Why is it so hard to get a good shot of a football player making a catch? The average National Football League game includes an average of about 37 passes per team. Completion rates average around 70% or lower. That means there should be about 50 catches that you could photograph. College football has some teams that pass much more, some much less. High school football is similarly variable depending on the team and their quarterback. Still, there are a good number of chances if you are in the right place at the right time on the sidelines. But catching a player making a catch has not been easy. At least not where it is clear that he just caught it or is in the act of catching. They drop the ball. The ball is not quite in his hands. It looks like he already caught it and is making a move.
Over the past 3-4 years I have been shooting a lot of high school football. This season, my shooting included a college game (Penn State at Maryland – Go Lions!!), an NFL game (Jets at Redskins), and the Virginia State Championship high school game. These games have produced a few shots of catches along the way, but the State Championship game was my big score as shown below. The Lake Taylor Titans beat the Tuscarora Huskies thanks to some great catches and an interception. I was fortunate to get these shots.
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| Lake Taylor's Malik Newton intercepts a pass to prevent a touchdown in the Virginia Class 4 State Championship Game. |
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| Lake Taylor's Malik Newton makes a diving catch for a touchdown in the Virginia Class 4 State Championship Game. |
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| Darious Spreight of Lake Taylor catches a TD pass over the arms of Tuscarora's Mikey Marquez in the Virginia Class 4 State Championship Game |
