Sports & Action Photography Archives — Westcott University https://westcottu.com/topic/sports-and-action-photography Lighting Education for Photographers and Filmmakers Thu, 30 Oct 2025 16:34:08 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://westcottu.com/wp-content/uploads/icon-university.png Sports & Action Photography Archives — Westcott University https://westcottu.com/topic/sports-and-action-photography 32 32 Transform Any Space into a Studio: Sports Portrait Lighting with Jaison Sterling https://westcottu.com/transform-any-space-into-a-studio-sports-portrait-lighting-with-jaison-sterling Fri, 30 May 2025 11:15:30 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=156744 When it comes to creating dynamic portraits of athletes, you don’t need a fancy studio, just smart lighting and a good game plan. In this behind-the-scenes video, photographer Jaison Sterling walks us through how he transformed a high school gym into a dramatic portrait set for a wrestler using a few portable strobes, clever modifiers, and some strategic light placement.

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]]> 156744 Dramatic Lighting for Photographing Athletes https://westcottu.com/lighting-photographing-athletes Mon, 07 Jan 2019 17:07:51 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=151659 Hernan Rodriguez is a Los Angeles-based celebrity portrait photographer with years of experience photographing athletes, including some of the most recognizable World Champions. Hernan is a true artist and he takes lighting very seriously. His dramatic imagery often requires multiple lights and modifiers, but we wanted to see just what he could create with a […]

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]]> 151659 Using Haze & a Beauty Dish to Capture Dramatic Sports Photography https://westcottu.com/using-haze-a-beauty-dish-to-capture-dramatic-sports-photography Mon, 22 Jan 2018 20:46:20 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=150627 Sports and senior photography Matt Hernandez has a knack for creating dramatic and eye-catching sports photography. For this senior sports shoot, Matt decided to use a few simple tricks to transform the boring locker room setting. Matt begins with a simple two-light setup: a strobe as a fill light and a strobe as his key […]

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]]> 150627 Creating Cinematic Sports Photography https://westcottu.com/cinematic-photography-solix Wed, 15 Nov 2017 21:02:38 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=150507 Matt Hernandez began his career as an award-winning graphic artist in his home state of Kentucky. After discovering a passion for photography, Matt combined his experience in design with his appreciate of sports to create an amazing portfolio of cinematic and precise sports images that stand out. Now one of the country’s premier sports photographers, Matt has built a signature style of lighting that turns a standard team photo into an […]

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]]> 150507 Team Portrait Posing Tips https://westcottu.com/team-portrait-posing-tips-2 Wed, 21 Jun 2017 18:40:44 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=150222 Posing just a single subject can be difficult, let alone an entire sports team. Talented sports and senior photographer Matt Hernandez has perfected team and group shots with these quick portrait-posing tips. Sports Team Posing Pro Tips If you want to make your client’s team look tough or intimidating, shoot from a lower angle. This […]

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]]> 150222 How to Freeze Motion for Eye-Catching Food Photography https://westcottu.com/freeze-motion-for-eye-catching-food-photography Mon, 13 Mar 2017 15:47:56 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=149948 Want to capture food photographs that will stand out from all the rest? Instead of capturing the typical overhead still shot, you can deconstruct your dish or add some movement to your image for results that are truly eye-catching. For this shot, Seattle-based food photographer Steve Hansen chooses to freeze motion with some mole ingredients. Strobes […]

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]]> 149948 How to Direct Light for Moody Action Shots https://westcottu.com/how-to-direct-light-for-moody-action-shots Tue, 12 Jul 2016 16:47:43 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=148610 Yousef AlMasoud is a Saudi Arabian portrait photographer with a knack for capturing beautiful and dramatic portraits. In this behind-the-scenes video, we go in the studio with Yousef as he captures action photographs of gymnast Essa Al Jumaian. Yousef’s images often feature very precise, directed lighting to really place the focus on his subject. When […]

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]]> 148610 Team Portrait Posing Tips https://westcottu.com/team-portrait-posing-tips Mon, 14 Mar 2016 15:30:45 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=148258 Westcott Top Pro Matt Hernandez began his career as an award-winning graphic artist, then combined his love of photography with his design background and love of sports to become one of the country’s premier sports photographers. Here, Matt offers insightful posing tips for capturing professional and eye-catching team portraits. The most common mistake photographers make […]

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]]> 148258 How to Light for a Composite Image https://westcottu.com/how-to-light-for-a-composite-image https://westcottu.com/how-to-light-for-a-composite-image#comments Fri, 12 Feb 2016 22:10:55 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=148182 Creating a professional-quality composite image usually requires a lengthy editing session. For photographers who are not very efficient or experienced in Photoshop and Lightroom, this can become a long and tedious process. Thankfully, Adobe editing expert Dave Cross is here to share some simple tips to streamline the process. The most important thing to remember […]

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]]> https://westcottu.com/how-to-light-for-a-composite-image/feed 1 148182 Dramatic and Effective Lighting for Team Portraits https://westcottu.com/how-to-light-team-portraits https://westcottu.com/how-to-light-team-portraits#comments Thu, 04 Feb 2016 21:34:27 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=148169 Renowned sports photographer Matt Hernandez has had years of experience capturing professional and high school team portraits. Through years of shooting in a variety of locations, he has perfected the group lighting setup. To perfect the light coming from his key strobe, Matt prefers to use a reflective . By bouncing his strobe into this modifier, […]

