“I need to be completely ‘locked in,’” no matter the weather, says top sports photog

Sarah Stier of Getty Images photographed pro golf in Hawaii and then criss-crossed the country to document the snowy NLF playoff game in Philadelphia on January 19.

“As a Getty Images photographer,” says Stier, “I have to bring my A-game no matter the weather conditions.”

Stier and Getty Images colleague Maddie Meyer started the year covering golf tournaments in Hawaii. Both graduated from Ohio University ’s School of Visual Communication.

A few days after the Sony Open wrapped up in Hawaii, Stier was at Lincoln Financial Field photographing the Philadelphia Eagles vs Los Angeles Rams game, in snow.

Stier says her work can mean “shooting in 80-degree sunshine for twelve hours or covering a playoff NFL game in white-out blizzard conditions.“

“A great deal of preparation and planning is needed to be able to perform at your best in either environment,” she says. “Whether it's bringing the right snacks out onto the (golf) course for a long day, using high SPF and reapplying, or packing snow gear for myself and rain gear to protect my cameras, you need to make sure you're prepared and comfortable.”

“That way you can focus entirely on shooting. In a playoff scenario, I need to be completely ’ocked-in.’ Just like the players, we can't let ourselves be affected by the weather. And in some ways, that weather can make the game really exciting.”

Based in New York, Stier joined Getty Images in 2020.