NCA All-Star Cheerleading - The Work Is Worth It!

THE WORK IS WORTH IT!  That's NCA's slogan for the All-Star National Cheer Competition and it couldn't be more accurate.  It's a lot of work, not only for the cheerleaders, but also for the parents, coaches, organizers, and the photographers.  So, here's a quick look at my journey through NCA Nationals….

It is a huge honor for me to be a part of the Action Moments team of photographers.  But, that comes with some big responsibilities.  Just like the cheerleaders, our team pushes ourselves to be the best and then continue to improve on that.

Some of the guidelines we try to live up to include shooting an average of 150 images for every 2 minute 30 second routine.  Every image has to be framed properly, in focus and show action or expression.  No ‘crotch shots', minimal double taps and as many sellable images as possible – no pressure at all. With two sets of judges on each stage, we only have 15-30 seconds between teams.  That is no where near enough time to delete any bad images, so it is critical that every shot be as good as possible.  Often there is barely enough time to change cards before it's time to shoot the next team.  Teams compete and we shoot throughout the entire day - 12+ hours.

Over the course of the two days that I shoot, I will shoot around 300 teams and 60,000+ pictures.  It's a long weekend but  the work is definitely worth it!