Filming a Parkour Competition: What I Learned

Last week I filmed a big parkour competition. Athletes launching off walls, flipping through the air, landing moves that look physically impossible. It was one of the most demanding shoots I have done — and one of the most rewarding. Here is what the day taught me.

You cannot predict parkour

With most sports you can anticipate where the action is going. Football has a ball to follow. A race has a finish line. Parkour has none of that. Athletes are moving in every direction, using every inch of the space, and the best tricks happen in places you never expected. I spent the first hour getting burned — setting up for a line and watching the real moment happen behind me. The lesson came fast: stop predicting and start reading the energy.

Position beats equipment every time

I had my camera, a fast lens, and that was it. No drone, no stabilizer, no second shooter. What I focused on instead was position. Low angles made the athletes look like they were defying gravity. Getting underneath a jump gave a completely different feeling than shooting it eye level. The best shot of the day came from lying flat on the ground looking up as someone flew overhead. No amount of gear would have given me that.

• Watch athletes warm up — that is where you spot the moves worth chasing
• Low angles transform jumps from impressive to unbelievable
• Shoot in slow motion during peak moments — parkour at 120fps is another world
• Chase the crowd reactions as much as the athletes — they tell the story too
• Stay mobile — a tripod will kill you at an event like this
• The failed attempts and near-misses are as compelling as the clean landings

“The shot you plan is never as good as the one that finds you. At a parkour competition, that is especially true.”

The atmosphere is half the film

What made this competition special was not just the athleticism — it was the culture around it. The way athletes hype each other up between runs. The crowd holding their breath before a big trick and erupting when it lands. The chalk on the hands, the scuffed shoes, the focus on someone's face right before they commit to a move. I made sure to capture all of it, because without that context the tricks are just tricks. With it, you have a world.

If you ever get the chance to film a parkour event, take it. It will push your instincts, your footwork, and your eye harder than almost anything else. And the footage you walk away with — when it is cut right and the music hits — is some of the most electric content you will ever make.