Taking Baseball Photos from Inside the Fence at a Highschool Game

Wow…what an experience. Shooting baseball photos inside the fence at a JV game! I have been shooting baseball photos since my son started t-ball back when he was 5 years old. It was so easy back then, except for the fact that I was shooting with a very slow camera.

Here I am ten years later, with a great camera that I love, and my pictures have come a long way. But so has the game… Back in the little league days, I could take baseball photos on the field or through the fence and get all the shots. The boys were so slow and so predictable at that age. I had plenty of time to figure out where they were headed and what/who to focus on. I also didn’t have to worry about getting hit with the baseball.

My time out on the JV baseball field was quite different. When I’m shooting baseball pictures, I am usually behind the fence or in the dug out, safe! When I’m looking through my camera, I am completely unaware of what is happening on the rest of the field, so a fence is helpful. For this photography adventure, I was stepping out onto the field. I convinced my husband to come out on the field with me so he could be my extra set of eyes (and shield me from any foul balls that came our way).

My husband, my camera and I stepped in through the gate right past the dugout and stood up against the fence (he was in front of me and his shoulder was my tripod)! It was a perfect set up. But at the Junior Varsity level, the game of baseball is much faster.

Even with my husband as my spotter shouting “Two, two, two. Now four, four” or “Watch the shortstop” so I’d know where to aim my camera, I still missed a lot. Not to mention the fact that I was a little nervous being out on the field. I just knew a foul ball was gonna come my way and hit me. Or even worse, hit my camera!

I finally got brave enough and put myself at the mercy of my spotter. Totally forgot about possible injury to me or my camera and had a great time trying to keep up with these amazing baseball players!

I was also thinking how fun it would be to go back to a little league game and see what I could do now that my photography skills have improved, cameras are much more advanced, and my knowledge of the game (and my camera) is much greater as well.

But for now, I’ll keep practicing taking photos at my son’s freshman baseball games. And hopefully, as he moves up to JV and eventually Varsity level play, my camera and I (and my spotter) will be ready!

If I can help you out with family, senior or sports photos, you can find me and my camera over at Paula Mason Photography. Just let me know what you need!

Until next time…