Quick Tips for Photographing Indoor Sporting Events

by Bill Jones

If there is one thing that is truly difficult to photograph it is indoor sporting events. The lighting is often so poor as to make stop-action photography nearly impossible, and the position of the photographer is usually significantly distant from the action. Additionally, many artificially lit environments can throw off the auto white balance settings which can make colors appear a bit “sickly” too.

The way to begin to address any indoor sporting event photography is to consider the positioning of the photographer. If they must be located in the “stands” or fan seating, it is important to get as low and close to the action as possible. Additionally, looking for a seat with a good position to the end zone, scoring area, basket, etc. is an ideal way to record some dynamic moments. If the teams or action is headed towards the camera’s lens the results will be even better.

Photo by Stephen Kirsch

Once a photographer knows their position in regards to the action, they can then begin to address the camera settings that are most likely to have an effect on the outcome of their photography. These settings will include the shutter speed, ISO, and the aperture.

To begin with, the shutter speed is going to have a major impact on the tone of the photograph. For example, if it is capable of freezing the action it will prevent the photographer from adding a sense of motion or movement into their image through any blurring. For some sporting events this is highly desirable, but for others it may need to be adjusted to meet the needs of the photographer’s style.

If shutter speed must be as fast as possible, the photographer can then turn to ISO and aperture settings to make this happen. The ISO can make the camera sensor more sensitive to the light that strikes it and the aperture will allow more light to enter the camera. Although these are ideal outcomes for the need to freeze action, a higher ISO can add “noise” or graininess to a picture and a large aperture can dramatically shorten the depth of field.

Photo by Rick French

What do these things mean to someone doing indoor sports photography? Well, if you are relatively close to your subject and don’t mind the foreground and background being out of focus you can pull in a lot of light by opening up the aperture on the lens. If you don’t intend to blow up or enlarge prints of your photographs to any great extent, the ISO can also be set to a higher level too.

Most indoor sports photographers tend to use the “aperture priority” mode on their camera with the f/stop set as low as possible. They also usually set the ISO to the “auto” mode with a maximum level of 1600. Finally, they set their shutter speed to a minimum of 1/60th, but allow for some flexibility if action must be frozen instead of blurred.

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10 Comments

Cameta Camera said:

Great Tips. Are you using any type or flash?
Luz Rivera said:

Magnificent motivation. I am fixing to become a photographer too.
Bill Jones said:

@Cameta
Check out Stephen’s setup here http://www.flickr.com/photos/stephenkirsh/3275648858/
Sarthak Singhal said:

Thanks for the settings information. It seems more generic which can be applied to any low light shooting conditions without the usage of Flash or any artificial lighting system.
Jen said:

I don’t know if I’d say most photographers shoot indoor sports on aperture priority. I pretty much always use manual and set my ISO depending on what I can get away with – take a couple of shots to test exposure and you’re golden. And if you’ve ever shot fast action sports, you know that 1/60 will never cut it…unless maybe you’re shooting yoga. Sports like basketball and volleyball can blur even at 1/400, so be careful and always use your manual settings. Remember that M is for Master.
Bill Jones said:

@Jen

Awesome tips, thanks for sharing!
Stephen Kirsh said:

Yea for indoor shots I shoot in full manual. The basketball photo you have above was shot at, off the top of my head, 1/200 iso400 and f2.8. All in manual.
Gary M Williams said:

Those are great tips for low light sports photography, but be careful
with the use of slow shutter speeds below 250th of a second. I have
shot night baseball, basketball as well as many other sports under the
lights for 50 years, using 500th of second almost 99% of the time.

I have a good range of very fast glass on hand to make this happen. A
long f2.8 lens is a must have under the lights for most outdoor
sports photography. I use only the best lens in my work.

The short telephoto 85mm f1.8 is ideal for basketball and boxing. The
super fast long telephoto 300 f2.8 or 400 f2.8 lens is used for
baseball and soccer under the lights. My Nikon VR 70-200mm f2.8 zoom
is my main stay lens.

I also use a new 120-300 f2.8 Sigma zoom for soccer and baseball. This
zoom is amazing and it is the only zoom of its kind in that range and
speed.

Blur is OK for the occasional sports photo. But night in and night
out, I want to freeze all the action with the longest lens I can use
for that sport under the lights.

Remember to shoot lots of images per shooting. This helps you get
more keepers then rejects.

When I was taught by my first AP photo editor on how to shoot sports,
he said always have the ball in the photo, and only tack sharp images
will be used. He said use the longest lens you can for that sport.
Tight action is what separates the men from the boys. Good image
quality is the goal that I have never stop trying to achieved. Sports
or fast breaking news is a challenge at night, but with the right
equipment and lots of practice you to can make that once in a life
time image.
Bill Jones said:

Amazing info Gary! We really appreciate your insight.
Sean Hoxworth said:

Good advice / info Gary, any other comment on the Sigma 120 – 300 2.8 I am really interested in that lens, but the price is a consideration for a ‘part time hobby / freelancer’ LOL! but seems ideal lens for soccer / football and many other activities.