Is it realistic to think that I could...

[thebheads]

Very realistic. This is what I have learned after a few years of selling sporting images and prints compared to where you are right now.

- Attitude to potential clients is primary.

Football, Soccer and other close range field sports
Highly competitive for anyone wanting to sell images or prints. When it comes to these sports, most parents can capture similar images in automatic as you can with creative zone, on a sunny day. You really need to understand that they are not going to buy your 8 x 10 for $22 when they see a similar shot on their computer at home from their camera. You really have to be a standout, or every game will have to be at night or raining every game for your skills to step out from adverse conditions.

Long Range Sports and Indoor
Good potential. Even though parents and amateurs have the camera bodies, they dont have the lens'. Know what lens is required for the job. Shooting baseball with an 18-55 is not going to cut it. You will need a 200mm minimum, 300mm even better. Fast lens' for indoor is mandatory. If you want to sell, get the right equipment. You want people saying wow, instead of being dissapointed and having blurry or well underexposed shots. If you plan on shooting indoor, know how to shoot indoor. Don't even try to sell an image until you hone your skill. You mentioned drag races, know and understand how to pan. Stationary shots can be taken by anybody.

Try to find a sport that doesnt have 20 photographers already at it. The whole spool about learning from othes is BS. Your main concern is getting your name out in the community with minimal competition. Here's an example: When I made the transition several years ago, I went to a football game and stood on the sideline with every other yoyo. I handed out cards which directed people to an online gallery. I shot away, edited, uploaded and waited. I got about 6 hits over 4 weeks. Yeah, very rewarding. So I retought it. I went to the local MX people who had an indoor event and asked them if I could shoot the event. I was the only photographer there. I sold $700 worth of photos over a 2 day event. I look back on thos shots even today and they are no where near what I could shoot today, but again, I was the only one there. Several years later, I am still the only one there (on the inside of the track I mean). I now have exclusive rights and everyone knows who I am. I still make the same money for 2 days. Same thing at the 1/4 mile oval track for Modified Race Cars, no one there, I turn up, shoot about 12 events a year and make good money with exclusive rights.

Point is - exposure at these places for me will have recognition at events where there are other photographers. The real kicker is, people at these lesser spotlight events have other community interest. I had a guy from the stands at a oval track approach me on event photography. He was a promoter for bands. You just never know who you will meet. Thats why I said, attitude is primary.

I'm watching other replies hit as I'm typing this. If you intend on selling images or prints, make sure your are set to go legally. You can have a fully licensed business set up for about $1000 these days.

Competitively price your images. Look at what other photographers are selling for in your area. DO NOT underprice your work, you will be held to it eventually. I trade alot also. I got $600 worth of sandstone for my house in return for some race shots of a car he sponsored.

Protect your images. You will hear alot of "I hate watermark" replies on here but as someone selling images, you don't need the heartache of chasing people down with your legal threats of image infringement. Your customers will understand what you have to do to protect your work.

I also shoot RAW. Have spare memory cards!! simple. Manaheim got it pretty much right.

Be patient. Don't expect tons of money to flow in straight away. Network where you can. Really know what makes a good sports shot. Visit Sports Illustrated for a ton of good exapmles.

I can't thank you enough for your time!

 

[thebheads]

For sports like hockey(indoor on private property) Should you seek permission first or just ask for forgiveness if they have a problem with it?

 

[B Kennedy]

^^ Agreed. But not so far as charging only for the cost of prints. Definitely put some mark-up on it because you don't work for free.

I do have to say that I photographed my cousin's cheer team for a whole 2 years before I started my business. And I never sold a picture to them, gave to them for their yearbooks, etc (I was really good friends with the coach as well.)

