Credentials

bandgeekndb

Not really a shot per-say, but more of a question:

How do you (the amateur, go about getting credentials at an attempt to get on the sideline? Obviously, I'm not going to be writing the New York Giants trying to get a press pass, but for a college team (especially if I'm a current student or an alumni), or other events where close-up access is limited?

Thanks!

Jzazzi

My photography began about the same time I started working for large local radio stations. Under the guise of shooting for the radio stations' websites depending on which event I wanted to go to, it was very simple to get access to local events. Sometimes it was as simple as showing a business card, sometimes much more complicated.

I've never tried to gain access somewhere without using my employer as leverage, but I did learn a very important lesson. If you can show a valid reason to photograph an event, people are less likely to question it. Get involved with a college newspaper, radio station, local media of some kind and I think doors will start opening for you.

-J

Matt336

I'm in the process currently. I just emailed the Athletic Department wondering if they were looking for a photographer/assistant photographer. I am currently waiting to hear back from them after sending them my portfolio.

TPBinKC

bandgeekndb wrote:

Not really a shot per-say, but more of a question:

How do you (the amateur, go about getting credentials at an attempt to get on the sideline? Obviously, I'm not going to be writing the New York Giants trying to get a press pass, but for a college team (especially if I'm a current student or an alumni), or other events where close-up access is limited?

Thanks!

I started a soccer blog covering the local MLS team. Went to some practices and got some shots.

After having a fair amount of posts with practice photos and notes, I asked for game credentials and got them. Since then I have shot several games. With that history I have contacted local colleges and received permission to shoot those games. I am hoping to continue to build on that.

Erbeman

I shoot all of the Texas Tech home games for Texas Tech. You simply need to contact the Media relations dept of Athletics and ask to be a freelance photographer and tell them that you'll give them your best photos after each game. You don't get to sell any college football pics. You are going to have to prove to them that you are worthy however. I don't know anything about you or your photography, but I see you shoot with a D40 and a kit lens. It's going to be hard to offer them anything too good with that equipment more than likely. Especially under the lights. You won't stand a chance without better equipment. I do wish you luck though.

ian408

Typically, you need to be shooting for someone (local paper as an example) or have some reason to be there (an assignment). You may also need to represent your previous work as a condition as well. Being alumni may help but don't look at it to get you on the sidelines. Different venues/events have different requirements for credentials. The larger the event, the more people want them and the tighter organizers can be handing them out. The people to contact are usually the media relations folks.

For a small school, it may be as simple as calling and asking. For others, you may need your employer to ask on your behalf. If you are a student, approach the paper and ask if you can shoot for them--if you do, make a commitment to work for them (take a journalism class) and you may also gain access to better equipment.

A media credential is not always an easy thing to get. If you are declined, be polite and thank them for the opportunity and try again later.

Good luck.

bandgeekndb

Thank you everyone for your replies!

I'll definitely be building experience, portfolio, the whole-9-yards, until I actually get a chance to shoot! Honestly, being a band member with the university is not conducive to getting free time to shoot the game! In football, the band is off in left field and their ain't much room for a nice long, fast lens AND my trombone! And for basketball, I'll be lucky if we ever stop cheering and playing enough for me to get a shot off!

Also, although I've been having fun with my 55-200, something tells me f/5.6 on the long end ain't gonna cut it on an indoor b-ball court! As much fun as I had shooting outside for a flag football game, and got some amazing shots, I haven't bottled pure daylight for great photography indoors yet!

I think towards the end of this semester into next, I'm gonna build up enough in my portfolio to feel comfortable going to the school paper and see if they need a photographer. I talked with one of their photographers and he said they shoot Nikon (he was a canonite, and somehow affording a nice 200mm f/2.8 Canon lens on a student budget - *ENVY*), which is a plus since I'm getting more familiar with Nikon each day!

Now, off to build my portfolio! Thanks again!

~Nick

PS - "RU Rah Rah, RU Rah Rah, Hoo Rah, Hoo Rah, RUTGERS RAH!" hehe, couldn't resist!

attorneyjay

Get Access Where You Can
If you haven't much experience shooting sports action, especially at night, I'd first build a portfolio by shooting high school games. I actually paid to get into basketball games to shoot for one season before I figured out how to get media credentials. As long as I has a big, fancy camera and lens, acted like I knew what I was doing, and was respectful of players and officials, nobody ever bothered me tho I wasn't "credentialed." It was worth it for the experience.

After you have something impressive to show, preferably on a pro Smugmug website where your pics are watermarked and for sale, you should at least have a business card. This alone may get you into many HS venues and to the sidelines. You may also contact the various athletic directors for access. Another option is to pay $50 for a media pass from a stock photography company such as picturestock.com. You could also create your own media pass. If you have a professional website then you have credentials, it'll then be a matter of whether yours pass muster with the school. You could also start a blog with pictures or just submit pictures as a contract photographer with one of many websites that cover high school sports. Many media outlets are starting these and invite photo submissions. Many of these outlets will provide you with a media pass.

Whether any of the above passes will get you into college or pro venues will really depend on the venue, as somebody else said, the more popular the event the tighter restrictions will be. Once you get a pass such as suggested above and have an impressive portfolio then you will be able to make a more persuasive case for getting into bigger venues such as you desire.

Jay

David Evertsen

attorneyjay wrote:

If you haven't much experience shooting sports action, especially at night, I'd first build a portfolio by shooting high school games. I actually paid to get into basketball games to shoot for one season before I figured out how to get media credentials. As long as I has a big, fancy camera and lens, acted like I knew what I was doing, and was respectful of players and officials, nobody ever bothered me tho I wasn't "credentialed." It was worth it for the experience.

After you have something impressive to show, preferably on a pro Smugmug website where your pics are watermarked and for sale, you should at least have a business card. This alone may get you into many HS venues and to the sidelines. You may also contact the various athletic directors for access. Another option is to pay $50 for a media pass from a stock photography company such as picturestock.com. You could also create your own media pass. If you have a professional website then you have credentials, it'll then be a matter of whether yours pass muster with the school. You could also start a blog with pictures or just submit pictures as a contract photographer with one of many websites that cover high school sports. Many media outlets are starting these and invite photo submissions. Many of these outlets will provide you with a media pass.

Whether any of the above passes will get you into college or pro venues will really depend on the venue, as somebody else said, the more popular the event the tighter restrictions will be. Once you get a pass such as suggested above and have an impressive portfolio then you will be able to make a more persuasive case for getting into bigger venues such as you desire.

Jay

Jay this is exactly how I have been working on it.. I take dance pictures and make my money off of that.
Contacted the local HS Athletic Director last year and asked to take HS Football to work on my low light action for Dance.. He said I can take all the Freshman/JV football I want and that was it... I said cool... Freshman started at 6pm and was bright but sunset and JV started at 7:30 and was under the lights so I got a ton of experience. Then while I was at those games the AD said hey you can do away Varsity.. That was last year got the same deal this year. Did every JV/Freshman even away then did all Varsity away homecoming and got to do several home games because the one doing it did not show up.. I do dance recitals at another HS Dance Magnet. I am professional on the sidelines stay out of everyone's way and help the Yearbook kids, told the yearbook I would help them as well. I have never been questioned on any field about being there at Varsity games, but I have always acted like I belong and never gotten in any other photogs way or TV stations way.. Just keep working on it, I have a legion of parents who are happy to have me there and are starting to buy some pictures. You just have to keep building, I have cards and will be working on a new logo for them to look professional so there is less of an issue...

David Evertsen
www.phabulousphotos.com

johng

just want to make a distinction on something. Media pass vs. sideline/floor pass. They really are two different things. And the difference is more apparent the more you move up the food chain in venues. As you move up the chain you need a sideline/floor pass issued from the site authority. These passes are usually requested by your editor ahead of time. By the time you get to Div I college games and such, having a self-made media pass isn't going to get you anywhere. At the HS level it will let you slip by the mom/dad at the gate. But I would suggest following David's advice for HS. Contact the AD and actually work through the proper channels. Sports shooting requires building relationships. You have more long term gain by building those relationships than by having a fake media pass. The media pass isn't a requirement at low levels and at the higher levels without a substantial recognized media behind you it won't get you access. Try to get into a top notch Div I football field with a blog and a self-made media pass and it really won't work.

The truth is - High Schools don't mind pro / semi-pro shooters on the field / sideline. THey just don't want mom & dad there. There are too many potential headaches - not the least of which is liability.

attorneyjay

I think JohnG's points are valid except I mildly resent the implication that I have a "fake" media pass because it is not issued by a newspaper, TV station, or similar conventional media outlet. I recognize that my media pass issued by a stock photography company will not necessarily suffice as credentials for Division I or pro sports venues. It is not "fake" however. I am a professional, albeit free lance, photographer. My credentials are honest and valid, and I use these as a basis for my media pass. I show and wear my pass at every venue where I seek sideline privileges. The AD or anyone else with authority is free to review my pass and exclude me if they think it's insufficient. So far, after attending hundreds of events, I've never been barred.

