4 Tips for Taking Great Parade Pics

There are lots of opportunities coming up for photographing seasonal parades, from tomorrow’s World Series victory parade to Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, and New Year’s.

Here are some ways to prepare to capture those special images:

Bring the right gear. To capture both close-ups and wider shots, you need a zoom lens with a fairly wide range. The typical 3x zoom of a point-and-shoot camera (Ratings available to subscribers) is barely adequate. A zoom of 5x or greater is better. Before the event, fully charge your camera’s battery and bring a fully charged spare battery. A lens cloth and an extra memory card are also helpful. If you’re using an SLR (SLR Ratings available to subscribers), bring a hood for the lens, which helps prevent flare and keep out stray light.

Plan ahead. Check the weather forecast. If it’s cold, bring gloves. If rain is likely, bring a plastic cover to shield your camera. Arrive well ahead of the parade start time, so you can photograph any interesting pre-parade activities and stake out a good position.

Get a good view. To avoid having heads and arms in the crowd from ruining your shot work your way to the front of the crowd. If you’re not sure you can do that, bring a small, lightweight folding stool to stand on. Or get to an elevated location, on a hill or on at a window above street level in a nearby building.

Make it interesting. Vary the types of shots, mixing close-ups of interesting people or props in the parade with wider shots of a float or the crowd. Shoot portraits of children or other interesting people using a wide aperture (f/2 to f/4) to blur the background and make their face “pop” If your camera has a burst mode (which all SLRs and some point-and-shoots do), use it to capture briskly moving subjects, such as baton twirlers.

If you’ve got more tips to share, post them below. —Jeff Fox