 "Photo: THE Review/Alex Porro")
It is approximately six o'clock Saturday evening and I am crouched against the goal posts in the south end zone of Delaware Stadium, my back pressed firmly against the blue protective padding. It has been drizzling for a few hours and the scent of mud and wet grass hangs heavy over Tubby Raymond Field.
The green hedges which outline the field, fading as the weather cools, seem quaint underlining the raucous student section hungry for an important victory. The blue and gold clad Cockpit raps out an indistinct cadence on their Thunder Sticks as a "Who's house?" chant starts up. My legs are burning from my crouched position and my heartbeat has picked up. In my hands is a Nikon digital camera worth more than anything I own, about $5,000, lent to me by professional photographer Bob Burleigh.
Burleigh, who has been a sports photographer since he was 14, has worked for the university since 1999 and specializes in football. He agreed to let me use his camera for Delaware's game against Albany to find out what goes into the perfect sports photo. He sets me up in a prime spot to shoot the players storming out of the tunnel before the game.
"Don't move or you'll get hit," Burleigh said.
The Delaware cheerleaders crowd in from both sides and the dance squad presses forward to see the team emerge. I have the best seat in the house and other photographers jostle for position next to me. The chain link fence opens and I can see the tops of those winged helmets coming around the corner.
The first players come into view, their crisp, royal blue jerseys distinct in the dim light. The crowd can feel it coming. They are whipped into a frenzy by the cheer squads and then the smoke machine starts churning. Cold, white fog floats low across the ground as the players inch closer. The public address announcer welcomes the fans and introduces "your Delaware fightin' Blue Hens."
A blue and gold stampede breaks out. My finger locks down on the button and I am hit with a blast of smoke from the tunnel. I cannot see. I try to jump up to shoot above the smoke, but I slip. The camera keeps snapping as I scramble to my feet. And then it is over.
"Sometimes that happens," Burleigh said, smiling.
A great sports photograph is the end result of several factors. First according to Philadelphia Inquirer photographer Ed Hille, is the photographer's ability to understand what is happening in front of them.
"You have to be on top of the game," Hille said. "You have to be able to anticipate what's going to happen next."
Hille has been a professional photographer for 35 years and has worked in sports photography for the Kansas City Star and Times, and the Dallas Morning News and Inquirer. He has shot every professional team in Philadelphia, covered two World Series, the 2004 Super Bowl and the 1994 Winter Olympics in Helsinki, Norway. During this time, he has discovered that a photographer must understand the flow of a game he is covering in order to anticipate where the action will culminate. Unlike other areas of photography, a still photographer's window of opportunity is fairly narrow as opposed to many other forms of photography.
"There are a few things that you're always thinking about, action and reaction," Hille said. "You're looking for the mistakes sometimes."
Other times, a still photographer has the advantage. Often video will provide a good overview of a series of moments, but photography provides something unique, Hille said.
"As a still photographer, you're able to capture 'the moment,' " he said. "We're dealing in moments rather than a series of moments."
Timing plays a large part in an outstanding picture as well, Hille said.
"Timing is everything," he said. "You have to start shooting before you think something will happen."
Using modern cameras, photographers are able to take many frames per second and can shoot straight through a specific moment, catching the perfect shot in the process.
Getting the best angle for a photo allows the photographer to convey the most vivid picture to his or her viewers, he said.
"I always try to stay in front of the play," Burleigh said, noting that it keeps a player's face in focus, allowing the photographer to capture the emotion on the field.
Hille said the best photographers get themselves into position to take a great photograph.
Late in the third quarter, the Hens are rallying after a shaky performance in the first half. Delaware's defense has put consistent pressure on the Great Danes' quarterback Vinny Esposito and forced him into several crucial errors. They have essentially shut down runningback David McCarty and are wearing down the clock.
I am positioned on the Hens' side of the field around the 30 yard line when backup quarterback Lou Ritacco tucks the ball and takes off. He shakes a few defenders as my shutter flickers, and takes off down the sideline. I try to adjust my position so that I can catch him as he passes me, but as soon as I move, he hurtles past, defenders following in his wake. I get nothing but blurred images as Ritacco is brought down deep in Hens' territory.
"Sports photography is like a large buffet," photographer Hank Young said.
"There are lots and lots of pictures out there. If I miss a moment, I don't worry too much about it."
Young has been a photographer for more than 40 years. He has shot 35 different sports and is currently the team photographer for the Kansas City Chiefs. Young said there is something else to sports photography that many people don't consider.
"Luck is a big part of this," Young said. "But people make their own luck through preparation and skills."
Burleigh also said sometimes luck finds you simply by where you happen to be during the course of a game.
"Once in a while you get lucky," Burleigh said. "You're standing in the right place at the right time."
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