How to Take Great Action Photos

Capture the action

Taking great action photos used to be tough. You needed to track moving subjects with an unwieldy telephoto lens, watch the background, and watch you didn’t get landed on – all while adding energy to a microsecond's freeze-frame (and actually pressing the shutter button at the right microsecond in the first place!).

Yet thanks to Lumix, you can capture and share amazing, dynamic and energetic action shots like never before. With these simple tips and tricks (and the help of a few Lumix-specific special features), you can make the most of any action photo opportunity.

Lights, Camera, ACTION!

There are three simple things to remember when shooting moving subjects:
- The more light you can get into the camera, the better the shots will be.
- The better prepared you and your camera are, the better the shots you'll get.
- The more shots you take of as much of the action as possible, the better the shots you'll end up with.

Lights

More is always better

A fast shutter freezes action better than a slow shutter (which might allow the subject to blur). It also tends to make the depth of field short, which means the background will be out of focus so the subject comes to the fore. But a fast shutter only really works with plenty of light.

To keep shutter speeds up, start with a wide, bright lens. Try to keep the sun behind you, but on the subject. Or switch on your fill-flash. Or even try using a hand-held light for dramatic shadow angles.

If all else fails, crank up the ISO (sensitivity); you might lose some detail but you'll really capture the action. With built-in Intelligent Auto (iA), Lumix cameras can automatically select the best ISO for the shot based on the amount of light and the amount of movement.

Stand firm

In seriously low-light situations – like mountain biking in dense forest where flash might be forbidden as a distraction – you might want to try a tripod or monopod to reduce camera shake. As a Lumix owner, you could also rely on image stabilization technology (like Mega-O.I.S.).

Zoom in on the action

Speed is of the essence

Allowing some motion blur into the shot imparts a sense of speed and power. While shutter speeds of 1/250th and faster effectively freeze the scene, slightly slower speeds can allow a controlled amount of creative blur to creep in - but any slower than about 1/30th of a second and the blur can take over.

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Camera

Be Prepared

No great action photo was ever captured by a camera in its case. Have your camera with you, out of its case, turned on, zoomed in, and all set up to go with plenty of battery life and a large data card! Beyond that, it's up to you to find the best spot to capture the action - and the best technique. If you're packing a Lumix camera however, you'll have a whole host of help in your hands – thanks to iA (Intelligent Auto) assistance, including Intelligent Scene Selection, automatically setting the camera up for great sports shots.

Go with the flow

Look around and see where the centre of the action is, where your subjects come from and where they end up; and where the light is and what's in the background. Then follow the action with a panning shot: track the subject, shoot the picture, and continue moving the camera. If you practice long enough, you'll be able to get a sharp subject with a blurred background. Just make sure your Autofocus Tracking is switched on so everything stays in focus while on the move.

Use Autofocus Tracking

You can also try zooming in or out while shooting; taking a low or high angle to get a new perspective; and even using the flash imaginatively - to fill in unusually dark shadows in brightly lit shots, or to freeze the action mid-shot, leaving a motion trail blur either side. You'll get much better shots with a genuine sense of energy than you'd otherwise get from a frozen, fast-shutter, locked-off shot.

Stand well back, or get into the action

At the beach, in the snow, or just in the heat of the moment, you want to get that shot - but you don't want to risk your camera to sand or water damage. The trick: Stand back and zoom in. Use a long zoom lens and a wide-open aperture, to help make your subject stand out, and reduce the impact of background elements. A long zoom pushes the background out of focus, making your foreground subject really “pop”.

Or take the opposite approach: get your hands on a Lumix “tough” camera and get into the action – it’s waterproof, shockproof and dustproof - making it perfect for shooting action in the pool, the ocean, the forest, or the urban jungle.

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Action

That's what we're here for!

The key to great action shots is to keep shooting. The real action can happen before or after the moment you expect - a crash around the corner, or a hard tackle before the ball. Sequence shots really show what happened and how.

Get the biggest, fastest memory card you can, keep your finger on the trigger, and don't blink! If your camera has a Burst Mode or Continuous Shooting, switch it on, take all the photos you can, and edit later.

Take burst of shots and pick the best

Seen but not heard? Not anymore!

Or better still, film the moment in HD. Some cameras allow you to take movies as well as still pics, but many Lumix cameras offer the ability to capture High Definition movies in AVCHD Lite and Dolby Digital Sound. You’ll have plenty of help from Movie iA controlling things like Image Stabilisation, and Intelligent Scene Selector. So you can capture not only great action shots, but all the noise and motion that comes with them.

Whichever way you go, while shooting, keep looking! Many photos are ruined by busy or inappropriate backgrounds. Sometimes we're so focused on the action that we don't see the background - especially when working with zooms, which can pull background items right into the shot. There's nothing worse than a tree branch appearing to grow out of someone's head!

ACTION TIPS:

Use shutter speeds faster than 1/60th wherever possible
Zoom in on the action to separate your subject from the background
Keep up with the action: turn on Autofocus Tracking
Take the pressure off: use Image Stabilisation to give yourself the room to be creative
Take bursts of shots and pick the best
A tough camera really helps!

Special thanks to professional photographers Peter Eastway and Ken Duncan for some of these tips.