How the Next Generation of Baseball Photographers Showcases America’s Pastime

The old canard that baseball is boring and repetitive prompts young photographer Tanner Pearson re-tell how Guardians power hitter Jose Ramirez smashed a ball three within inches of his head. The ball speed from the bat was 103 miles per hour.

Like pro ball players, Pearson follows routines. But “every day feels different, which is something I love,” he says.

Less than two years out of college, Pearson, 24, is a Photography Assistant for the Cincinnati Reds, baseball’s first professional franchise.

“Baseball can feel repetitive,” says photo intern Clay Stark, 22, at the Boston Red Box. “Pitch after pitch, swing after swing. That’s exactly why I love photographing this sport. It forces you to be creative.”

Pearson and Stark are part of the next generation of sports photographers. As the Major League Baseball All-Star Break approaches (July 12-16), they explain their entry-level roles in pro baseball: what their mentors taught them, their equipment, and what to do if an umpire blocks the shot. (In late 2024, Getty Images hired Reds Team Photographer Emilee Chinn, who is now based in Philadelphia. She graduated from college in 2020).

Baseball’s Deep Taproot to Americana

Baseball photography — like the sport of baseball — holds a special place in American culture and history.

Nat Fein’s photo for the New York Herald of Babe Ruth’s farewell at Yankee Stadium on June 13, 1948, won a Pulitzer Prize. Other iconic baseball photos include Jackie Robinson’s debut with the Dodgers in 1947 and 33-year-old Mickey Mantle tossing his helmet in disgust after a weak at bat in June of 1965 at Yankee Stadium (photo by John Dominis for LIFE magazine)

Baseball photography pros favor high shutter speeds, recommend long lenses with image stabilizers due to distance, and prefer shooting from the first baseline for right-handed batters. Ball-on-bat images are a pinnacle of baseball action shots.

Equipment and Filing Photos

The Reds photo staff uses Sony equipment.

“My game day set up,” says Pearson, “is a Sony a1 with a Sony 300mm f/2.8 and a monopod. I will also have a Sony a9 II with a 70-200 f/2.8, and then a wide lens on hand that I will switch between on the a9 II. This is usually a 24-70 f/2.8 or a 16-35 f/2.8. I will also use a 12-24 f/2.8 if I want to get a super wide look.”

Having a lens anywhere from 300mm to 600mm lens is standard for reach. High frame rates are crucial to freeze the ball in motion, says Stark at the Red Sox, noting that Aroldis Chapman threw a pitch at 105.8 miles per hour.

Stark continues: “I carry two to three Nikon bodies with a mixture of a 400mm f/2.8 with a monopod, a wide lens either a 24-70mm f/2.8 or even wider like a 16-35mm and then a prime lens like a 85mm f/1.8, 105mm f/2.8 or a 70-200mm f/2.8. The Red Sox have all types of lenses for us to use.”

These photographers upload to PhotoShelter, a widely used platform in sports photography. End uses for their photos include social media, designer-created graphics, promotion, and giveaways to advertisers, sponsors, fans, coaches, and players.

“If designers are looking for a wide beauty shot of Fenway Park with a sun flare, they can search for terms like ‘wide,’ ‘beauty,’ and ‘sun flare’ and the system will pull up exactly what they need,” says Stark.

“Say that (Red Sox outfielder) Jarren Duran is stealing second. If I frame him in the lower right third of the image and leave open space on the left, that gives a designer a perfect canvas to overlay stats about his stolen bases.”

Team photographers concentrate on their team performance and storylines. News photographers balance the coverage of both teams. For example, freelance photographer Michael Swensen, 28, covered the Reds-Yankees game on June 25 in Cincinnati for The Associated Press, filing a widely published photo of Yankees’ winning pitcher Max Fried.

Ballpark restrictions on photographers vary; some have multiple photo wells, and others are more limited.

Pearson has seen his images on multimedia platforms, including outdoor advertising, television, the internet, and the Reds 2025 yearbook magazine.

Challenges

Like NBA refs blocking photographers’ line of sight in basketball, baseball umpires can get in the way.

Pearson remembers advice from college professors who told him, “the best tool is our feet… move in the space you have available.”

Other challenges are more generic: weather, delays, deadlines, and equipment failure.

“I’ve learned how it is important to work around around hardware and software issues,” says Pearson, who recommends faster, larger storage cards and top-of-the-line rain gear.

Advice and Tips

Newcomers Pearson and Stark — still learning — offer advice that is confirmed by more experienced sports photographers.

• Don’t dwell too long on missed shots; there are 162 regular-season Major League Baseball games.
• “Scout the ballpark,” says Stark… a habit recommended by Boston-based photographer Maddie Meyer of Getty Images and his mentor Jay Gehres in Ohio.
• “During my first internship, at the Columbus Clippers, Jay had me arrive hours before first pitch with a notebook. I’d sketch out the field and explore the stadium with a camera.”
• Arrive early, be patient, and learn to anticipate. If Elly De La Cruz is on second base, look for the steal.

Experienced, award-winning photographers validate these instincts.

“When photographing baseball, keep the play in front of you,” says Matt Gade, Visual Director at 605 Sports in Rapid City, South Dakota. “Don’t take pictures from behind the action.”

Gade is a two-time Sports Photographer of the Year via Pictures of the Year International and 2025 NPPA Photographer of the Year (second place).

“I encourage my photo students interested in baseball to think of each pitch like a fielder,” says Florida-based freelancer Mike Carlson. “When the ball gets hit, where are the throws likely to go?”

Carlson won “Gold” in the baseball category of the 2025 World Sports Photography Awards for his high school image “Victory and Defeat.”

Credentials

Reds Photography Assistant Tanner Pearson was an intern for the Reds in 2024. In 2023, he completed a photo coop at The Boston Globe.

Red Sox intern Clay Stark was a live content creator for Major League Baseball in 2024 and completed internships at the Cleveland Guardians in 2023 and Columbus Clippers in 2022. Pearson and Stark graduated from Ohio University’s School of Visual Communication.

Image credits: Photos by Clay Stark, Tanner Pearson, Matt Gade, and Mike Carlson

About the author: Ken Klein lives in Silver Spring, Maryland; he is retired after a career in politics, lobbying, and media including The Associated Press and Gannett in Florida. Klein is an alumnus of Ohio University and a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council of the Scripps College of Communication. Professionally, he has worked for Fort Myers News-Press (Gannett), The Associated Press (Tallahassee), Senator Bob Graham, and the Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA).