Cricket is the perfect summer spectator sport for the photographer. The whites that the players wear contrast flawlessly against the green grass, there are periods of high drama followed by lulls so you can catch your breath, it’s nearly always played under blue skies – and it’s free! This week we’re going to give you our final top tips on this genre so that you can get out with your gear and have loads of fun in the sun.

The players white clothing really does look great, but it can present problems with exposure. You will need to either dial in some exposure compensation or shoot in manual and spot meter for the white clothes to prevent the players being overexposed. 

For the majority of your images aim to use as high a shutter speed as possible to freeze the action, which should be relatively easy in good light. However, don’t be afraid to experiment with slower shutter speeds to imply movement – this looks great if you can capture the bowler's arm as a blur as he delivers, or the batsman’s bat whizzing through the ball. Remember that this kind of shot can be hard to master so practice and have fun!

It’s easy to become obsessed with the bowler and batsman when shooting cricket, but you can grab some amazingly dynamic images of the fielders too. The slips are always busy in parks cricket because the pitches are generally poor quality, but you’ll often find the best fielders in the covers so be prepared to watch them closely.

The match itself isn’t the whole story, though. If you can get close to the batting team away from the field you might be able to capture some portraits or candids as they support their team. Introduce yourself and ask if they mind you photographing them and you’ll generally be pleasantly surprised.

The same can be said for the spectators. Cricket fans are often real characters so don’t miss out on the opportunity to capture some interesting candids to help tell the story of the day. 

As you can see, photographing a cricket match can be a lot of fun and doesn’t have to be too taxing if you follow our simple guidelines. Let us know how you get on and if you take anything you’re really proud of we would love to see it in our lab – cricket really does look awesome printed large on a canvas!