the layout
A typical high school
stadium is surrounded
by a fenced-in track, so
simply walking up to the
field is not that easy. On
top of that, the access
gates are typically staffed by uniformed police
officers or school staff. Most places that see
you carrying what looks like a "professional"
camera setup will let you through, but
sometimes they will say no. Don't argue;
politely ask what kind of credentials they
would like to see in order to grant you access.
Most stadiums will only have the minimal
lighting ( 30 foot-candles) needed to safely
play a game. In my area (just outside of
Seattle), most stadiums have either four or
six light poles, whereas most professional
stadiums have lights around the entire field
and will illuminate it as bright as day. I have
found that stadiums with only four light poles
are more difficult to shoot, not because there
is less light but due to the light pattern. With
only four sources of light, there are more
shadows on the players’ faces, resulting in
not-so-good images. One way to address
this is to get more centrally located. Stadium
lighting is designed to provide the most light
in the center of the field, so when you are
positioning yourself around the field, you will
want to keep in mind that any action that’s
more central will be easier to capture.
the access
A significant difference
between youth club sports
and high school sports is
what you can and cannot do
with the images you capture.
First, a quick lesson on high school athletics
and how they are organized: Each school is a
member of a league, which is part of a district
(multiple neighboring leagues make up a
district), which is part of a state association,
and each state association is part of the NFHS
(National Federation of High Schools). Every
season starts out with league play, and if your
team does well, they will go into the district
playoffs. If they continue to do well, they
It's dusk and the high school stadium lights are on. The teams are taking to
the field. It's going to be a great night. Then you start taking pictures with
your camera and realize it's just not working. The pictures are dark, fuzzy and
downright terrible—now what? First, let’s understand what we’re working with.
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by dave miller
