Top Sports Photography Accessories in 2022
Sports photography is more than just a camera and a lens
A nice camera body and a fast, sharp lens are the “sexy” part of sports photography, but it is often the accessories that can make or break your sports photography experience.
With a seemingly endless array of accessories on the market, it is easy to get caught up in overpriced gear that you don’t actually need. To help, we’ve put together a list of our essential sports photography accessories to help you take your photography to the next level.
Essential Sports Photography Accessories
Bag
Rain cover
Monopod
Harness
Seat/stool
Memory card pouch
Multitool
Speedlight/off-camera flash
Remote triggers
Bag
A good bag is essential. You need a way to carry ALL your gear safely to and from your sporting events because the last thing you want to be do is trying to juggle your gear as you try to find your perfect spot. Most career photographers have a cupboard full of camera bags, which should highlight just how difficult it can be to find the perfect bag.
My advice; have a think about your current selection of gear, and then buy a bag bigger than you think you need because you will inevitably end up adding gear to your repertoire. My bag of choice is a Lowpro Pro Runner BP 450 AW II. It is big enough to carry two full-size bodies, a 300mm f/2.8, a 70-200 f/2.8 and a 24-70 f/2.8, plus my selection of accessories.
Rain cover
This is a boring, disgustingly overpriced accessory, but a good rain cover is absolutely essential for both the longevity of your gear and your career. If you are shooting professionally, you can’t just say “it’s raining, I’m going home”. You need to be able to stick it out in the worst of conditions, and a good rain cover is the first piece of the puzzle.
I personally use two thinkTANK Hydrophobia 3.0 covers; one that will fit my 300 f/2.8, and the other that will accomodate my 24-70 and 70-200. There are other great options available from Aquatech, and there are also some off-brand options available on Amazon.
Monopod
Another piece of equipment that isn’t particularly exciting, but an absolute back-saver on long shoot days. There are far too many photographers in their mid-40’s with bad backs and bad wrists from repetitive strain injuries suffered as a result of wrangling with heavy gear for too many years.
I always use a monopod when shooting with my 300mm, and I’ve even been known to use it with my 70-200 at events such as trail runs when I’m in the same place shooting for hours on end…..there’s simply no need to lift 3kg up to my eye 3000 times.
My favourite monopod is a pretty simple Sirui P306 aluminimum monopod which is a steal at $109, or you can upgrade to a carbon fibre model for another $60. There are plenty of other options available online and in-store at most camera shops.
Harness
A good camera harness will change your photography life. The ability to carry two cameras on you without having to worry neck strain from neck straps, or having to put down one camera to shoot opens up so many additional shooting possibilities.
The BlackRapid Breathe Double Harness is the go-to choice for many sports and event photographers. It is super comfy, and does a great job of transferring weight away from your neck onto the larger muscle groups in your back. I can comfortably shoot with two bodies and lenses with no neck/back pain at the end of the day. It isn’t cheap, at around $AUD200, but it is one of those accessories that is worth every dollar.
There are some other styles also available, including the beautiful MoneyMaker leather harness from Hold Fast or the amazing chest-mounts from Cotton Carrier.
Seat/stool
This is a simple one. If you’re shooting an event where you are going to be crouching for hours on end, just cut out the pain and get yourself a simple camp chair. This $15 stool is the perfect combination of lightweight and compact.
Memory card pouch
Don’t be one of those photographers with a selection of memory cards floating around in the pocket of their camera bag, get yourself a memory card pouch to keep everything protected and organised. I’ve used these ones from ThinkTANK for years, and keep a few on hand to lend to my other photographers when I need to send them away with multiple cards.
Multitool
Many of you might already carry a multitool in your vehicle or even in your everyday bag, but I couldn’t count the number of times I’ve pulled my multitool out when shooting sports photography. There is always a camera plate that needs to be tightened, a screw that has come loose on a light stand, or something that needs to be cut. I love my Leatherman Skeletool because it includes interchangeable screwdriver bits (including torx bits that you’ll find on some photography gear), but there are literally countless options out there ranging from a few dollars to a few hundred dollars.
Speedlight
This is now starting to get away from the cheaper accessories into the more expensive side of things, but at some stage in your sports photography journey you will need some form of speedlight to capture those post-game celebrations or presentations. It is VERY easy to spend a lot of money on lighting, so don’t jump into this purchase until you actually need it. My go-to speedlight is a Godox V1, which ties in with all my other off-camera lighting (a topic for another day).
Remote triggers
Remote triggers (for firing a remote camera) are another item that you probably shouldn’t buy until you know you need them, because they really are a special use-case for most photographers. Situations where I’ll use a remote camera include MTB races where it isn’t practical/safe for me to be at a particular location, on a finish line where I want to be grabbing a wide shot of someone finishing while also grabbing a tight shot of the individual. The go-to triggering system for most professional sports photographers is a set of Pocketwizard Plus III triggers, but if you’re just starting out with experimenting with remote triggers you can get some much cheaper options on Amazon.
All the gear and at least some idea
So that’s it for my list of essential sports photography accessories. It isn’t an exhaustive list, but these items should keep you going for many years to come. Have I left off anything that is a must-have for you? Let me know in the comments.
If you’re interested in what gear is in my triathlon photography kit, you can check that out here