We capture the shot!

Michael works the sideline a step ahead of the line of scrimmage, so the runner comes at the camera instead of away from it, and the toe tap catch lands right in front of him. Once the ball is inside the 20 he moves to the back of the end zone for the goal line stand and the touchdown. The night starts before kickoff with the tunnel run and the senior night walk, and it ends at the handshake line.

Play on the line? The gallery follows the ball. A Game Spotlight keeps the camera on your lineman every snap.

Michael splits the game between two spots. On the touchline, level with the attack, for the run down the wing, the slide tackle and the cross. Behind the goal line, off to the side of the net, for the shot, the keeper's dive, the PK and the knee slide at the corner flag. From there you get faces, not the backs of jerseys.

Michael sits low on the baseline beside the basket, where the drive, the layup and the block all come straight at the lens. He switches ends so both teams' offense gets shot face on, and on an and-one he keeps shooting after the whistle, because the yell is the photo. No flash during play, and he's low enough that nobody in the bleachers has to look around him.

The lens goes nearly on the panel, so scuffs and glare fall out of the frame. Michael stays near the ends for the celly on the boards, the breakaway and the glove save, then moves toward the benches between whistles for the line change and the whole bench up on its feet after a goal. Faceoffs get shot tight, close enough to see the eyes behind the cage.

Near midfield on the sideline for the faceoff at the X in boys lacrosse and the draw in girls lacrosse. Then off the corner of the end line, wide of the crease, for the dodge, the shot, the save and the celly. Shooters face the goal, so from the end line you see eyes through the cage instead of a number. The girls' 8 meter free position gets the same end line angle, facing the arc.

When play is in the circle, Michael is behind the end line, so the penalty corner comes straight at the camera: the insert, the stop, the drag flick, the team piling in at the cage. When play moves up the field, he moves with it along the sideline. It's a fall sport, so the big games land on foggy Friday nights under the lights. That's the goal celebration in the gallery below.

Baseball is a lot of waiting and then one swing, so the camera is up for every pitch. From the first base side a right-handed hitter faces the lens, and from the third base side a lefty does. The ones worth waiting for: contact, the slide into second, the play at the plate, the walk-off and the dogpile after the last out.

Softball happens fast and close. The windmill from the circle, the slap bunt, the diving catch in the outfield, the tag at the plate, and a dugout that never stops cheering. Same idea as baseball: shoot from the side the hitter faces, so you get her face at contact, not the back of a helmet.

The kill, the block with four hands over the tape, the dig an inch off the floor, and the huddle after every point. Volleyball plays in the same hard gym light as basketball and gets the same care: no flash, and school colors and skin tones that look like they do in person.

Wrestling gets shot low, from the edge of the mat, close enough to see the hand fighting and the faces. The handshake, the shot for the takedown, the near fall, and the referee raising a hand at the end. Tournament days run long with several mats going at once, so if you book a spotlight, send the weight class and the bout times.

The start out of the blocks, the baton exchange, the hurdle clearance, the lean at the line, the high jumper arched over the bar. A meet runs for hours with events going at once, so Michael works it event by event. Booking a spotlight? Send the events and heat times and he'll be at the right one.

The dive off the blocks, the breath on the breaststroke, the butterfly coming up out of the water, the touch at the wall and the look up at the scoreboard. Pools are humid and full of glare, and there's no flash at the start, or anywhere else. It's long lenses from wherever the meet allows.

Fencing, gymnastics, cheer, rowing, tennis. If there's a game, a meet or a match, tell us about it and Michael will tell you where he'd stand.

The camera work isn't. A Saturday morning rec game gets the same long lenses and the same spot on the sideline as a varsity game under the lights.

What changes is how the game gets on our schedule. Youth leagues can bring Rival in for the season at no cost to the league, and the league gets a share of sales or free team photos (how it works for leagues). Any family can prebook a game up to 7 days ahead. PLACEHOLDER: how college games are booked (athletic department, team or family) and whether they get a post game gallery

Every regular season game we shoot gets a gallery. PLACEHOLDER: how many games Michael can cover in one day, and whether back to back games at the same field share a gallery

Two kids playing on the same Saturday? Prebook both games up to a week ahead and Michael will confirm which ones he can make.

Post game galleries are set up for regular season games. Tournaments pack a lot of games onto several fields with short breaks in between, and some events bring in an official photographer with exclusive rights.

PLACEHOLDER: whether Rival covers tournaments and showcases, and how galleries and prices work across a full day of games

You can still book a spotlight for one of your athlete's tournament games. Ask, and Michael will tell you if he can make it.

Yes. Gyms, rinks and pools have some of the hardest light in sports: dim corners, old fixtures, lights that flicker on camera and turn skin green. Working with bad light is a big part of what Michael does for TV, and he doesn't use flash during play.

Every photo has a small preview before you buy, so you only pay for the ones you like.

PLACEHOLDER: whether the gallery covers both teams or only one, and what happens when both teams have the same jersey number

If you want your athlete covered no matter where the ball goes, book a Game Spotlight for $50 and the camera stays on them all game.

The gallery follows the ball, so defenders, linemen and keepers show up when the play comes to them: the tackle, the block, the save. Some games that's a lot, some games it isn't.

Book a Game Spotlight for $50 and Michael stays on your athlete for the whole game.

Rival shoots on the North Shore and around Greater Boston. PLACEHOLDER: travel radius, and any travel fee for games outside it

Game further out? Ask or prebook it up to 7 days ahead, and Michael will tell you if he can be there.