LOL when you work for family things work differently...you should know that

 

[tirediron]

manheim
may i ask why you should only shoot Jpeg?

my Canon 450D Jpeg has a DPI of 72
where as RAW is 240 DPI
and raw is more versatile, and i have a 16 gb (15 gb true size) memory card + an 8GB + a 16.4 GB (not compatible with my camera as it is over the 16gb quota so use it for back up)

aside from the fact that shooting in RAW i can only get 6 continuous shots before lag kicks in where as with jpeg i can get about 30 before lag

I'm going to disagree with my learned colleague on this point. Those numbers don't sound quite right to me, BUT, regardless, I would always shoot RAW or RAW + JPG. Probably 90% of the time you won't need to do anything, but if you do get the killer shot and WB is messed up or something, you can recover it.

 

[B Kennedy]

manheim
may i ask why you should only shoot Jpeg?

my Canon 450D Jpeg has a DPI of 72
where as RAW is 240 DPI
and raw is more versatile, and i have a 16 gb (15 gb true size) memory card + an 8GB + a 16.4 GB (not compatible with my camera as it is over the 16gb quota so use it for back up)

aside from the fact that shooting in RAW i can only get 6 continuous shots before lag kicks in where as with jpeg i can get about 30 before lag

I'm going to disagree with my learned colleague on this point. Those numbers don't sound quite right to me, BUT, regardless, I would always shoot RAW or RAW + JPG. Probably 90% of the time you won't need to do anything, but if you do get the killer shot and WB is messed up or something, you can recover it.

I completely disagree, of course in my own opinion. You are basically freelancing, and looking to make some money. Shooting raw *may* help you if you dont capture quite the right lighting, but you are going to be taking many many many pictures. Thousands, because you don't know what parent wants to order pictures. I've had parents (mainly moms) order ever single picture I took of their child. I'm talking like 8....10....12 pictures with their child doing everything. For me, shooting raw is just a waste of time, too much processing that you need to do. And not to mention the wasted space. If I shot raw on the 5dm2 with jpeg, im shooting 21mb per picture, which means I can only shoot something like 240 pictures on an 8gb card!!! Multiply that by a couple thousand and you see my point.

When you are gonna be shooting this kind of photography, show up in advance, set up your camera and then click away. Also, when doing these kinds of events, and hoping that by passing out your business cards generates hits on your website, I have found that the parents want those pictures on the site that day, or the day after, or they'll be calling you wondering where they were. Another reason why I dont process most pictures, I get good exposures, edit the blurry, not composed well, and post online ASAP!!!

[Edit] Shooting raw isnt a waste of time & space...lol I do shoot raw especially with landscapes, indoor events. I just don't find it relevant when shooting these kinda sporting events. Sorry about that confusion as I know i'd prolly get crucified if i hadnt clarified lol

[EDIT #2] which means I'm in agreement with manaheim on this one

 

[itznfb]

Oh yeah.... I am now in the market for a
Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Zoom Nikkor Lens if anyone has one to sell.

this is a great thread. i've been interested in this as well.

the only advise i can give though... if you want that lens just go buy it new. you're aren't going to find anyone selling it used any cheaper than new unless there is something wrong with it. pro glass isn't really any cheaper used.
EDIT: let me add to this... try to find a refurbished 1.7x teleconverter, i saved over $200 on that. the lens + teleconverter are the best photography purchases i've ever made.

and i have one question... can't you become incorporated by state, not county/town?

 

[thebheads]

Oh yeah.... I am now in the market for a
Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Zoom Nikkor Lens if anyone has one to sell.

Thanks for the tips everyone...

I am not sure about the licensing, I guess you probably just register in the county you are based in...??

I'm off to a local photography course tomorrow!... If I'm gonna do it I've got to do it right!

Oh Well Off to Jury Duty

 

[Dantheman4334]

I tend to dissagree with the opinion that raw shouldn't be used for sports photography. I take it this guy, like me, is a beginner. He's bound to mess up at some point. Shooting raw, if its a small lighting issue, it's an easy fix. Not so with jpeg. High iso noise reduction is better with raw too, and if he shoots indoors a lot, he might need that.

