Last month I was the photographer for the Kitsilano Literacy Skate hosted by the Kits Neighbourhood House. It was a fun event, combining skating with literacy games.

Even though I figure skated until high school (and it’s like riding a bike when I get back on the ice), I was still a bit nervous carrying my camera onto the cement-like surface (it just takes one crazy kid to ram into you…), but I was careful enough and my camera survived. Photographing on the rink was a learning process, so I wanted to share some thoughts with you!

Take Fun/funny shots: Little kids always work well for this, or any beginner skater for that matter. Whether they’re falling, teetering, or just in awe of the feeling of gliding on ice, they make for some entertaining poses. I thought this little girl was cute, trying with all her might to stand up. As you can see, she wasn’t having very much success…

Make use of the lighting: The ice gives you a nice reflective surface to bounce light back onto your subjects, which is great. Look up at the ceiling though – adjusting so the lights are in your frame can add another dimension, and create more spark. I loved this ceiling at the Kits ice rink!

Use blur in your images: Creating blur around a stationary object adds more mystique and depth to your images. I liked the shot below because not being able to see the kid’s face in the foreground makes you wonder how much it hurt when he fell, and how hard his collision was…

Watch for grey ice in your shots: As you may have noticed, I haven’t nailed this down. Some of my shots have sort of grey ice, which is mainly to avoid washing out any texture. Sometimes you have to sacrifice detail in order to get the colour you want (the mini Luongo dude below is an example), but be aware of your white balance setting.

Look for memorable/emotional images: This little guy made my heart melt, wearing a mini Canucks jersey. Who knows, maybe he’ll be playing for his city in the not so distant future .

I’m hoping no one has any any tragic camera-breaking-while-on-the-ice moments, but feel free to share your own stories .