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Filming a unihockey match
Few guides explain how to film a unihockey match, even though the sport is in halls all over Switzerland. The most useful advice comes down to three ideas: position yourself above the boards, frame wide, and accept that the white ball is not always visible.
“How do you film a unihockey match?” The first results talk about automatic cameras for football and handball, introductory videos and a results app. The subject itself is rarely covered, and an amateur coach has to work out alone where to put their phone. Here is what works.
Above the boards, on the side
The rink is surrounded by boards that hide the lower part of the players and get in the way of angles at floor level. You need to position yourself higher than the boards: stand, gangway, raised bench. On the side, level with the halfway line, you see all the play, both zones and the gaps between lines. Behind a goal, you see the shots and lose the rest, as in all team sports, following the principle of where to place the camera.
The white ball: do not look for it on screen
The unihockey ball is light, perforated and often white. Against a light hall background, it disappears as soon as the shot widens. The nature of the game explains it, and the phone has nothing to do with it. What reads on screen is the players: movement off the ball, passing lines, getting back into position after a loss. A coach who learns to read these movements sees where the ball went without seeing it.
A game played in lines: film the changes
Unihockey is played in blocks of players who come on and off continuously. A wide shot that keeps the bench in frame shows when and how the changes happen: often the moment a team concedes a goal or loses a duel. That is information the score does not give.
Light, reflections and battery
- The hall ceiling: a cold, even light is convenient. A hall with glass walls means filming from the side rather than facing the window.
- The white boards: they take up room in the image and push the exposure up. A frame that cuts off a little of the board gives a more readable image.
- The duration: three times twenty minutes, with breaks. Plan for a full battery, or an external battery plugged in.
One question per sequence
Forty minutes of filmed rink are too long to review in full. You gain by looking at one question at a time: how does the defence get back into position, where do the counter-attacks start, who stays high in the zone. The video session method is described in running a video session that players really listen to.
Frequently asked questions
Where should the camera go to film a unihockey match?
On the side, level with the halfway line, higher than the boards: stand, gangway or raised bench. The wide shot keeps both zones.
Can you see the unihockey ball on screen?
Not always: it is light, perforated and often white. You mostly read the game through the players' movements, and that is enough to analyse.
What kit do you need to film a unihockey match?
A recent phone, a small tripod or a clamp fixed to the stands, and an external battery for three times twenty minutes.
Do you need an automatic camera for unihockey?
Not to start with. A fixed wide shot, from the stands, already gives you the play of the lines, the changes and the repositioning.
By sport: Unihockey · Hockey · Handball
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