How To Stop A Golf Ball

To freeze a moving thing clearly in your photograph you must simply use a shutter speed fast enough that the object will not have time to move noticeably while the shutter is open. As an example; if you were shooting some kids playing, running and jumping, a shutter duration of 1/500 of a second would probably be enough.

To freeze that golf ball that's just been launched by Fred Funk in the photograph below I used a shutter speed of 1/4000 of a second. I wasn't at all sure what I would need and I was told that asking Mr. Funk to do that again so I could try another exposure would be really bad. As you can see, the sun shone brightly so I could compensate for the lightning fast shutter speed with my f-stop and ISO.

Fred Funk at the 2011 Zurich classic, shot for the Fore Kids Foundation.

We Have The Tools

Photographers have been practicing physical distancing for a long time. We do it so we can shoot the center of everyone's attention without becoming the center of attention. If you're reading this you're probably well aware of the capabilities of modern telephoto lenses. I, however, still like to show off what my lenses, Canon's world famous "L" series, can do.

This shot of Peyton Manning was made as he delivered a keynote address in 2017.

The camera is the Canon's 50mp, EOS 5Ds. The lens is Canon's EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM.

I was shooting from (I think) about 15 ft. at 55mm.

With this equipment I can get a good closeup shot while staying in the shadows.

Peyton Manning delivers a keynote speech to the Aclara company convention in 2017