Advice - Photographing a golf course

[theboyfold]

I'm after a little advice, I've been asked to take photos of a golf course that a friend works at. I'm not that used to taking landscape stuff, so I'd be looking for a little advice from those who do this a lot more than I do

I'd guess that the basics would be that small aperture, therefore longer exposure and a need for a tripod? Stick to rule of thirds. Wider lenses are going to be more in demand than my 35mm and up. Shooting raw and bracketing would be handy I guess.

So beyond that, one thing I'm not that confident in is composition of the shot, so I've been looking around for inspiration, but along with any other advice, it would be nice to hear thoughts on this as well

Thanks in advance.

 

[EdwardL]

I've got this as a task soon and never done this before but one thing I will be concentrating on will be the course and not the sky unless it's interesting,of course. So the wide angle shots will be 1/3rd sky (or less) and much made of the fairway and approach to the green. I will also be using my 70-200mm lens as sometimes the best shots are taken from a fair way away (sorry!) and zooming in on the interest. For example, you might be halfway down the fairway and like the set up of the bunkers surrounding the green. Zooming in from here can often be more effective than a 75mm focal distance from the green when you're closer.

And many shots will probably have the golfer as a minor subject but giving a sense of scale to the fairway.

Basically, it's a variety of shots from wide angle to detail - a flag on the green in focus with a heavy bokeh will be quite interesting too but most important, as always with photography, it's the light that makes the shot. So if the light is a rather bland, ask to return another time when there is sun and clouds - days like this make for much more interesting shots.

In my humble opinion

 

[ACW]

What type of course is it you are photographing (e.g. links, tight and woody, flat and open etc) and what is the brief?

Also, will the course be in play when you are shooting?

 

[theboyfold]

What type of course is it you are photographing (e.g. links, tight and woody, flat and open etc) and what is the brief?

Also, will the course be in play when you are shooting?

It's a flat and woody course. The brief is very open, they'd just like some photos that capture the course for use around the clubhouse / venue. In terms of the timing, that's up to me. So I can be there before, during or after play.

Thanks to the previous post as well, I don't have much in the way of long lenses (85mm is the tops).

 

[ACW]

It's a flat and woody course. The brief is very open, they'd just like some photos that capture the course for use around the clubhouse / venue. In terms of the timing, that's up to me. So I can be there before, during or after play.

Thanks to the previous post as well, I don't have much in the way of long lenses (85mm is the tops).

I find the issue with fairly flat courses that they can be a difficult obtaining a decent rule of thirds ratio. Too much flat grass isn't that exciting, neither is too much sky, especially if it's grey and boring. I'll use a few of my shots from the London Club to try and illustrate what I mean. I'm not saying these photographs are anything particularly special, but they may help give you some inspiration and show the variety that can be captured at a golf course?

A few rules I follow (most of which apply to general photography), which may or may not help you:

• Find foreground interest
• If no foreground interest, get a high point of view
  
• Water based parts of the course often provide interest
• Use a polariser, especially if shooting water
• Never shoot on the backswing
• Get a buggy
• Try and use a variety of lens at a variety of focal lengths
  
• Avoid midday

Here there is a lack of foreground interest, too much sky and no rule of thirds.


This time I've tried to mix it up with some foreground 'interest', a rule of thirds composition (roughly), a shallow DOF, and a partially interesting background.


I've found that sometimes shot with people in can add some interest, and mix up what could otherwise be a set of people-free landscapes. This was also taken at a focal length of 150, sometimes a bit of zoom (and I note your lens constraints) can add variety as well. Try and use the whole focal range available to you whilst you are there.


Another shot trying to find something interesting in the foreground



1/2

 

[ACW]

Try picking out detail shots like the one below. It can go down quite well if they display the course logo / brand like this. Flags (provided they are in good condition) team with a shallow DOF can also give pleasing results.


Will you be able to find any willing models? Sometimes the course management enjoy photographs of the course in use.


Don't forget the course club house! If (as they often do) it has a view, try and get to the back of said view and shoot back at the building like this.


If you know the course, or get an opportunity for a scouting mission, try and see where sunset / sunrise will be, and whether it's worth finding a hole to shoot it from. It doesn't look golfcourse-esque, but can still be of interest.


Also, tee shots, especially if you have a golfer of interest to the club (team captain, local celeb, or whatever) might go down well.



I hope this helps!

 

[GeeJay57]

I shot some for the owners of our club last year, they seemed happy with some of them not so much some of the others.

My suggestions are:
Pick a day with nice light
Include some players out on the course
Include the clubhouse
Buy a copy of a golf magazine or look in the golf freebie newspaper at your club, see how others shoot
Think about what makes the course interesting to you and other players.

I took shots with wide angle, ultra wide angle and telephoto. Some against the light with lens flare, some with points of interest isolated from the background, some stopped down to get more depth of field.

Good luck.

 

[Scotty Pro]

Try picking out detail shots like the one below. It can go down quite well if they display the course logo / brand like this. Flags (provided they are in good condition) team with a shallow DOF can also give pleasing results.

