A common practice is to snap as soon as the action begins. Here our young swimmer has started his run down the diving board and I’ve stopped the action using the camera’s Sport mode.

A few minutes later, a second diver took to the air. This time, I waited patiently until his body was fully extended in the air - just before his huge belly flop. The “pose” tells the story.

By using a short shutter speed, you can freeze the action of your subject. For this shot, I’ve used Sport mode to stop the motion of our young girl.

By deliberately using a short shutter speed e.g. 1/30th or 1/15th of a second, I’ve captured the subject as she’s moving. While the young girl is no longer in sharp focus, we can almost feel the swinging motion.