Contacting ADs and creating relationships is ideal, and I try to do that. However, the sheer number of different venues I shoot at in a relatively short length of time prevents me from hobknobbing as much as I'd like. Hence, I have a pass based on honest credentials to gain access wherever I can. Where that is insufficient, I will try to provide the additional credentials that the particular venue requires.

The earlier question was about how to acquire credentials to eventually obtain access to more popular college and pro venues. I think my response fairly and reasonably addressed that issue. Start small , then you will eventually build a portfolio and reputation to perhaps get credentialed by a "substantial recognized media" outlet.

Jay

johng

Jay - sorry if you took personal affront. I did not mean to imply your stock-issued credential was 'fake'. What I was referring to was your advice to create your own. If you create your own pass - I'm sorry it's a fake. There is nothing whatsoever wrong with working for a small outlet. Especially in today's economy, freelance opportunities at larger media outlets are almost non-existent. So I think internet based is a very legitimate alternative. I just don't think photoshoping your own is a good idea.

attorneyjay

johng wrote:

Jay - sorry if you took personal affront. I did not mean to imply your stock-issued credential was 'fake'. What I was referring to was your advice to create your own. If you create your own pass - I'm sorry it's a fake. There is nothing whatsoever wrong with working for a small outlet. Especially in today's economy, freelance opportunities at larger media outlets are almost non-existent. So I think internet based is a very legitimate alternative. I just don't think photoshoping your own is a good idea.

I still disagree. If you are a legitimate, free lance, professional photographer then there is nothing wrong with designing a media pass based on your own valid credentials. If you have a commercial website or otherwise established commercial entity that posts, sells or publicizes sports events and photos then you are part of the media. You are not "fake." Every entity where you submit your pass is free to accept it or reject it. It will not nearly be as helpful as passes from conventional media in getting you into pro or highly popular venues, but it certainly is not fake. A fake pass is one produced by someone who is not a photographer but simply creates an authentic looking pass just so he can get into a venue without paying. The difference is not necessarily where the pass comes from, but the actual purpose for which it will be used and whether the person using it has the credentials indicated by the pass.

johng

Jay - afraid we'll just have to agree to disagree. To me it's an integrity issue. If a person is truly interested in media purposes and not sales I could start to buy your argument. But if the blog and homemade pass is simply a justification for getting on the field/court for hobby purposes or sales purposes it is to me dishonest. Just my opinion. You and others are free to have your own opinion. For what it's worth - most event sportsshooters there for sale dont create fake press passes. They don't need to. They're simply honest with the event coordinators.

But if you're truly running a REAL blog - i.e. player stats, game stats, true sports content and it's not just a facade for the justification of a fake media pass I could see it. But I didn't get the sense the OP wanted to do that. It's a LOT of work. Afraid not every photographer is media. Just posting photos on smugmug for instance doesn't really qualify you as media.

But again - the OP may be pleasantly surprised if they just take the basic route to get access. I've never been turned down by an AD when asking for access to regular season games. Act and behave professionally and be honest about why you want access and most will be very accomodating.

You are certainly entitled to your opinion. But, credibility is a difficult thing to regain once lost. And to me a homemade press pass is IMO an attempt at deception. If I were an AD I'd probably have a more negative reaction to someone I believed tried deception than just Joe Photographer who was there without permission. At least in that case you could plead ignorance. Tough to do when you have a pass that just belongs to your website of photographs. Again, based on my experience there's really no need to try that route. But it's your and others choice. We'll just have to disagree on this point.

For the record I freelance for a small paper but also sell photos on my own. I'm always up front when shooting for sales and as mentioned I've never been turned down.

ian408

If what Jay is describing equates to an ID badge identifying him as an employee of his own media
company, I have no problem with that at all. What he describes is no different than an employer issuing
an employee a photo ID badge and presenting that when calling on another business. All the badge does
is identify its holder as being affiliated with its issuer. By itself, it is not a media credential nor is it a pass.
It is simply something that identifies his affiliation with the issuer.

