Feedback on First Soccer Shoot
p.1 #1Feedback on First Soccer Shoot
Hey all, my friends have this local team that run some friendly scrimmages around the area, and I was asked to take photos for them this week, making it my first actual sports shoots.
I use a Nikon D750, paired with a Nikkor 80-200mm f/2.8 AF. It's an "ancient" setup, and the focus can be a little slow at times, but I think it helps me learn to anticipate the action.
I figured I'd share a few of my favorites and leave them open to any sort of feedback, advice, or critique. The photos have been cropped and lightly edited for exposure and color, proper editing is still something I have a long ways to go in, but I'm happy with a lot of these images. Thanks!
Photos:
I use a Nikon D750, paired with a Nikkor 80-200mm f/2.8 AF. It's an "ancient" setup, and the focus can be a little slow at times, but I think it helps me learn to anticipate the action.
I figured I'd share a few of my favorites and leave them open to any sort of feedback, advice, or critique. The photos have been cropped and lightly edited for exposure and color, proper editing is still something I have a long ways to go in, but I'm happy with a lot of these images. Thanks!
Photos:
Oct 13, 2026 at 08:22 PM
p.1 #2Feedback on First Soccer Shoot
Hope you had lots of fun doing this; the players seem to be having a good time, too! It's always challenging to learn how best to photograph a new subject.
A few ideas/suggestions:
Tough lighting to deal with .... try to have the sun to your back or side if possible so that the light shines more on the player's faces.
Speaking of faces, get more faces rather than backs.
Straighten the last one by using the goal posts or trees in the background as a reference point.
Shoot tight, crop tight. #5 is your tightest crop and is good in that respect (the hard part is not cutting off feet or hands!). The others could use more cropping IMHO - especially #6 (go tight on the player with the ball and the defender).
Also with cropping, don't be afraid to try different crop sizes or orientations (ex. - #1 might be a good 4x5 vertical crop).
Keep shooting and keep sharing!
A few ideas/suggestions:
Tough lighting to deal with .... try to have the sun to your back or side if possible so that the light shines more on the player's faces.
Speaking of faces, get more faces rather than backs.
Straighten the last one by using the goal posts or trees in the background as a reference point.
Shoot tight, crop tight. #5 is your tightest crop and is good in that respect (the hard part is not cutting off feet or hands!). The others could use more cropping IMHO - especially #6 (go tight on the player with the ball and the defender).
Also with cropping, don't be afraid to try different crop sizes or orientations (ex. - #1 might be a good 4x5 vertical crop).
Keep shooting and keep sharing!
Oct 13, 2026 at 09:08 PM
p.1 #3Feedback on First Soccer Shoot
Great advice! The lighting at the match was definitely a challenge, random objects around the field kept casting some rough shadows for sure.
Agreed that the faces are something I could definitely work on, as well as cropping in. I can find it challenging at times to strike a good balance between isolating the player while still maintaining the overall moment in the game - this links into image 6, I liked the guys sitting down in the background, while the two on the field are going at it. The rotation was accidental but I decided to keep it, as I felt it added a unique feeling/energy to the image. But yes, I'm now realizing why image #5 is one of my favorites which likely due to the crop.
I love the idea of different ratios and will have to explore that in the future!
Thanks for the feedback!!
Agreed that the faces are something I could definitely work on, as well as cropping in. I can find it challenging at times to strike a good balance between isolating the player while still maintaining the overall moment in the game - this links into image 6, I liked the guys sitting down in the background, while the two on the field are going at it. The rotation was accidental but I decided to keep it, as I felt it added a unique feeling/energy to the image. But yes, I'm now realizing why image #5 is one of my favorites which likely due to the crop.
I love the idea of different ratios and will have to explore that in the future!
Thanks for the feedback!!
Oct 13, 2026 at 09:49 PM
p.1 #4Feedback on First Soccer Shoot
Balls, faces and peak action are the main key points. Always shoot from a low position, either on your butt or on a very low stool. Best to have the action coming at you, i.e. back of the goal line. Shooting from the sidelines can yield some good captures but there will be more cross traffic to contend with which does limit the amount of keepers. Issue for you is reach which is limited with the 70-200, so my advice is to concentrate only on action inside the quadrant of the field you are stationed. The IQ will decrease with larger amounts of cropping.
Spend some time researching how others shoot soccer to gain some perspective.
Keep shooting, it will get better
Spend some time researching how others shoot soccer to gain some perspective.
Keep shooting, it will get better
Oct 15, 2026 at 12:57 PM