Commack-Northport Boys Varsity Swimming vs. Sachem
Good to see we have enough swimmers for a combined Commack-Northport team this year.
Drove out to Sachem East for this meet, which was my first time at this pool. They have a nice pool - decent lighting, white walls and ceilings and they actually have a balcony where the spectators sit. This is great for both the spectators and me because we don’t get in each other’s way.
A few tips on photographing swimming - first, get a heat sheet. This will give you the order of events and you can plan where to stand. For example, for the breast and fly you want to be at the end of the pool so the swimmers are coming straight at you. For all other strokes you want to move along the side with the swimmers. While you’re at it, see if the teams are assigned lanes. For example, if you know your team is assigned to the even numbered lanes this makes identifying swimmers much easier. Also, find out if your team is wearing swim caps with the school logo. That helps a lot with identification.
Take LOTS of photos. Chances are your camera’s autofocus will be fooled by flying spray and you’ll have a lot of out-of-focus shots. If your camera has face an/or eye recognition, turn it off. Between the spray and the partially submerged swimmers this feature won’t work well. There are going to be some strokes where it’s almost impossible to get a good photo of a swimmer, namely the 50 meter freestyle and any relay which includes a 50 meter freestyle leg. The swimmers are going all out, spray is flying everywhere, and some don’t even come up for air. Try your best but don’t be depressed if you come away with nothing. You can probably get a decent photo of the swimmer at the end of the race if they turn around to look at their time.
Try to figure out which side your swimmer turns to breath. Some swimmer breath only on their right, some only on their left and some alternate sides. This will help you in timing your shots. If a swimmer is always turning away from you to breath there’s no sense in trying to get a shot until he makes his turn.
Finally, stay out of the way of the officials. They move up and down the sides of the pool. Stay behind them. They have a hard enough job without having to zig-zag around a photographer.
