Basketball

Ode to Basketball Photojournalism
by Tim Webb

This is my David Letterman version of a Top 10 List on how I cover basketball. Each photojournalist tends to have their own way of shooting sports, but I learned how to do it from two of Kentucky’s finest, Mark Cornelison of the Lexington Herald-Leader and Jim Osborn, formerly of the Cincinnati Post. Jim was a big influence on me shooting with strobes in the catwalk of a gym, and Mark taught me that every game has “THE” moment, and it’s our job as photographers to capture that moment. Which means you have to be ready at all times, because you never know when that moment will occur.

Jim usually comes to Richmond and sleeps on my couch during the All-A Classic, and I wind up staying up, way too late for someone putting in 14 hour days, asking him questions about The Freezer Bowl of 1982, between the Bengals and Chargers. And the 1979 National League Peanant, when he caught THE MOMENT, as Pittsburg’s Willie Stargell hit the game winning homerun. One of the best things that Mark ever did for me as a photographer, he did out of frustration. I kept talking, while shooting the All-A Classic with him one year. He put his camera down and said, in true Mark-Fashion, “Hey, I have an idea, why don’t we talk during the action and shoot during the time outs!” He got his point across! I shut up and started shooting.

1. Shooting basketball is like dancing, you have to have a rhythm. Basketball is a constantly moving sport, get a rhythm, get into a zone and stay in a zone. Then anticipate the action. Once you’re in the zone, anticipation is the next big step. The ability to anticipate the action requires 100% concentration on what’s in front of you. The worst thing you can do is get a conversation going with the guy sitting next you. If you’re talking, that means you’re missing out on something on the court or in the stands.
2. Shoot early and shoot often. I try to shoot at least five frames with each possession. Don’t worry about whether it’s not a keeper or not, just shoot. Sometimes if you keep waiting on that perfect shot, then it never happens and you’re left with nothing. Plus, it pulls you into a lull. Besides, some of the best wacky shots are found between the arc and the half court line, while players are passing.
3. Don’t chimp behind the camera until you have down time, like a timeout. You may miss something.
4. Shoot the action and then look for reaction on the floor and the bench. This is a huge downfall for a lot of photographers, including myself. After a great play, the first thing I want to do is look and see if I got it, which is also one of the curses of the digital age. Stay behind the camera a little bit longer and try to catch a player pumping their fist, banging chests with another player, etc. The reaction is usually better than the action.
5. Get pumped up before the game.  Play some rock -n- roll, like Queen or AC/DC, and get yourself pumped up, just like the athletes. Then fantasize about winning the World Series, Super Bowl, or hitting the winning shot at the buzzer in the NCAA finals. It’s your responsibility to have a good mentality set before entering the building. If your mind is off by a half second, so will your action photos.
6. Have a game plan. Know how you would like to cover the game before you enter the building. Are you going to shoot under the basket? Will you use a 300 mm? Will you change location at halftime? Will you shoot from the stands? Think about the game before you get there.
7. Do your homework. Know key players, leading scorers, special stories, etc, before you enter the building. Any photographer who enters Rupp Arena without knowing that DeMarcus Cousins and John Wall are the players to look for, need to have their media credential revoked! Notice, I’ve used the phrase “before you enter the building” several times now. There’s a theme here. Athletes begin to prepare for a game long before tip-off, so should you!
8. The score board is your friend. When you have just taken a good shot of a player scoring, take a quick shot of the score board so that later you will know the player # and when they scored.
9. There is more to a game than what happens on the floor. Constantly look for features in the stands, and on the benches. You would be surprised at what you’ll find if you look hard enough.
10. Camera Equipment Revolves Around Sports. As bad as I hate to admit it, the camera industry revolves around the fastest cameras, with both shutter speed and ISO. That’s why Canon was able to emerge from the depths in the mid-1990s and eventually kick Nikon’s butt. But now, the two camera power houses are on equal ground until one of them comes out with a new camera. Regardless of what brand you shoot, put your auto focus on constant, and invest in your money in 2.8 lenses. A good 2.8 lens will save you in low light situations.
11. You have to have two balls. Okay…I lied about the top 10. Here is an extremely important rule. You have to have two balls (no Beavis & Butthead jokes please). You need eye balls and the game ball. Basketball centers around athletes, so you need to see their eyes to connect. Most all sports includes a ball. Without a ball, there is no sport. If you’re action photos is lacking either, then delete it!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 16th, 2010 at 12:43 am. It is filed under Learning. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.