It's just the way a pro taught me how to shoot. Look up Neil Abrahmson. He shoots boxing for hbo. He also is one of my dads law partners, so they talk a lot, and we also talk a lot. When our local football team was getting ready for the state championship game in syracuse, and I was riding with the team to take photos at the game, I spoke to him the night before, and I asked him, "Neil, what should I remember for this? What can I do to make sure that I get the shot right every time"?

"Shoot raw" was the first thing he told me, and I figure if a pro told me that, I should do it.

 

[thebheads]

I tend to dissagree with the opinion that raw shouldn't be used for sports photography. I take it this guy, like me, is a beginner. He's bound to mess up at some point. Shooting raw, if its a small lighting issue, it's an easy fix. Not so with jpeg. High iso noise reduction is better with raw too, and if he shoots indoors a lot, he might need that.

Yes I'm a beginner, and I will definitely mess some up! We are a Hockey family primarily so I will be shooting a ton of indoor ice rink shots....

 

[gsgary]

Hi guys, I am an amateur photographer that has kids in sports and was thinking about buying a fast lens and starting to take some pics of teams. I can hand out business cards with my hosting site and sell pics to parents. If I was determined enough I could hit all the local sports and maybe the drag strip taking pics and slinging business cards. Even the beach, doing tourist photo's (is that legal?)

Any feedback is appreciated greatly!

Maybe, when you have had lots of practise but then if you only get a 70-200 your not going to get anything different than all the other mums and dads its not as simple as wedding photography where you can go and buy any camera and your and pro wedding shooter

 

[B Kennedy]

Maybe, when you have had lots of practise but then if you only get a 70-200 your not going to get anything different than all the other mums and dads its not as simple as wedding photography where you can go and buy any camera and your and pro wedding shooter

^^^^YES

 

[Dantheman4334]

I tend to dissagree with the opinion that raw shouldn't be used for sports photography. I take it this guy, like me, is a beginner. He's bound to mess up at some point. Shooting raw, if its a small lighting issue, it's an easy fix. Not so with jpeg. High iso noise reduction is better with raw too, and if he shoots indoors a lot, he might need that.

Yes I'm a beginner, and I will definitely mess some up! We are a Hockey family primarily so I will be shooting a ton of indoor ice rink shots....

Then shoot raw at 1/200th of a second, and raising the exposure up in post. Works better than one might think. Otherwise, get a f2.8 lens.

 

[brysons]

This is a great thread - fun to read and very useful

When you are shooting sports, you shoot the same playing surface for a few hours, so it seems to me like if you get there a few minutes early then you can dial in your manual white balance and all your exposure settings before the action starts. If your outside, then you just have to deal with variable clouds. High ISO noise reduction on the camera's image processor looks really good to me and certainly good enough for this type of high-volume commercial shooting.

I can't really put forward a strong opinion because I have never done this type of shooting, but from a theoretical standpoint I don't understand the argument for shooting sports in RAW. Can anyone explain the advantages in more detail? To put this in context, I have never actually shot a frame on a DSLR in jpeg, I always shoot RAW, but I always thought that shooting jpeg in the situation we are discussing here was a given...

 

[yelppuppy]

I've heard this general system works really really well. My cousin does it and makes good money at it. He also burns through shutters on his cameras like they're going out of style.

Some tips I picked up from him...

- Shoot JPEG only.


Just a few pointers. I'm not a pro at this, but thought what info I could remember might be helpful.

All make sense, but why "shoot jpeg only"?

 

[Dantheman4334]

I've heard this general system works really really well. My cousin does it and makes good money at it. He also burns through shutters on his cameras like they're going out of style.

Some tips I picked up from him...

- Shoot JPEG only.


Just a few pointers. I'm not a pro at this, but thought what info I could remember might be helpful.

All make sense, but why "shoot jpeg only"?

Well, that's what I said! I think it's a matter of his level of photographic ability. They are right by saying it would give you a longer and faster burst, but since he'll be indoors a lot, he'll need to make post processing ajustments a lot. RAW can help tremendously with that.