Stacy Tatman Photography

7 Hot Tips for Cool Action Pics
article and photos: Stacy Tatman
rider: Chris Pincetich

You race down to the corner "Photos-R-Us" with visions of slick magazines hitting your local skate shop with your friends-your photos-on the cover. You tear open the cheap paper envelope expecting to struggle to decide on the best photo. Instead, you struggle to decide on what those dark blurry blobs are. Sound familiar? If so, read on…

TIP #1: The Lab

This has nothing to do with dogs and everything to do with great photos. The first thing you need to do is forget "Photos-R-Us," "Ditz Camera," and all those other cheesy one-hour places. Taking your film to those McDonald's style photo labs is like throwing your filet mignon in the deep fryer. (Would you like that super-sized?) It's a great example of "you get what you pay for, and you pay for what you get."

There are exceptions, of course, but if you have a photo you really like, it's worth taking to a custom lab. If you have a picture that is too dark, too light, a weird color, or has strange white squiggles on it (dust), consider having the print redone. Look at the negative. If it has a lot of detail on it, so should your picture.

Another option: Try shooting slide film-WYSIWYG (see tip #2).

Correctly printed image.
(24mm lens at f/8, 1/250", fill flash, Fuji 400ASA print film.)

Poorly printed image: too dark.
(24mm lens at f/8, 1/250", fill flash, Fuji 400ASA print film.)

TIP #2: The "F" Word

Film. (What were you thinking?) Don't know much about film? Figure anything in a yellow box should pretty much do the trick? Well, there's a lot more to know. Fortunately, you don't need to know it. Just find something you like, and stick with it. To freeze fast action in bright sunlight, try 200 ASA color negative film. ASA is the film's "speed." The bigger the number, the "faster" the film; the less light you need. So if it's shady or getting late in the day, try 400 ASA or even 800 ASA film. Kodak or Fuji are pretty reliable brands. Negative or "print" film is the easiest to work with because it is the most forgiving if your exposure isn't perfect. It's also inexpensive and easy to find.

If you are feeling a bit adventurous, however, try positive film. Also known as "slide" film, it's amazing because "What You See Is What You Get." When the film is processed, it has true colors (not opposite colors like negative film-see a correlation with the names?). Upside: The color is phenomenal. Also, it is still considered the standard for magazine submission. Downside: Prints are more expensive (and aren't included with processing) and the exposure must be more precise.

TIP #3: Size Does Matter

When it comes to lenses, that is. But bigger is not necessarily better. Here's how it works. Lenses come in all different sizes, and these sizes are measured in millimeters. This is a lens' "focal length." A lens with a 50mm focal length is considered a "standard" lens because it most closely approximates what your own eye sees. A lens with a focal length longer than 50mm is called a "telephoto" lens, and these include 200mm, 300mm, (and if you're lucky or rich) even 1000mm lenses. A telephoto lens makes your subject appear larger (like binoculars do.) If a lens has a focal length shorter than 50mm, it is considered to be a "wide-angle" lens. Wide-angle lenses have focal lengths like 35mm, 24mm, and some super-wide "fisheye" lenses are 15mm. Wide-angle lenses make your subject appear smaller. If a lens can vary its focal length, it is a "zoom" lens. Zoom lenses can be wide angle, telephoto, or both, for example: the popular 35-105 zoom lens.

So, again, bigger is not necessarily better. In fact, for sports action, a wide-angle lens might be the best bet. Since a wide-angle lens makes your subject appear smaller, you will need to come in a lot closer to fill the frame with the action, but that can have interesting effects*. And you want interesting photos! Save the telephoto for when you overslept and didn't get to Ticketmaster early enough to get the good seats.

*As a photographer, safety should always be your number one concern-for you and your subject. Never get in anyone's way, and always be aware of your surroundings.

Get in close with wide angle for interesting results.
(24mm lens at f/8, 1/250", fill flash, Fuji 100ASA slide film.)

TIP #4: Get Vertical

Get vertical, get inverted; get the shot! Lie on the ground, stand on a ladder; experiment with different positions until you find the angle that will get you that 'zine cover. Hint: it probably won't be the first place you stroll up to. Walk around the site if you can. Ask yourself some questions: Where is the sun? What's in the background? Although shooting into bright light can produce stunning results, it is a bit trickier to get right; beginners usually end up with lens flare and a silhouette, so try to keep the sun at your back to start (and check out tip #7).

Next, take a good look at what will show up behind your subject. For action shots, a clean background is best. You want to emphasize your subject, not the garbage can in the parking lot. Getting low and shooting up will give you blue sky behind your subject, perhaps preventing a telephone pole from growing out of their head. Bonus: this angle makes big air look bigger.

Now that you've inverted your body into a yet unnamed yoga position to get the shot you want, you may still want to get vertical-with your camera. When starting out, it feels more natural to hold your camera horizontally. But most of your subjects are vertical, so your camera should be too. You'll have a nice, tight shot without a lot of wasted space that doesn't add to the picture.

Get in there and get the shot…but be safe!

