People In Action

According to Tom Ang, action photography is where photography separates itself from any other art. The ability to freeze dynamic movement with just the click of a button is unsurpassed. Until reading this book, action pictures have always been extremely difficult for me, so I avoided them. I have learned that they are actually quite simpler than they seem if you know what settings to alter.

For mid-air movement, Ang suggests to "use short exposure to freeze movement, and avoid the use of flash" (Ang 59). Since I am always stuck in a basketball gym, I decided to use my teammates as models. The lighting in this specific gym was very dark making it harder to get the right exposure, so I had to turn up my light exposure to + .07. I then chose the fastest shutter speed possible at 1/2000. This faster the shutter speed, the faster multiple pictures are taken, capturing more movement. For the specific setting I was in, these were the best settings but it can vary depending on the light of the venue.

After I began taking pictures I realized just how easy taking action shots was! Camera's are quite skilled and intelligent, making the job easy for you. Getting in the right position and zooming in just the right amount are the two jobs up to the photographer. The picture below is my favorite shot from yesterday. Tresai's lack of size has never determined how aggressive she plays or kept her from being big, and this trait is captured perfectly.

What do you think Tresai was thinking at this moment according to her body language and facial expressions?