Blog Posts Keyword Search Results

by Katie BarclaySports photography has a reputation for requiring a diverse set of skills. Not only do you need to be able to shoot in unpredictable lighting, you also need to be able to know how to capture fast-moving objects in a clear and concise way. In other words, you really need to be an artist to be able to be successful with sports photography.

There is no doubt about it: a lot of people love to watch sports. Viewership for the NFL alone was up 5% in 2018. That rising number also translates into increased production opportunities for all of us. But who is booking these productions and how are they getting the job done?

If you’re that special kind of weird that’s happy to spend 16 hours in a production truck elbow-to-elbow with a team of misfits, you might like that very special world of college sports production.

Over the years I have had the opportunity to work with some of the best and brightest minds in sports production. Everybody involved in the production side of things has brought their own unique style and expertise to the table - outstanding producers and directors, technical directors, audio engineers with mad skills, rock solid camera ops, and dare I say hundreds of other technicians, grips, and production assistants, and just a lot of other people that make great sports productions happen. But all of the people I have just mentioned whether they were part of a big crew, or of just a crew of two have one thing in common.

College sports production is a unique beast. Since schools’ athletic programs (especially football) are often one of their biggest revenue sources, the stakes are high. Meanwhile, during every on-field play or off-field interview, athletes and coaches have scholarships and future career prospects to consider. Anyone on the sidelines behind a camera or a microphone needs to know how to navigate those political dynamics, have superb technical production skills, and maintain up-to-date knowledge of the sport they’re covering. Any misstep could mean an unfilmed play, a botched interview, or a damaged relationship. For the scoop on navigating the many landmines of college sports production I talked to Gwen Brown, who spent over a decade in sports production. Often, she was the only woman on the line, on the sidelines, in the locker room, or in the sports section at the newsroom. Here are the lessons about navigating college sports production she learned the hard way so you don’t have to.

The demand for live televised college sports has never been higher. From all of the biggest and best college football programs to sports that you may never have seen before, the heat is on to produce the type of high production quality that viewers expect. With colleges and conferences building their own networks, it's no wonder that crews are busier than ever. Where do we start?

There is no secret. We are now living in an age where fan acquisition is at our fingertips. Sports audiences have become hungrier and more selfish when it comes to how much they expect from their favorite players. Today, every athlete has the most powerful tool in their hand to engage with their fans on a more personal, deeper level. Why is this important? Well, understanding who your audience is, where they come from, and where they are going next can maximize both revenue potential and brand awareness for the athlete like never before. Here are 5 winning strategies you want to start implementing in your content game ASAP.

Have you tweeted about a game you watched on television this week or shared a clip of a goal on Facebook? If you haven’t, chances are someone you know has. Across sports broadcast production, we’re seeing social media playing a much more prominent role. Broadcasters are using interactivity to their advantage, getting profound and valuable feedback from their audience and engaging with them to leverage multiscreen interaction.

Growing up in Colorado sports was always a big part of my life and so was the naturally beautiful and rugged landscape. In fact some of my first memories were driving with my Dad and suddenly pulling the car over to capture an amazing sunset or the wind blowing the snow off the side of a 14k foot peak, perfectly backlit. I developed an appreciation watching for the moments where beautiful light hit the mountain or the river just right.

In his sports broadcasting career, he has mixed every major sport and traveled all over the world doing it. He worked on the Fox NFL pregame show in Kabul Afghanistan, which he mixed on a Calrec Zeta. He has worked six Olympics (most for NBC), 17 Super Bowls, five World Series, two Stanley Cups, Cricket matches, NASCAR, Indy Car Racing, Goodwill Games in Russia, Great Outdoor Games, X Games, Golf’s U.S. Open, PGA Championships and 25 consecutive years of MLB and NFL games.