 3rd base line. I positioned myself on one knee and focused on the 3rd baseman.

It took about 5 batters but I finally got the fish that I had been casting the line for.

I use Nikon cameras and Nikkor lenses for clarity and high shutters speed for all of my sports photography.

Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

Pig Pen

Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

What Shutter Speed Should I Use?

I was asked on a website the simple question of "what shutter speed do you use" to get such clear, stop action sports photographs.

Here is my answer and a simple tutorial for any up and coming sports photographer.

It's a combo of factors that make for a picture like that or any good sports photograph;

1) Quality of your glass. I use Nikkor lenses. In this case I use a Nikkor 80-200 2.8 lens
2) Of course there's shutter speed. In these pictures I use 1/2000
3) Depth of field is very important. I try to use the lenses optimal preformance aperature for sports (5.6-6.5)
4) ISO. The lower the better. On sunny days I try to stay at 200
5) And finally, focal point. I focus in on the face.

The intangibles are an understanding of the flow of the game, player tendancies, angle of vision and...a little luck!


Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

Batters Eye View

One of the shots I've always liked in sports photography, weather it's a Cincinnati Reds photograph or a youth sports photograph is the "batters eye" shot. In other words, what does the batter see?

To get this shot, I slipped in behind the catcher during warm ups, after I made sure he had good control that day and let the motor drive run.

One of the keys to being a good sports photographer, in Cincinnati, Dayton or anywhere on the globe, is to have the ability to put the viewer in the game.

Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

Line Hugger

While I like shooting sports photography, I still like to occasionally shoot abstract stuff or images of the game. This was a shot that I set up while everyone else was shooting 10,000 pictures of theur kids sitting in the back of pickup trucks for the Eaton Ohio Little League parade.

I used a 200mm lens, set my colr scheme on vivid and rolled the ball up to the line. I pruposely shot at an angle for effect. What I got out of the picture was a nice file photo that I can use in my galleries.

Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

You know it's time for a haircut.....

...I'm not sure that anything needs to be said.

That's the great thing about shooting youth sports photography. You never know what interesting things you'll see at the park. This picture will be one of my entries for Capture Cincinnati 2009 when the contest begins.

I was shooting little league baseball photographs in Monroe, Ohio during my son's game and this young boy took his turn at catcher. It made for a colorful photograph.
Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

Sweet Spot

Traditionally, I am not an over zealous fan of "catching" the ball on the bat in a sports photograph. Personally I think it is very overrated. I do not recall seeing very many Sports Illustrated shots with the ball on the bat barrel. However, I talk to a lot of aspiring sports photographers that consider this type of shot the "Big Fish" capture.

I did like this shot however, due to the fact that the ball is squarely on the "Sweet Spot" of the bat barrel and the kid has very good form in his swing. On this shot, he ripped a long one into right center field and got a triple out of it.
Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

Eye of the Tiger

I think that I may have shot a new favorite photo.

While shooting sports photography for little league in Monroe, Ohio, I was simply getting some good motor drive action on the 10 year old pitcher. It wasn't untill I downloaded all the images that I noticed the incredible stop action in this.

I usually get the best pictures of the pitchers because they tend to be the best athletes on the team. The intense look on this young guy will win him a place in my portfolio of Youth Sports Photography.

Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295

Payoff Pitch

Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295