Article about tips in sport photography for CEWE
Michael Mauron: Sports photographer and athlete
How do I capture movement with my camera? With the tips from photographer Michael Mauron, you can take breathtaking sports photos. He is a passionate sportsman.
Sports photography allows you to live in the moment, witness feats and feel strong emotions. Being a sportsman myself and often passionate about the sports I photograph, I’m able to live the moment with the athlete through my lens and partly understand what he or she is going through. In my opinion, this passion comes through in my pictures.
My best advice would be to know your equipment, to always question yourself and to look for inspiration from others, but also to practice a lot to improve and to get out of your comfort zone.
Change of perspective
French Polynesia, 1/2500 sec, f/6.3, iso400
At Teahupoo in French Polynesia, all photographers usually stand in front of the waves to capture the surfers. For this shot, however, I decided to change the angle of view. I asked the boat driver to move to the side of the wave. In this way, I was able to place myself at the center of the action to capture the surfer going inside the wave. It allows me to reveal how much water there is behind the wave and how vertical the wall is. The viewer can see the surfer’s committed position, his technique and the courage he has to show.
This picture has been selected to represent the sports category at the next CEWE Photo Award Contest. I’m very proud and it’s an achievement that my photo illustrates what the jury is looking for. Don’t hesitate to enter this contest to show how beautiful our world is.
Passion for sport combined with the beauty of our planet
Switzerland, 1/1000 sec, f/5.6, iso100
Maldives, 1/640 sec, f/5, iso100
I’m Michael, a young Swiss man in his thirties who lives in Lausanne (Switzerland). I love skiing or snowboarding in my country, and surfing or scuba diving whenever I can go on holiday.
I started taking my first photos when I was about 20, and I’ve never stopped learning and challenging myself to improve. So sports photography is the perfect combination. I can never get bored of living competitions when photograping sports events. My aim is to inspire and motivate you to discover our world through nature and sports.
Create movement in a composition
Maldives, 1/1250 sec, f/2.8, iso 100
This expert tip is about creating movement. First, the viewer can imagine the foam continuing to advance, the wave closing in on the surfer or the water exploding into the air. Similarly, the orientation of the surfer’s board and the trail he leaves behind suggest where he’s heading. A second technique is to create movement in the viewer’s eyes using lines of force. Indeed, we’re inviting him to follow a particular path in order to read our image. First, he will look at the wave breaking at the bottom of the picture, then continue up its crest to reach the surfer, and finally look at the its future trajectory.
Anticipation
Switzerland, 1/640 sec, f/7.1, iso 100
In sports photography, everything happens very quickly, we have less than a second to react so anticipation is the key. For example, we can tell what kind of rotation a freestyle skier is going to throw depending on how his arm is positioned.
In this picture, the snowboarder’s upside down position above the clouds makes this image unique and powerful. It was morning and a few clouds were still hanging over the valley floor. I saw a cloud rising, so I had to anticipate the cloud’s and the athlete’s trajectory to get this shot. By the time the next athlete jumped, it was already too late.
Preparation and knowing your equipment
Maldives, 1/60 sec, f/2.8, iso 100
You need to know your equipment to be able to live the event and never miss a shot. This freedom also allows you to get away from the action like the picture of the surfer waiting for a wave. He has to paddle to escape the waves and to stay in the right position to catch the next good wave. You can feel the power of the wave thanks to the amount of foam present and how small humans are compared to the power of nature. Preparation is also important. In this case, I had to check the swell every day and I waited three weeks to get big waves like this.
Observation
Switzerland, 1/1600 sec, f/5.6, iso2000
Observation is one of the most important qualities for a photographer. It allows you to see what others don’t. It can reveal tiny details in the action that make a shot great such as a trailing hand during a contact in team sports. A good sense of observation will also allow you to spot details on the spectators excitement after a victory, the coach’s irritation or the referee making a decision.
In this picture of a triathlon, I focused on the athletes’s prosthesis to show the self-sacrifice and achievement of these athletes despite their disability.
Knowing your sport
Switzerland, 1/2500 sec, f/5.6, iso 125
Knowing the sport you’re photographing is necessary. Indeed, you need to know the rules of the game to understand what’s going to happen, when an action is at its peak or what the athletes are trying to achieve.
The best is to practice the sport you’re shooting. This allows you to feel and understand every movement the athlete makes. That way, you can emphasize certain details such as a grab held longer in freestyle skiing. You also understand before anyone else that the performance is exceptional.
I wish you much success with your sports photography.
Michael Mauron
Link of the article: sport photography tips
