Shooting football games is something a lot of photographers really want to do, but it’s not as easy as you might think.

The right equipment is crucial. You should have at least two camera bodies. Journal-World photographers are supplied with either a Nikon D1X or Nikon D1H and a Nikon 80-200mm lens with an aperture of 2.8, which works OK for some sideline shots.

But a long telephoto lens is what you really need. A 300mm lens is a little better, but I have a Nikon 500 with an f4 aperture, which works great in good sunlight.

Most of my pictures from Kansas University’s Sept. 11 game against Toledo were shot with this long lens. It allowed me to sit in the stands and elevate myself in order to see faces as players caught passes or made good runs.

If you can capture a nice, tight image using a long lens, then you don’t have to enlarge the photo as much to get a good composition.

The other trick is to move around and not stick with a group of other photographers. If you stay with the herd, your pictures will look the same as theirs. I always try to move around and shoot from different angles.