Photographing Sporting Events
To keep it simple, here’s my summary recommendation for equipment and settings (note, you MUST NOT use flash (according to USA Gymnastics rules, for the safety of the gymnasts), so be sure you know how to keep your camera’s flash from firing!). Also, unless you are USA Gymnastics safety certified, you are NOT allowed on the gymnastic floor while gymnasts are performing…don’t argue with the officials…those are the rules!)
Camera: Canon 1D Mark III (or equivalent crop-sensor camera)…
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Lens: Canon 70 – 200mm f2.8 lens or similar wide-aperture moderate telephoto prime lens.
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ISO (light sensitivity): 3200 (stopping the action is probably more important to getting clear images than low noise). In a brightly lit gym, you might be able to get away with ISO 800 or 1600 if the light is bright enough (see shutter speed, below)
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Aperture: f/2.0, Aperture priority setting on camera (Av) (or the “brightest” aperture you can use)
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Shutter Speed: let the aperture priority setting pick the fastest speed available. You will want a shutter speed of 1/500 to 1/1000 or faster if at all possible with the light available to you. If you can only shoot at 1/250…it’s tough, but you will still get some good photos if you take them when the gymnast is motionless (reversing direction in a gymnastics move)
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NOTE: Dimly lit gymnastics events are difficult to photograph with anything less than ISO3200 and f2.8 (or the equivalent combination…e.g. ISO1600 f2.0, ISO800 f1.4, etc.). I recommend “prime” (non-zoom) moderate telephotos because you can get a wide-aperture lens that isn’t huge. Note that the typical f/4 – f/5.6 telephoto zooms … typical “consumer” zooms, just don’t let in enough light to take good gymnastics photos in most gyms. If you have tried to take photos of your son or daughter using an f/4 to f5.6 zoom…getting poor quality images is likely the fault of your equipment, not you! In most gyms, you MUST use a wide-aperture lens and an SLR camera… the typical point and shoot digital camera simply isn’t fast enough to capture a gymnast at the right moment, and the small sensors used are often “high-noise” at higher ISO settings…and they rarely enable an ISO above 800 or so.
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You may find using a monopod helpful, however, it is usually the gymnast’s motion that must be frozen. Neither a monopod nor an “image stabilized” (IS) lens will stop the motion of the gymnast. IS may help if you are shooting a long and hard-t0-hold telephoto.
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For floor exercise, shut off your auto focus, and stand perpendicular to the direction of travel for the gymnast, so they stay the same distance from you. Prefocus your lens and leave it (unless you are using a camera like the Canon 1D MKIII that has 45 auto focus points). Otherwise, you run a high risk of focusing on the back wall rather than the gymnast when they move out of the center of your image! Floor is tough to photograph!
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