How to Become a Sports Photographer

A distinct area of photojournalism, a sports photographer needs to have a sound understanding of the sports being photographed in order to know where to find the best angles and shots.

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Steps

1. 1
   Love sport. There is little point wanting to enter this field if your sole reason is financial. A sports-enthused photographer will find it much easier to capture the real essence of the sporting moment because your natural instincts will help to prime you for recognizing vital moments worth shooting.
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2. 2
   Prepare to be ambitious. Sports photography is competitive and you'll need to have both excellent photography skills and excellent people skills, in order to work with the people who can get you the positions you need for taking the best shots.

   • Improve your photography skills. If you're a beginner, take courses that will teach you as many technical elements and special techniques as possible. If you can find a sports specialty course, so much the better. Read wikiHow's article on photographing sports to help you get focused.
   • Improve your people skills. The best location for seeing the action in professional sports will often be where they've placed the best seating or VIP boxes. If allowed there, you'll need to be very professional, unobtrusive, and courteous with the people around you.
3. 3
   Practice your sports shooting skills by photographing amateur games in anything. From ice hockey to football, swimming to horseriding, give as many sports as possible a try so that your skills are broad and well tried out.

   • Start with an easier sport and work your way up to harder sports. For example, a sport with less movement is easier to begin with than one that has lots of speed and quick movements. It is easier to capture a rower than a goalie, for example.
4. 4
   Ensure that you're using the right equipment. Invest in quality cameras and lenses. A lot of sports photography requires having a fast telephoto lenses (gets you close in), with fast autofocus (movement). A wide aperture is important for isolating the subject and not focusing on the surroundings, fast-moving responsiveness, and having fast shutter speeds allow you to freeze the action.^[1]
5. 5
   Create a portfolio from your very best photos across a range of sports. Consider making both a hard copy portfolio and an online one. Always choose the very best and discard the rest, even those you're fond of (you can look at the latter after work!) Show your skills off to their best advantage. Try to show the following:

   • Your skill at capturing movement
   • Your skill at capturing speed
   • Your skill at recognizing a moment worth capturing, such as the agony on a goalie's face when he misses the save, or the pain of a cyclist contorted under her fallen bike, or the sheer exhilaration of the swimmer as he places his hand on the wall and wins.
   • Your skill at using backdrops or other elements to provide an overall feel
   • Your skill at capturing the mood of the crowd.
6. 6
   Apply for a position as a photographer at a relevant newspaper, local journal, website, etc., and specify your particular interest in sports photography.

   • It may take some time before you're shifted into the photo job of your dreams. If you have to do time running around as an assistant, be grateful for the experience and tips. You'll get there, with patience and skill.
   • Read wikiHow's article on becoming a professional photographer.