Sports Days Bringing Back Memories

We had cravings for fresh produce from the morning market.  En route, we noticed a more-than-usual number of Worcester motor cars; one and one made two, and we realised it was the annual Inter-School winter sports day at Hermanus High School.  Worcester Gymnasium was in town.

For 22 years, we all got up early on Saturday mornings to attend the weekly sports days at various schools.   Fabulous days of running up and down the sidelines, cheering our children on, fathers encouraging, training, refereeing and threatening, other parents, children and their own sons and daughters.  Mothers, of course, are the greatest fans, and we’d whoop and scream and do an almost ostrich mating dance along the courts and fields as we cheered.

  I spotted a friend with grown-up children and felt the shared longing to relive these moments, encouraging readers to connect through common memories.

Nothing has changed; the referee was biased and unfair, the linesman took a chance, and everybody was on the home team’s side.    “Children have changed”, one coach grumbled as he came stomping past us. Of course they have; he’s also changed, I noticed. He’s a little greyer and portlier, and he’s also doing the older person's shuffle, not as sprightly. I wanted to chirp, but didn’t, fortunately.  

The U19 1st Team match was the day's highlight, a decisive contest that would crown the winning school and stir pride among spectators.

I’ve never done sports photography; we didn’t do that when my children were young. We’d have done a video instead, and I smiled when I saw the school's videographer running up and down with that huge Panasonic relic on his shoulder.  Some things never change! 

My respect for sports photographers grew as I watched them handle those huge lenses and monopods, inspiring admiration and appreciation in my readers for their skill.

Things I learned yesterday:

1. Know the sport you want to photograph so that you can anticipate what’s going to happen.
2. Have a good, fast telephoto lens ( I didn’t and should’ve had my 200mm lens; even my 400mm would’ve worked, but it was too heavy for me to shoot from the hand.)
3. Use a fast shutter speed
4. I shoot in manual, so it was neither the time nor place to learn all about TV. (shooting in shutter speed mode)
5. Set your ISO to 500 or more if the light is bad, or the shutter is slow
6. Make sure you’re focused, and the AF Drive is set on AI Servo
7. Have extra data cards
8. Battery must be charged and have extras
9. Shoot in maximum bursts.
10. Scott Kelby: I agree, sports photography is a messy business.

“To be a stellar sports photographer, you need skill, determination, and a quick eye for the right moment. (Having access to at least four camera bodies helps too!)”Damian Strohmeyer and Peter Read Miller

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