Going to a competition and watching your gymnast do what they love is a rewarding experience for any parent. Most of the time you’re going to want to capture each and every moment that is going to happen. There are certain steps to be taken when photographing your gymnast.
The DO’s
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Do take pictures of your gymnast!
It will be rewarding for you to capture that moment for your child. Then you can have cool or embarrassing pictures to share to all of your friends on social media.
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Taking pictures or video might help your gymnast in the future.
They could go home that night, watch their routines, and visually see what they need to fix in order to improve at the next meet. Watching themselves will help them see the mistakes they cannot feel.
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Do be respectful to the people around you.
Photograph your gymnast when it is their turn to compete and be quiet when doing so. Of course cheer and encourage them, but don’t be obnoxious in how you do so.
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Do talk to your gymnasts coaches about photographing your gymnasts.
Most gyms are okay with this but ask them if there is anything they don’t like in a competition. Some things may be distracting for a gymnast and the coaches can tell you what those things are.
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Do make sure the event is okay with you taking pictures.
Most competitions are not going to say “NO PICTURES ALLOWED” but for safety reasons, make sure you ask the check-in person if it is okay to take pictures.
The DONT’s:
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NUMBER ONE RULE FOR GYMNASTICS PHOTOGRAPHY, DON’T USE THE FLASH!!
This might seem silly but it is actually very important for gymnastics. If you have your flash on or if you’re recording and a light is on, it can be very distracting for your gymnast or another gymnast competing. The flash can become blinding to a gymnast and in result lead to an injury.
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Do not try to get your kids attention while they are competing.
This is distracting to the gymnasts, the coaches, and the other people in the audience. To be respectful to the people around you, don’t get your child’s attention.
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Don’t offer to take pictures for other people, especially the for the competition itself.
Some parents may not want to take pictures of their gymnast because they want to only watch or they are relying on the event to provide pictures. If the event is not providing pictures to be taken then don’t offer to take them for the competition because they probably have a reason as to why they did not hire anyone to take the pictures.
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Don’t keep taking pictures of your gymnast if they are on the podium.
Meets are suppose to be over by a certain time so the judges and coaches can prepare for the next session. Yelling at your child “one more picture!” while they are on the podium can becoming tiring for the people who have been at a competition all day.
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Don’t bombard your gymnast, their teammates and their coaches with a million pictures after a competition is over.
It is definitely okay to ask your gymnast to pose with their coaches for a picture or two, but not a ton. Coaches love taking pictures with the kids they coach but it does get exhausting after a lot of pictures.