Jaackil Loc: Massachusetts

I have been shooting high school sports for years and am not familiar with any such arrangement. Maybe it exsists in some schools but I highly doubt it is universal. I have shot at every single Prep school in New England and Many High Schools in Massachusetts. As well as all NESCAC and NE10 colleges. The laws are the same throughout the US. Schools fall into a quasi public area. They are considered public space so you can shoot freely unless the school asks you not to. They do reserve the right to not allow photographing. Most will welcome it. No permission is needed and releases are not needed. However if the Principal asks you not to you must abide. No most companies that shoot yearbook pictures do not shoot all athletic events they only show up to one game for each sport and get a couple of shots to put in the yearbook. Chances are there will also be photographers from local newspapers at some of the bigger sports like football and basketball maybe even baseball. You most likely will blend in with them. Take note of where they shoot from and shoot from those same areas.
Here is the big thing very few parents will be willing to even pay a nominal fee for the images some will even try to “right click steal” them if you post them online. So if you do set up an online place to post them make sure right click saving is not allowed. I suggest licensing the digital downloads. I also suggest knowing your rights to shoot in public places and maybe even print them out and carry them with you because their will always be some mother who thinks she is a philidelphia lawyer to tell you you can not photograph children. This is not so!
As far as the actual shooting. Get Faces in the shots! People are more likely to want pictures with their kids faces then they will shots of their backs. This is the biggest mistake novices make. I have had countless parents ask my why they can’t “great” shots like I get and when I look at what they have shot it is all backs and they don’t even realize the difference. Try to get as close to the action as possible. Also shoot opposite from the crowd. Usually in high school sports the crowd is on one side. The crowd makes a better back drop than a plain wall or a parking lot if you are outdoors. Don’t forget the emotion shots. In football for example the amateur stops shooting as soon as a play ends. A pro keeps shooting to catch a celebration or emotion. High school kids show tons of emotion after every play. Have lots of memory cards. Most sporting events I shoot i shoot anywhere from 300-600 shots or more to get about 100 keepers. I know that ratio sounds bad but for sports it is pretty good, it’s the nature of shooting sports.
Good luck have fun.

Bison Bud

OnDSnap Loc: NE New Jersey

I wrote basically the same reply and deleted it. I couldn't agree with you more. I believe in Aliens, :) LOL (ya know, the Greys) and the big eyes they have with small mouths, it's a warning of what once was or is to come, no words to speak, who needs a mouth.

Cookie223 Loc: New Jersey

👍🏻

Cookie223 Loc: New Jersey

I started taking pictures of my grandkids playing HS softball, and lacrosse over a year ago. Once we select the best shots, my daughter post them on a website where the parents can see and download them.
I try to capture the action shots, and candid group shots too.

Cookie223 Loc: New Jersey

Unfortunately our country has already come to that. Sad very sad.

henryp Loc: New York, NY

Before I started at B&H, I worked for the Prestige Portraits div of Lifetouch for almost a decade covering schools throughout NJ, NY and the western half of CT. he situation I described was not merely common, it was universal. YMMV

BJW

Been shooting high school ice hockey for about 3 seasons now. That's how I got started in photography. What great experience. I started emailing good shots to the coach and school administration. Coach puts them up on TeamSnap and school uses it in their publications. Good shots of the players I send to the parents, they love it. (No charge).
Have gotten so much great experience, that they made me the team's official photographer and gave me a gift: An official team jacket with the label "PHOTOGRAPHER" on it. Parents even think my shots are so good of their kids, that they want me to shoot for their private parties (no thanks).
I have only one hard and fast rule: Stay out of the locker rooms. Take no photos there. One more rule: whatever solo shots you take of players off the ice, court, or field, make sure to send it to the parents first with an endearing note to them: "thought you might like to have this great shot of John or Jimmy or Sue or whoever. You should be very proud of him/her..." etc.

BTW: To shoot sports I use a Nikon D500 and a Tamron 70-200. Be prepared to make the investment if you want quality shots.

Good luck, Have fun.

BJW

peterg Loc: Santa Rosa, CA

The father of my high school classmate started taking movies of his son's football games. The first year, he filmed from the roof of a school building. The second year, the school erected a scaffold next to the field. He then filmed other sports, but primarily football. To make a long story short. Our high school football field is now named "Sabol Field" and considered the "Birthplace of NFL Films". Classmate was Steve Sabol. Father was Ed Sabol.
https://www.haverfordschoolfootball.com/page/show/1943307-sabol-field

PaulR01 Loc: West Texas

Why would you wear out your equipment and just give it up to the parents? Those shutter and mirror replacements don't come cheap. People wont buy professional high quality shots when their is someone out their giving them away. Just asking.

billnourse Loc: Bloomfield, NM

I shoot because I enjoy it and if the camera wears out, I will get a new one. I give away the pics because they are mostly of my grand kids and their friends. If professionals are creating images that are "professional quality" and better than mine, there is no reason why people won't buy them.

By your way of thinking, if someone shoots for personal satisfaction and shares their work with others they are taking away from the professional. If that is the case, then we need to put up our cell phones, point and shoots, and bridge cameras and just leave the shooting to the pros.