Will you be able to find any willing models? Sometimes the course management enjoy photographs of the course in use.
View attachment 60478



I hope this helps!

some good advice from ACW, as a golfer I know what I would like to see around the clubhouse walls.

PS, the guy above is using the wrong putter

 

[theboyfold]

I find the issue with fairly flat courses that they can be a difficult obtaining a decent rule of thirds ratio. Too much flat grass isn't that exciting, neither is too much sky, especially if it's grey and boring. I'll use a few of my shots from the London Club to try and illustrate what I mean. I'm not saying these photographs are anything particularly special, but they may help give you some inspiration and show the variety that can be captured at a golf course?

A few rules I follow (most of which apply to general photography), which may or may not help you:

• Find foreground interest
• If no foreground interest, get a high point of view
  
• Water based parts of the course often provide interest
• Use a polariser, especially if shooting water
• Never shoot on the backswing
• Get a buggy
• Try and use a variety of lens at a variety of focal lengths
  
• Avoid midday

1/2

Thanks for taking the time to put that together, it's actually quite thought provoking. I see what you mean about the rule of thirds and how it give too much fairway. I really like the one from the tee looking back at the clubhouse, that's the sort of stuff I have in my head (along with sunrise and sunset where the light creates most of the interest).

I've not asked about being out when people are playing, but it could certainly help with adding some interest.

 

[theboyfold]

I shot some for the owners of our club last year, they seemed happy with some of them not so much some of the others.

My suggestions are:
Pick a day with nice light
Include some players out on the course
Include the clubhouse
Buy a copy of a golf magazine or look in the golf freebie newspaper at your club, see how others shoot
Think about what makes the course interesting to you and other players.

I took shots with wide angle, ultra wide angle and telephoto. Some against the light with lens flare, some with points of interest isolated from the background, some stopped down to get more depth of field.

Good luck.

Thanks.

I think one of the larger challenges is going to be taking care over framing of shots. I'm much more used to a fire and forget method of shooting.

Do many people use tripods and play around with longer exposures much?

 

[Paul Cronin]

Hi Mark, if your looking for some examples, you wont go far wrong with Donald Ford at http://www.donaldfordimages.com/
Hope that helps.

 

[Nostromo]

I don't know what time of year you're planning to take your photos, but if it's during the summer then i would speak to the Head Greenkeeper/Course manager to see if you can get some evening/early morning shots of the irrigation (sprinklers) on the Greens/tees. They give a nice shot with sun low to the horizon.
Google- golf irrigation, images. You'll see what i mean.

 

[Astraeus]

Can I just interject as a player and query whether you are doing the photographs as a marketing tool or a means of illustrating the holes?

I ask because they are, in my view, two very different types of photography. Those which ACW posted are superb from a marketing point-of-view but, with the exception of #3, do little to illustrate how the course looks in play. Very often, as a visiting player, I will look at a website for photographs of the holes and some have brilliantly helpful walkthroughs of the course where you can almost begin to plan out your hole before you've even turned up on the first tee. For those photographs, I think wide angle lenses (thus distorting distance etc) would be counterproductive but, as was mentioned above, there is then the resultant difficulty of trying to make photos interesting when they are just observations as to the way a course looks.

I also agree with comments about the time of day - early morning is especially good because of the shadows which better illustrate the landscaping which can, during the middle of the day, look very flat indeed.

 

[Mike C]

Try picking out detail shots like the one below. It can go down quite well if they display the course logo / brand like this. Flags (provided they are in good condition) team with a shallow DOF can also give pleasing results.
View attachment 60477

Will you be able to find any willing models? Sometimes the course management enjoy photographs of the course in use.
View attachment 60478

Don't forget the course club house! If (as they often do) it has a view, try and get to the back of said view and shoot back at the building like this.
View attachment 60479

If you know the course, or get an opportunity for a scouting mission, try and see where sunset / sunrise will be, and whether it's worth finding a hole to shoot it from. It doesn't look golfcourse-esque, but can still be of interest.
View attachment 60483

Also, tee shots, especially if you have a golfer of interest to the club (team captain, local celeb, or whatever) might go down well.
View attachment 60482


I hope this helps!

I agree with all this. I'm a Head Greenkeeper at a flat course, so getting up high is very good advice, even take some steps with you. You should also meet the Head Greenkeeper and tell him what you have planned. If we have anyone in taking pictures, then I make sure everything is tidy for them. Scruffy unraked bunkers or untrimmed pop ups never look good! As for time of year, now is not great, end of May always looks good.
I'd love to see what you get.

 

[theboyfold]

Hi Mark, if your looking for some examples, you wont go far wrong with Donald Ford at http://www.donaldfordimages.com/
Hope that helps.

Thanks, having had a look at what I can find about the course, it's very much what this website would describe as 'Heath', quite flat, not a large amount of trees.

I don't know what time of year you're planning to take your photos, but if it's during the summer then i would speak to the Head Greenkeeper/Course manager to see if you can get some evening/early morning shots of the irrigation (sprinklers) on the Greens/tees. They give a nice shot with sun low to the horizon.
Google- golf irrigation, images. You'll see what i mean.

