Three England football players celebrating after scoring the winning goal. In the Women’s Euro Finals 2022. Shot by Daniela Porcelli with the Sony A9 II.

In the Field: Sony A9 II for Sports Photography at Euro 2022

Published December 19, 2024 by MPB

Sports photographer Daniela Porcelli, who covered the Euro 2022 football championship—including the final, in which England won their first major competition since 1966—shares her experience using the Sony A9 II. Over to you, Daniela.

German and English football players battle for the ball at the Women’s Euro Finals 2022. Shot by Daniela Porcelli with the Sony A9 II.

As professional photographers, we have to trust the equipment we work with. I often get asked, “what is ‘the best’ camera?”. But my answer is always the same; It’s all about what you are looking for and need in a camera. When you define your needs and purpose, you can find the best camera for yourself.

I chose the Sony A9 II full-frame mirrorless camera for my coverage of the 2022 UEFA Women's Euro in England. As a sports photographer, it is all about high-speed and quality, so I was looking for a camera, which can offer exactly that.

German football player walking with a runners-up medal at the Women's Euro 2022 final. Shot by Daniela Porcelli with the Sony A9 II.

1. Speed

The A9 II is capable of shooting 24-megapixel images silently at up to 20 frames per second (fps) with an electronic shutter. When using the mechanical shutter mechanism, you can shoot up to 10 fps. This camera gives me the option to use Dual UHS-II SD cards, which helps writing after I take a long series of action images.

German football player with the ball as an English player tries to tackle the German player at the Women’s Euro Finals 2022. Shot by Daniela Porcelli with the Sony A9 II.

2. Autofocus

The A9 II has a great autofocus tracking technology, with subject-tracking autofocus in real-time and eye-focus. It also gives me great options to adjust the focus by using the AF-ON button or AF joystick. A hybrid autofocus system uses phase detection for speed and contrast detection for precision. It is essential in s1ports that the tracking system works well, but also that I can manually adjust, and always make sure that I capture the perfect moment in sports, without it being out-of-focus. Taking images with 20 fps, it is great to see that the Sony A9 II handles focus amazingly well.

3. Image quality

In sports photography, it is all about fast action, and we want to produce high-quality and precise images. I shoot RAW and JPEG during a game, which gives me more flexibility in post-production, and both options produce great-quality images. Even while shooting as fast as 20 fps it is precise. The ISO performance is excellent, the Image-stabilization great, and in comparison to the former A9, it has the anti-flicker shooting mode.

Image of the Women’s Euro Finals 2022 Trophy with an out-of-focus background. Shot by Daniela Porcelli with the Sony A9 II.

4. Connectivity

When I capture images during a game, I need to make sure they go out immediately to either my computer or my editor in the office. The goal is that images can be edited fast, and sent to media partners for usage. In sports every second is essential, so having a fast workflow after taking the images, is important. This camera offers gigabit speeds and a Wi-Fi supporting 5GHz, which means images are sent out fast through the FTP options.

Two England players embracing with joy after winning the Women’s Euro Finals 2022. Shot by Daniela Porcelli with the Sony A9 II.

5. Overall impression

Overall, this camera perfectly suits my needs as a professional sports photographer. I can trust it every day. I am really happy that I was able to use it during such a top event as the UEFA Women's Euros and produce some images, which will stay in my memories forever. Here are some of my favourite soccer photography images I took with the Sony A9 II during the Final at Wembley in London.

German football player Svenja Huth in focus with a blurry background, at the Women’s Euro Finals 2022. Shot by Daniela Porcelli with the Sony A9 II.

Three England football players celebrating after scoring the winning goal with the crowd in the background at the Women’s Euro Finals 2022. Shot by Daniela Porcelli with the Sony A9 II.

Looking for more sports photography content?

This article is part of the MPB Guide to Sports Photography, our comprehensive look at how to create sports photography, with camera recommendations, advice and interviews with experts.