Spray&pray is for sport photos
Yes and no. You still have to be cognizant of your background and know framing when you take sports/action shots. You also have to have your timing down.
Some examples from my sports shots I've done.
This photo was taken in a single shot, no burst. I held the camera over her and waited for the action and took that one shot when I knew the moment was right. And getting to know your shots without looking through the viewfinder takes a lot of time with your camera.
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This shot was at the end of a sequence and I kept shooting after all the photographers around me stopped because I saw something there they didn't. It ended up being the lead photo for that game's gallery (and so you know, he's lying on the ground post tackle).
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This shot I anticipated the moment and started shooting when I saw what was about to happen. If I remember correctly, it was a 3-5 shot burst and I nailed this shot in it. Same with the second photo here.
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Both of these shots I anticipated and nailed with one shot. I may have shot 2-3 images, but they were all basically the same shot. And let me tell you, volleyball celebration shots are hard to nail.
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And, lastly, shots like this you really have to anticipate and think about where you're shooting from. Since I was shooting with my D70, I could only get 1-3 shots off at a time, so I really had to wait for the moment and anticipate it to nail it.
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