Good shout, I've just seen a few on Flickr, I guess this sort of thing would be nice to try and capture.

golf course by etienne coetzee, on Flickr

It also has that degree of flare that may or may not turn out for the better

Can I just interject as a player and query whether you are doing the photographs as a marketing tool or a means of illustrating the holes?

It's to go into the recently redecorated function room, so it's not to show the course for the players at all

I agree with all this. I'm a Head Greenkeeper at a flat course, so getting up high is very good advice, even take some steps with you. You should also meet the Head Greenkeeper and tell him what you have planned. If we have anyone in taking pictures, then I make sure everything is tidy for them. Scruffy unraked bunkers or untrimmed pop ups never look good! As for time of year, now is not great, end of May always looks good.
I'd love to see what you get.

Good shout, I will see if I can get in touch. I'm assuming that I can go back more than once, so I can try and capture different times of the day.

 

[Scirocco_09]

I once got asked to do this while at a conference at a golfing hotel. Only needed a couple of pictures for a brochure but I was lucky in that the only time I could do it was close to sunset during an autumn evening, nice light and golden tones to work with. As pointed out now probably isn't the greatest time of year as the trees are still bare and it'll look better in leaf, unless you have a picturesque misty morning. Don't panic about it though, just have a walk around the course and get to know it, there's no harm going back a few times. A bit of height would probably help so the step ladder idea is a good one. Just try not to get in the way of any players, one pinged a ball at me on purpose as he wasn't happy I was on the course. I wasn't in the way at all but he had a chip on his shoulder and exchanged pleasantries!

 

[big soft moose]

. Just try not to get in the way of any players, one pinged a ball at me on purpose as he wasn't happy I was on the course. I wasn't in the way at all but he had a chip on his shoulder and exchanged pleasantries!

And try not to get hit in the teeth by a T drive ( I was an assistant greenkeeper at the time , not a photographer, but bugger that hurt - still i got a load of extra dentistry done on the clubs insurance)
You do get golfers with a chip on their shoulder on a regretably regular basis in my experience - they used to aim at us while we were cutting the fairways or watering the greens, and we'd respond in kind by running their balls over with the fairway cutter or getting the green so wet it was unplayable

bottom line keep your wits about you and try not to get in front of play if at all possible

 

[Scotty Pro]

On all of the courses I have played, and its a few the greenstaff have right of way, we wait for them to get out of the way, which they usually do when they see us waiting. It wouldn't go down too well at our club if someone hit their approach to the green with the greenkeepers cutting it, anyway, they usually take the pin out when they are on there anyway, so there is nothing to aim for

 

[Nod]

Same here - they're usually off the greens by the time the course opens but we're occasionally very early birds and when we are, the give us the option to play to the winter temps or wait for them to finish on the proper ones. By the time the place is "officially" open, all the greens are ready for play. I do wish the greenkeepers and other ground staff would wear helmets and that their tractors/mowers had roofs! Tee shots do go awry on occasion. The 'keepers are a good bunch at our club and will do their best to keep out of players' way.

 

[Mark G]

I was listening to a podcast this week where a chap was asked to photograph a golf course and he put it to them that it should be shot from the air. They agreed and hired a helicopter for the shoot. As a side note, he now does a lot of aerial photography off the back of that gig.

 

[AJR SIMPSON]

Can I just interject as a player and query whether you are doing the photographs as a marketing tool or a means of illustrating the holes?

I ask because they are, in my view, two very different types of photography. Those which ACW posted are superb from a marketing point-of-view but, with the exception of #3, do little to illustrate how the course looks in play. Very often, as a visiting player, I will look at a website for photographs of the holes and some have brilliantly helpful walkthroughs of the course where you can almost begin to plan out your hole before you've even turned up on the first tee. For those photographs, I think wide angle lenses (thus distorting distance etc) would be counterproductive but, as was mentioned above, there is then the resultant difficulty of trying to make photos interesting when they are just observations as to the way a course looks.

I also agree with comments about the time of day - early morning is especially good because of the shadows which better illustrate the landscaping which can, during the middle of the day, look very flat indeed.

I agree with all this. I'm a Head Greenkeeper at a flat course, so getting up high is very good advice, even take some steps with you. You should also meet the Head Greenkeeper and tell him what you have planned. If we have anyone in taking pictures, then I make sure everything is tidy for them. Scruffy unraked bunkers or untrimmed pop ups never look good! As for time of year, now is not great, end of May always looks good.
I'd love to see what you get.

As a fellow golfer I have to agree with these comments, Focus more on the course not the arty foreground shots, recognise that tees, fairways and greens to a golfer are points of interest not just grass as non golfing photographers look at them. Using them in the 1/3s rule is good but as in all photography don't live by it. Early or late light to help add shadows on features is good.
Lots of good golf photographers if you just google it, I'd say to look at

https://www.flickr.com/photos/kevinmarkham/albums

for sheer volume and an Idea of what is decent.
I was told on another photography forum I should clone out the flag in this image
Water on 15 by andrew simpson, on Flickr