I think the Briarcrest vs Houston matchup is the first volleyball game I ever shot, and man was it an eye opener. I had no idea what to expect that day, but whatever expectation I had in my mind got absolutely demolished when I stepped into the gym. The gym was crazy loud, and I was introduced to the challenges of capturing a fast, explosive game that places a heavy emphasis on athleticism, speed, and deception. If for example, you want to get a picture of someone returning a spiked ball, you will blow a lot of shot opportunities before you figure out the best way to do it. These kids hit so hard that the window of time you have to figure out where the ball is going is measured in milliseconds. A volleyball court is 60 feet long, and unless you are doing very poorly in school there will be no surprises when I reveal to you that HALF a court is 30 feet. If a player can spike the ball at 50 MPH, the ball can cover that distance in less than half a second. The players have time to react because they get to watch the ball, and move when they see where its going. The photographer can't see the ball because they have to be in the camera. If you try to figure out where the ball is going, then look through the camera once you're sure, you'll always miss the shot because you have to get in the camera, find the player through the view finder, grab focus on them, and pull the trigger before the ball gets there. Statistically speaking, the probability of doing that regularly in less than half a second is not different than zero. You'll essentially miss all of your shots. The thing to do is simply pick one player, focus on them, hope it goes to them, and then hope even more that a ref or another player doesn't get in the way...which happens regularly. So, pick one player, focus on them, and once you get that shot, pick a different player and stay on them til you get them with the shot. Continued in comments. Tag em if you know em.