How to Shoot a Hockey Game With Sports Photography

Ice hockey is the quickest non-motorized sport in the world. Its players glide around the ice on razor-sharp skate blades in a game that is exciting for fans in the stands and those watching on TV alike. Hockey photography is difficult for several reasons, but not impossible. It requires some knowledge of the game, the right equipment and plenty of patience.

Things You'll Need

  • Camera
  • Lenses
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Instructions

    • 1

      Learn the basics of hockey by reading a rulebook and watching it on television. Because the sport happens so quickly, a key part of successful hockey photography is anticipation. It pays to know the game so that you can anticipate where the play may go, rather than try to follow it and always be a split-second behind the action.

    • 2

      Pick an arena with bright lighting. Amateur hockey arenas are notorious for poor-quality, fluorescent lighting. Even though the playing area is brightly lit and easy to see from the stands, the lights are so far above the ice that they make shooting the game a challenge.

    • 3

      Locate an area from which to shoot. Shooting through the glass anywhere around the rink is difficult because it is often covered with scratches and scuffs. If possible, see if you can set up near the end of either bench where the glass stops. This area can be dangerous because there's no protection, but that's the trade-off for not having to shoot through glass.

    • 4

      Set your camera's ISO to at least 1600 and at least 1/400th of a second shutter speed. Depending on the zoom speed of your lens, set your aperture to f2.8 or larger.

    • 5

      Use a 70-200mm lens as a general action lens. For play in the far corners of the ice, switch to a 300mm lens, if available. Close-up action can effectively be shot with a 24-70mm lens.

    • 6

      Keep the camera up and ready during the play and be ready to shoot as quickly as possible. Make minor adjustments to your camera body and lens settings during the game and continually review the photos on the camera's rear LCD screen to judge their quality.

    • 7

      Focus on areas of the ice such as the goals and face-off circles. When a play develops in front of the net, shoot as many frames as possible and see what you can catch.