There is no better office than the golf course. With open fields, fresh air, and people that love being out there, golf is one of those rare professional sports that just about anyone can play or relate to. I have shot golf photography for Getty Images since I first joined the staff in 1995.
What I have learned most out of all the tournaments is that you never want to be on a golfer’s bad side. Being at the wrong place at the wrong time can cause a golfer to lose strokes and affect the outcome of a tournament. But that’s just the start of what you should know about golf photography…
General Rules in Golf Photography
There are a few hard rules and general guidelines when photographing golf. The most important rule is to remain only one arm’s length from the rope. This rule is in place so that photographers do not walk in the middle of fairways or onto greens and disrupt play.
Photographers can be inside the ropes at PGA Tour events. This is a big deal because the galleries could be ten-people deep, especially when the biggest competitors like Tiger or Phil Mickelson play. Everyone is craning to have a look, so being able to work inside the ropes is the best way for a photographer covering golf to work effectively.
The other general rule is to not affect play. If a golfer or caddie asks a photographer to move for any reason, the photographer should comply. For example, if you find yourself in the golfer’s putting line on a green — directly behind the hole as the golfer is putting straight at you — and the golfer is distracted, he or she might ask you to move. You should move to one side without question. These are the things a PGA tour representative might tell you when checking-in and picking up a credential.
The other rules are more general guidelines that they won’t tell you, but that you should consider when shooting. These include the following:
Be still when a golfer is addressing the ball and about to hit or putt.
This means you should stop moving and respectfully wait until he or she hits their shot.
Fire your camera only after impact.
A golfer is concentrating, so any sudden noise such as the sound of a shutter in otherwise silent surroundings could cause the golfer to mis-hit their shot. I have witnessed photographers being yelled at, cursed at, and even asked to leave a tournament after firing on someone’s backswing, causing them to shank the ball. There are a few exceptions to this, especially with the onslaught of mirrorless cameras with silent shutters. Although, in general, the pictures look best after impact.
Photographers covering golf should police each other.
Local or first-time golf photographers that do not regularly cover tournaments might wind up in the wrong place or a bad situation. This could affect every photographer out there, so we often look out for each other and suggest a better place to stand if we see someone unsure of the rules.
By following these basic rules and guidelines, photographers should be able to successfully cover a tournament with no issues.
Angles and Positions for Golf Photography
The best part of shooting golf is that there is so much freedom to be creative with angles, light, and composition. Golf is not a sport where the photographer stands in one spot. It is necessary to walk — often several miles — to come back with the best coverage. It might be tempting for some to think they can wait on the 18th hole for the round to end and capture everything that happens there. Although, by doing this, the best shots are often missed.
I have seen players take off their shoes and roll their pants up to stand in shallow water to hit shots out of precarious places. There have been miraculous recovery shots from behind hospitality tents. I have seen players play shots from deep in trees or bushes. These are the most interesting shots to me. A ball that lands in the middle of the fairway will generally yield a photograph that looks like just another golfer hitting a ball.
When shooting golf there are generally two ways to go about it:
Shoot from One Location
The first is to find a nice spot on the golf course — one that either has a nice background or nice light — and wait there as all the golfers come through. This helps make sure you don’t miss photographing a certain player that may take the lead later in a round.
Follow One Golfer
The other way is to chase or follow specific golfers. This is done when you might need several shots of a particular player, or if that player is leading or near the lead. Most tournaments take place over several days. So, the field of players is cut halfway through to weed out those that don’t have a chance to win. I generally spend the first two rounds finding a nice spot and trying to shoot most of the players. I then spend the last two rounds covering the leaders and flowing the story of the tournament.
Best Gear for Golf Photography
Since golf photographers need to be as mobile as possible, there is often a question of what gear to shoot with. On the PGA Tour, it is necessary to have at least one lens that is 300mm or longer. The players are in the middle of the fairway. Photographers are stuck alongside the ropes, so having a long lens is a necessity to capture close-up action.
Photo Equipment
My gear includes two Canon bodies and three lenses. I use a Canon EOS R5 Mirrorless Digital Camera with an EF 200-400mm lens or EF 500mm lens on a monopod, but also bring a Canon EOS R3 Mirrorless Camera with an EF 24-105mm lens. I also carry an EF 70-200mm lens in a waist pouch.
Sometimes I will also add a wider lens — such as a Canon EF 16-35mm lens or a Canon 8-15mm fisheye lens — for dramatic images. Equivalent or similar lenses are available from all the manufacturing companies including Sony and Nikon.
What Should Be in the Frame
In general, a photographer needs to be prepared to shoot the action whether it is further down the fairway or right in front of them. Golf looks good shot waist-up of the player, or full length. I generally stand in front of the golfer and try not to clip or cut off the club. I find that my clients like to see the entire club in the image so sometimes it’s best to shoot more loose.
Shooting looser also might show more of the course that’s being played. This gives some location rather than just a plain or generic background. Throughout the tournament, I try to find a balance between the tight shots (we call “neck and steel”) and the looser shots that show the course. Hopefully, by the end of the event ,there is a nice variety of tight and loose images to tell the story.
Camera Settings for Golf Photography
Golf does not move very fast. It is sometimes tedious because a round could take 4-5 hours to complete. It is tempting to think that, because it is slow, one doesn’t need a fast shutter speed.
The actual swing, however, happens very quickly. Without a fast enough shutter speed, the club might appear with too much blur. I tend to shoot with my aperture wide open in order to blow the background out of focus and isolate the golfer.
I also try to keep my shutter speed about 500th/second or above. My exposure settings vary as the light changes and to what the situation calls for. If the golfer is in front of a crowd of people, I might stop down to show all the faces in the crowd, especially as they react to a good shot. Alternatively, if there are distracting elements in the background — such as grandstands or ropes, golf carts — I might position myself so these things are not in my background, or I throw them far enough out of focus so they do not distract from the subject.
Tips for Shooting Golf Photography
For anyone getting started in golf photography, here are some useful tips to remember.
Always Do Your Research
First, do some research beforehand. Find out who is playing in the tournament and when their tee time is. If it’s early in the morning or late in the afternoon, arrive early enough to plan your coverage so that you are not scrambling to try to photograph them before they finish for the day.
Get a Course Map
Often times, maps are printed and available at the media center. Plan your route or coverage so that you can work smarter, not harder. Lets say you know that Rory McIlroy will tee off at 8:30 a.m. on the 10th hole. You can be out on the course and in that vicinity beforehand so you won’t have to guess where he will be later in the round.
Know Your Equipment
Just like anything, the less you have to worry about your gear, the more you can concentrate on the subject. If you don’t have a long lens, plan your coverage so that you can shoot in locations around the course that may not require such a long lens. For example, shoot the golfers around the tees or the greens. Golfers will be too far from you in the fairways.
Ask Questions
As a professional photographer or an amateur photographer, we are always learning. If a situation arises that you don’t understand — such as why is a golfer doing something in particular — ask another photographer or even a tournament volunteer or a fan. Often, fans know a lot about golf in general. Ask questions to obtain the best information you can to help figure out where to be for the best coverage. Who’s ball is in the fairway? How many strokes has this player had on the hole so far? Just like any other sport, photographing golf requires some knowledge of the game and each situation.
Photographing golf at the tournament level is a pleasure in a lot of ways. By adhering to the few rules — such as staying near the rope and respecting the golfers — it’s a creative wonderland. Golf is played under all weather conditions and often these conditions contribute to the most interesting pictures. By knowing who to follow, how to navigate the course, where to stand in relation to the shot, and what gear and exposure to use, a golf photographer can solidly cover atournament and come away with some unique images.