Bill

larryepage Loc: North Texas area

Since retiring, I have been serving as a substitute teacher in my local school district. During our orientation and annual renewal training, it is impressed on us at each session that any images of the kids taken by anyone in school are considered part of their permanent record. Because we are not "teachers of record," we cannot take any pictures of them, even with a cellphone. Some exceptions are made for parents at some special events. Athletic events can in some ways be considered newsworthy public events, but they still involve students, and they usually take place on school property. There is difficulty determining exactly where the line between these two environments falls and what difference it makes under the rules.

Many stadiums in my area have security restrictions that place limits on photographic equipment that can be brought in by members of the public. (Those have been discussed in other places in this forum, so let's not get into it again here, please.) So there are legitimate considerations that must be addressed.

Anyway...I have substituted for a baseball coach at one of our large high schools, and have gotten to know and talk to him and gone to the team's practices and games. He has one parent who covers games for him. That parent is always stationed in the vicinity of his own team's dugout. I have never seen him on the opposite side of the field, so he never gets shots into his own team's dugout. I had thought about asking if he would be interested in having me help him cover other angles, but learned that there can also be some sensitivity about having a team photographer hanging out around the opponent's dugout, possibly overhearing strategic and tactical discussions.

There are certainly regional and local differences in the rules governing what members of the public can do at school events. And parents of students enjoy some rights and privileges that do not extend to the rest of us. So communication with school administrators, starting with the Principal (not the coach, not the refs) of the individual school(s) that you want to photograph, but also likely involving the athletic director and maybe even district officials is key to getting the proper permissions. Everything will probably be easier in a small school district and more complicated in a large one.

Good luck with your endeavor.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

I shoot HS sports all the time and have never been questioned by parents or school officials. If it’s a small indoor match, I typically introduce myself to the coach if I don’t already know him, and since I often get to know some parents over the season, I generally provide them shots of their sons or daughters if they wish. I also typically provide the best shots of the year to both the coach and the yearbook staff if I know them as well. I do it for the pleasure and experience, and of course, the recognition, when an entire yearbook section is composed of my shots of a particular sport, as it was this year. I typically distribute the work by making it available on Dropbox and sending the link to those that are interested.

I will add that night and indoor sports can be very demanding in terms of requiring fast (and sometimes long) lenses and high ISO capability.

granbob Loc: SW Wisc; E Iowa; W Illinois

I don't want to repeat the excellent advice that has already been offered, but one aspect that I have not noticed yet is the desirability of insurance, and when I took out my policy I was asked if I received money for my sports photos. I found that if I charged for the photos, what was a hobby was then considered a business and that created a whole new set of issues, plus a significantly higher premium.

Thomas902 Loc: Washington DC

ppage since you are located in California you will need to touch base with others who photograph sporting events in your jurisdiction. Might be wise to either ignore or take with skepticism reply's of those outside of you jurisdiction... California is often unique in it's ordinances, laws etc. Even then local ordinances may take precedence... Bottom Line? You best option may be to assist others in your market who currently photograph the events you are interested in. (this has been my path)

First and foremost please consider professional liability insurance... This is likely mandatory in order to pull "permits" for commercial photography in various public space in my market (VA, MD and DC). Even then you may likely have to pay for this permit (this starts at $25 and goes up with differing locals.) Even if not for commercial useage you owe it to others you may place in harms way as a result of your endeavor. Also your estate... yes anyone can bring a civil case against you for whatever reason... I work in Washington DC which likely has more hungry lawyers than even NYC... enough said

Sorry to start this reply on a cautionary note... but experience is a brutal teacher...

Ok, for professional wisdom I would suggest you review Jaackil post which one of a precious few which actually has credibility albeit he works in Massachusetts thus may or may not be germane to your situation. To this end I will not mirror what he stated, so it's up to you to review it...

What will suggest is to find a parent who's child plays the sport you wish to "learn" on and query them if they would like imagery of their child on the soccer pitch etc. pro-bono. This would likely belay many of the concerns.

As others have mentioned you kit needs to match the actual shooting scenarios... YouTube is full of an endless "how to photograph you child's sporting events" Do you homework a.k.a. due diligence...

The following I have found paramount in importance for photographing on a soccer pitch:

Number One: Know Your Sport! I can't over emphasize this... KNOW YOUR SPORT! seriously...
It is of great merit if you have been an active player previously... otherwise study the rules etc. until you are ace with them.

Absolutely no tripods or "fix" mounts (except possibly a ground level remote behind the net)
What this means is a monopod at best... and be certain to create a buffer zone between you and the soccer pitch side and/or end line. Trust me, you will NEVER see the player who is running at speed into you until you both are on the ground and likely injured.

Do not enter the zone behind the penalty area end line... Doing so will create a major distraction for players & officials.

NEVER EVER photograph an injured player once they have gone down... All players will instantly go down on one knee out of respect... and you seriously need to lower you long lens toward the ground in front of you (out of respect). And it doesn't hurt to applaud when the injured play regains their feet...

Once again... KNOW YOU SPORT. capture the team huddle at the start of the match... and the game group shot at the end of the season... there is more to the sport of soccer than the action on the pitch...

ppage I could go on here but once again... my very best advice is to assist another working commercial sports shooters...
How to find? What worked for me over a decade ago was becoming a member of the ASMP... albeit I'm certain their are many other excellent paths into the industry.

Hope this helps or at least food for thought ppage...
I wish you well on your journey...

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