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]]> https://westcottu.com/how-to-light-team-portraits/feed 1 148169 Using the Flex with World Class Results https://westcottu.com/using-the-flex-with-world-class-results Thu, 10 Dec 2015 17:06:57 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=148061 I was every bit impressed with all the muscle the Flex light had to offer for a compact, flexible, and continuous light panel. What better subject to power up against than with former World Champion Victor Ortiz. The stage was set for the challenge against “Viscious” Victor, his Championship belts and ring, as well as […]

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]]> 148061 Senior Sports Portraits with Matt Hernandez https://westcottu.com/amazing-senior-portraits-with-matt-hernandez Wed, 10 Sep 2014 19:43:21 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=141642 This really sets the bar for senior sports portraits. To bring his creative vision to life for this shoot, talented photographer Matt Hernandez needed to completely  control his lighting. Photographing this young swimmer in the center of a high school pool, Matt decided to modify his strobe with the softbox. This large modifier features a […]

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]]> 141642 Environmental Portraiture with Andrew Tomasino https://westcottu.com/environmental-portraits-andrew-tomasino Wed, 30 Jul 2014 13:29:44 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=141496 This article is courtesy of Pennsylvanian portrait photographer Andrew Tomasino.   When I’m not photographing I take part in a new passion of mine; Jiu Jitsu. In specific, 10th Planet Jiu Jitsu with some of the nicest, coolest guys that I’m lucky to now call my friends. The person you see below is one of […]

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]]> 141496 Capturing Impressive Senior Portraits https://westcottu.com/senior-portraits-rapid-box-xxl Mon, 28 Apr 2014 17:38:02 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=140403 Westcott Top Pro photographer Matt Hernandez discusses the features and benefits of the Rapid Box XXL while shooting sports-themed senior portraits in this latest review. With quick set-up and a lightweight frame, Matt is easily able to use this large modifier throughout his on-location shoots. The Rapid Box XL and XXL offer two removable diffusion […]

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]]> 140403 Dance Photography with the Strobelite Plus https://westcottu.com/dance-photography-with-strobelite Thu, 16 Jan 2014 20:26:58 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=140046 This article is courtesy of Westcott Top Pro portrait photographer George DeLoache of Los Angeles, California. Dance is a phenomenal art form incorporating, music, movement, color and compositional forms. I had this image in my mind for quite a while until I met Roxane and Igor, who are competition Ballroom dancers. When I saw them move […]

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]]> 140046 Creating Sports Composite Portrait with Photo Key https://westcottu.com/sports-composite-photo-key-6 Wed, 20 Nov 2013 16:29:05 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=139349 Westcott Top Pro Matt Hernandez, who specializes in sports photography, uses Photo Key 6 to remove a green background for a sports composite.  Watch how Matt sets up his lighting for this green screen image, and quickly brings it in to a football field background. With Photo Key 6 Pro, Matt was able to make […]

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]]> 139349 Capturing Action Shots on a Budget https://westcottu.com/using-apollo-orb-create-action-photo Tue, 01 Oct 2013 14:37:03 +0000 https://westcottu.com/?p=139247 This Photography blog post using the Apollo Orb was originally written by Photographer, Charles Williams of Erudite Photography based in Ottawa, Canada. This photo shoot had to be one of the most inexpensive shoots I have had yet. The only thing I didn’t have, that I had to buy was baby powder for $5. Just […]

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]]> 139247 Black-and-White Action Shot Lighting Setup https://westcottu.com/action-shot-using-scrim-jim Mon, 30 Jul 2012 13:53:25 +0000 http://fjwestcott.com/?p=122707 Black-and-White Action shot by photographer João Carlos using a The Medium Scrim Jim Kit is a useful photography tool that allows photographers to diffuse, reflect, cut down, or completely block light.  With the variety of available fabrics, the Scrim Jim is one of the most diverse tools in the photography industry.  In this action shot […]

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]]> 122707 Speedlites for Action Photography https://westcottu.com/tyler-stableford-speedlites-for-action-photography Fri, 22 Jun 2012 13:12:06 +0000 http://fjwestcott.com/?p=121611 Explorer of Light Tyler Stableford takes us to the legendary Snowmass Terrain Park in Snowmass, Colorado, where he utilizes the radio functionality of the Canon 600EX-RT Speedlite system to achieve a perfect balance of ambient and speedlite lighting. Learn how to overpower the harsh mid-day sun to create dynamic action photos and portraits in tricky shooting situations. […]

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]]> 121611 Outdoor Football Portrait using a Scrim Jim https://westcottu.com/outdoor-football-portrait Mon, 11 Jun 2012 15:56:36 +0000 http://fjwestcott.com/?p=121379 This lighting setup and final image was provided by photographer Jim Schmelzer.  Jim used the Westcott Medium Scrim Jim overhead his subject so that there were no shadows on the football player, and that he could completely control the light that reached his subjects.  Jim then used a 50″ Mega Apollo to fully light the […]

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