Tip #5: Ahead of the Game

You feel it getting closer now...you're going to get that "cover" shot and have more Benjamins than you can cram in your wallet*. You've learned how to set up a great shot, but there is another technique you should master: "pre-focusing." To pre-focus, you must first decide where the best action will be. It may be the hit on a jump, a tight curve, or maybe it's the place where everyone eats it (depends on your level of affinity for carnage.) You may even want to do a few practice runs to really nail the position. Then focus your lens on that spot and be patient. When your subject comes into view, looks sharp, and is in focus, take the picture (or two, or seven.) Depending on your camera system, this method may be more effective than even your lens' auto-focus capabilities.

*Top mags pay up to 25G for a cover shot, but, honestly, it's a long road to getting published, and you're more likely to get a stop sign than a cover. You probably won't be getting that many hundred dollar bills to start with. But twenties, you could definitely be getting twenties!

TIP #6: The Need for Speed

For many action sports, it's all about speed. For photographing action sports, it's all about speed. Shutter speed that is. To freeze action (and avoid those disturbing blurry blobs) you must have a fast shutter speed. If you have a manual camera with adjustable shutter speeds, this is easy. Just set your shutter speed for 500 or faster. [Keep in mind that these numbers refer to fractions of a second, so 1000 (1/1000") is a faster shutter speed than 500 (1/500"), and so on.] It's easy to remember which one is faster if you just imagine "mph" after the number! The faster the action; the faster the shutter speed required: Off-road boarding = 250-1000/second; car race = 1000-8000/second shutter speed. If you are using a telephoto lens, you will want to use 1000/second or faster to avoid blurring due to lens shake. (Using a tripod will also eliminate lens shake.)

If you have an automatic or "point and shoot" camera, you can still ensure faster shutter speeds by using a "fast" film like 400 ASA or even 800 ASA film. Some cameras have "action buttons," which automatically set the camera's faster shutter speeds. Check your camera's manual for details.

Speed it up! This shutter speed is too slow.
(50mm lens at f/22, 1/30", Fuji 200ASA print film)

Freeze the action with a fast shutter speed.
(50mm lens at f/5.6, 1/500", Fuji 200ASA print film)

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Last, but not least…light. Not only is light not "least," light is the most important element of photography. In fact, photography literally means "writing with light." There are endless considerations concerning light, and the greatest photographers have mastered its many forms. But to start with, simply develop a habit of noticing it. Ask questions like: How strong is it? Is it causing dark shadows? Where is it coming from? Once you've made these inquiries, you can respond with the appropriate photographic techniques…

TIP #7: Here Comes the Sun

The sun. Since you were a little kid, you've been told not to shoot into the sun. If you do, your eyeballs will melt. No, that's only if you look into the sun. Shooting into the sun can produce spectacular results if you know what you are doing. Most people don't. Most people end up with dark shadow creatures surrounded by weird, glowing stop-sign shapes. In photographic terms there phenomena are referred to as silhouettes and lens flare. When deliberately employed, these techniques can have dramatic effects. But the key concept here is "deliberate." If you meant to do it it's cool, if you didn't, it could still be cool, but a good photographer has control. Control over the final outcome of the shot. To achieve this, read on:

Dark shadow creatures: silhouettes. Caused by the underexposing of a subject due to strong backlighting. In other words, all that bright light fools your camera's meter. It exposes for the light, not your subject. To expose for your subject, simply turn your back on the sun, meter, adjust your settings, turn back to your subject and shoot. Your camera will tell you that you are overexposing, but your brain is much larger than your camera's, so don't worry about it. If you have an automatic camera, you may have reached the point in your relationship where it's time to move on. But let it down easy… they are, as you know, very fragile.

Weird, glowing stop-sign shapes: lens flare. Caused by light bouncing around inside your lens; occurs anytime you shoot towards a strong light source. Sometimes you can avoid it by carefully recomposing your shot.
Sometimes you can avoid it by using a lens hood that asks like a sun visor for your lens. Sometimes you just can't avoid it. Then it's cool, 'cause you meant to do it.

One final note on the sun: Sometimes, even when it's at your back it can cause problems. Like the "hat problem." Hats and helmets often cast dark shadows on your subject's faces, eliminating detail, even if your exposure is perfect. Solution? Pull one last trick out of your camera bag. Find your flash. Find your manual. Put fresh batteries in your flash and read your manual. Use your flash to fill in shadows on a bright, sunny day. This technique, known as "fill" flash, will instantly separate you from amateurs.

Shooting into the sun: underexposed. Notice the lens flare.
(50mm lens at f/8, 1/750", Fuji 200ASA print film)

Shooting into the sun: correctly exposed.
(50mm lens at f/8, 1/250", Fuji 200ASA print film)

Shooting into the sun: correctly exposed.
Notice the brighter facial features brought out with fill flash.
(50mm lens at f/8, 1/250", Fuji 200ASA print film)

So that's it. You're all set. Go get 'em! Follow these tips and your next trip to the photo lab should be a lot more fun. If you have any questions, feel free to email me: stacy@stacytatman.com