Photo Tips

Chris d'Aquin is a WeSay.com contributing writer.

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Baseball is a great summer tradition, and can be one of the most thrilling sports to photograph. The action can be tedious at times, but when you capture a play at the plate, the ball bouncing off the bat, or a fielder making a catch, the feeling is accomplishment is great!

Here are some tips to help you get started.

SHOOT PLENTY. First, use a single lens reflex camera, especially one with a good auto focus and decent frame rate – at least three frames per second. And don't be afraid to shoot a lot. If you don't, then you're likely to wind up with a bunch of mediocre shots. Don't worry if only 10-20 percent of your photos will be keepers. If you shot 300 frames in a game, that means you should have several photos you really like.

GO LONG. Get the longest lens you can. A baseball field is quite expansive, and a long lens will do wonders in helping you reach out and isolate the action. Try to get something that can zoom out to at least 200mm, with 300mm or 400mm being ideal.

I often shoot with one of two combinations – a 70-200mm lens coupled with a 1.4x teleconverter, or a 80-400mm super zoom. The first works well with younger kids, while the latter is necessary for high school and college. And both of these lenses are light enough to hand-hold shoot. But if your lens and camera combination is too heavy, don't be afraid to use a monopod for support.

FOCUS ON DETAILS. Now that you are properly equipped let's get into some details. Do your best to simplify the background in your photos. You want to bring the focus on your subject, and having a background cluttered with other parents, baseball bats, and other players goofing off can be very distracting. By using a long telephoto lens, you can usually eliminate distractions – especially when you open up your aperture all the way and throw the background out of focus.

HIGH SPEED. While you are zooming way in on your subjects, be sure to maintain a high enough shutter speed to freeze the action. The general rule is to maintain a shutter speed three times faster than the focal length you are shooting at. For example, if you shoot with a 400mm lens, you would need a shutter speed of at least 1/1200 of a second to freeze the action.

ANTICIPATION. Try to anticipate where the action will be. If there is a runner on first who likes to steal, then be prepared by focusing on second base and trying to get the flurry of action when he tries to steal.

IN MOTION. Another key tip is to get photos of players while they are running. Tightly cropped shots of players running don't need a ball to look like something is happening – they provide their own action. Running between the bases, chasing after a ball, or hustling into the dugout after the third out are opportunities for nice photos.

ASK FIRST. Finally, if you want to brave the world of taking photos from inside the fence, be sure to ask permission from the home plate umpire beforehand. The field is their domain and they are ultimately responsible for anything that happens on it – including a photographer getting drilled by a baseball.