I do believe it is important to present a professional image and to act in a professional manner when
making credential requests. To create something that says "PRESS PASS" is disingenuous when it is
done with the intent of gaining access where a valid pass is required.

BTW, a better definition of media might be "accredited media" where the organization requesting a
credential is recognized as such (whether by registration or other formal means) and has a valid
reason for being at the event.

KED

attorneyjay wrote:

I still disagree. If you are a legitimate, free lance, professional photographer then there is nothing wrong with designing a media pass based on your own valid credentials. If you have a commercial website or otherwise established commercial entity that posts, sells or publicizes sports events and photos then you are part of the media. You are not "fake." Every entity where you submit your pass is free to accept it or reject it. It will not nearly be as helpful as passes from conventional media in getting you into pro or highly popular venues, but it certainly is not fake. A fake pass is one produced by someone who is not a photographer but simply creates an authentic looking pass just so he can get into a venue without paying. The difference is not necessarily where the pass comes from, but the actual purpose for which it will be used and whether the person using it has the credentials indicated by the pass.

C'mon Jay -- if you are really an attorney (I am), you know that you cannot create your own credentials. Period, end of story. Maybe you made yourself an attorney as well. I don't fault anyone's efforts to get onto a sideline (search me on this forum for proof of that) -- but don't delude yourself or mislead others.

sportsshooter06

KED wrote:

C'mon Jay -- if you are really an attorney (I am), you know that you cannot create your own credentials. Period, end of story. Maybe you made yourself an attorney as well. I don't fault anyone's efforts to get onto a sideline (search me on this forum for proof of that) -- but don't delude yourself or mislead others.

Holy cow! someone finally saying the truth. Mr. Jay, you are no more a professional photographer than my friend who likes to go shooting with me as an assistant. If you create your own credential, and then say you have ethics and integrity. Holy cow. good luck on your sideline.

attorneyjay

sportsshooter06 wrote:

Holy cow! someone finally saying the truth. Mr. Jay, you are no more a professional photographer than my friend who likes to go shooting with me as an assistant. If you create your own credential, and then say you have ethics and integrity. Holy cow. good luck on your sideline.

I appreciate the responses from Ian, KED, and Sportsshooter06. I now understand media passes, credentials, ID badges, sideline passes, etc. much better. I think I was confusing some terminology and not understanding how it all works. I've only been shooting sports where these issues are relevant for about a year, so hopefully that helps explain my ignorance. I'll be making some adjustments to ensure that I am not doing anything wrong. Thanks again.

Jay

bandgeekndb

Wow, quite the string of responses here! Thanks everybody, normally, I end up reading the replies on my blackberry so this is the first time in a while I've gotten online to do replies!

I've actually applied to be on my school newspaper's photo team, so I'll see how that goes. Now, on to finding the free time to use whatever credentials I can muster!

Thanks again!
~Nick

kenyahudson

A couple of things to add: First, be careful about selling photos of high school or collegiate players if you don't have a model release for each identifiable person or, perhaps even a venue release. Without the former, you are only on firm legal ground selling images to editorial organizations (like newspapers, magazines, and many now argue blogs), to the subject or to the supervising entity (i.e. the university, school or athletic association). I've noticed some universities insisting on venue releases to further constrain resell opportunities. (Typically, I set up private galleries with passwords distributed to the coaches to minimize the likelihood of having third-parties involved.) Litigation is unlikely unless there is huge volume or large amounts of money involved. Typically, the photographer's credentials are pulled especially when he is a semi-pro shooting on spec or a freelancer and the school or university can avoid annoying major media outlets (like the local newspapers, wire service stringers, etc).

Second, I'm not sure if this was the previous poster's intent. However, in the long term, it's a bad idea to be deceptive in credential requests. The more I shoot, the more I see the same people. Even if you work for a media organization--in another capacity or as a stringer, it's a bad idea to give SIDs and media-relations personnel the impression that you are there on assignment when you are not. Eventually someone finds out. It's mentioned in casual conversation between the editor and the SID who just happen to have gone to the same university or a SID calls a media organization checking on an article it expects to appear. I know cases where both have happened and the editor and the SID felt sandbagged. If you aren't shooting on assignment, be honest and tell them you are shooting on spec with a first refusal for your media organization. If you are shooting freelance, be clear about that and ask if they would be interested in purchasing some images. Often freelancers are not a problem at lower-level college and high school games especially in the less glamorous sports.