Get a good gun. A handgun will not suffice, nor a rifle under 300 fps. Spring rifles are the best choice, hopefully a bolt action as they will be the most consistent. An electric gun will tend to wear down the gearbox faster with a higher fps spring and are generally less accurate, a gas gun is fine, but you have to take into account cool-down effect and the effect of the temperature on the rate of expansion on the gas, that may therefore affect the fps, range and accuracy.
Know your gun. Research your gun's statistics as much as possible. Nothing is more important than marksmanship. As with any type of shooting, accuracy can be difficult to obtain. Spend a good amount of time getting to know your gun, and how the shots react under different conditions (wind, temperature etc). Take a while to get to know your guns' unique shots and practice with them all the time. Learn your gun's maximum effective range; that is, the range it'll still be accurate at.
Buy a good scope for it. Leaper© makes very good scopes. A 3-9x40 is a classic choice. Bipods are extremely helpful in assisting with accuracy they are great for camping.
Learn how to use the Mil-Dot formula so you can effectively ascertain the distance of your target. (although this might be unnecessary considering your target is only 300 feet away max)
Obtain a secondary airsoft gun, such as a good pistol or an automatic electric weapon to strap onto your back. Make sure that it doesn't stick out too much since it will make you easier to spot and less mobile. Also it's not fun to get stuck in close quarters in with a sniper rifle.
Make a ghillie suit or some good camouflage. www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Ghillie-Suit has good directions on how to make a ghillie suit This will hide you from enemies and opposing snipers. Make sure it is comfortable because you will be wearing it for a while. A ghillie suit should be made of generic colours, brown, lighter brown, some green might help. The long strips are handy for tying in natural elements of your surroundings. For instance, if you are in the woods, pick up some sticks and leaves from the forest floor, and tie them on to your suit (the webtex concealment vest is perfect for natural camo). Use enough that you will blend in, but use variety. More importantly, if you are moving from woods into fields, then you must adapt your camo to your surroundings. Get rid of sticks and leaves, and redo your suit according to the new area.
Buy some ammo. Only high-polish BBs will do, others will ruin high-performance sniper rifle barrels and internals. Your ammo should weigh at least 0.20 grams, higher weight equals higher accuracy, but less power.
Once you are familiar with your guns, you must learn the art of stealth. Move slow be sure to watch the enemy. This is the most important step! You must take the time to study your environment. Instead of seeing things as trees or bushes, think of them as a good hiding place or a fallback point.
Become comfortable in all situations. You must know how to snipe in woods and open fields. Also, become familiar with changing you ghillie suit to adapt to terrain.
If you get a chance, before the game, explore the area you will play in. Make mental notes of good sniping positions, good OP’s (Observation Points), and well covered areas for a retreat, this is very important.
Know your opposition. Nothing is more frustrating then realizing you’re overwhelmed because you had no idea how big the other team was (more than likely you will see them in the safezone).
While airsofting, take it low and slow. Set up an ambush or pick off advancing enemies. The best position for a sniper is prone which keeps you hidden the most, however crouching is an alternative in very dense areas. Standing up is when you are a more obvious target. Don't reveal your whole silhouette, profiles are harder to see.
Determine an escape route. If you are on a deep strike mission (picking off an enemy commander from behind their lines), always know your way out. If you don't, the enemies will hear your shot and hunt you down. (Or not, because this is airsoft).
Keep on the move. But again, stay low, on your belly. A sniper should only move when there is assurance of no hostile operatives in the area, and even when he moves, he should move avoiding any detectable changing of position (crawl with fingers and toes, not elbows and knees, or any way you see fit but be patient this is painfully slow). When you crawl, keep your heels together, and move your toes to go forward.
Learn to memorize a landscape. When you see something that wasn't there before, get down, pull out your binoculars (if indeed you have any), and take a closer look.
You have a limited number of shots you can take. Learn which shots to take, by the way most high fps guns don't have a high rate of fire.
Keep your equipment clean and in tip-top condition to get an edge on the enemy. Silicon spray is useful for a full on clean, don't just spray it down the barrel and have done with it use a cleaning rod and cloth.
Most important rule of airsoft, be safe and have fun!
And also remember to know your teamates and what position they are. Nothing is more embarrassing than taking out your own teamate bacuase you thought that you didn't have a support gunner.



Tips: Few airsofters realize the importance of stealth when returning from a mission. In airsoft, there is no such thing as a safe zone. Everywhere is a hostile situation, and should be treated as thus. As a sniper, no shot is easier than enemy units returning to their home base (Note that this is two way. While you want to avoid being an easy target while returning home, try setting up near an enemy base, and shoot the patrols as they return).
Buy a "make your own" ghillie suit set. It takes a while to make, but it is worth it(see link at top).
When in the field, watch your step! Don't step on dry leaves or twigs. They break, making a crunching noise! Step on large rocks or packed dirt. When in the enemies F.O.V. try not to move, It's easy to spot movement.
Don't be afraid to get dirty! Lay on your belly under a bush or crouch on a low hanging branch with lots of leaves. poke your gun out of the bush it is better to have some cover rather than none.
Buy extra magazines and a holster for your pistol.
Recruit a spotter. Not only can he help you in a firefight, he can also help you spot possible targets.
Buy gloves! Knuckle-shots hurt :0 !
The key is effective sniping is this: observe, calculate, shoot.
This all sounds really extreme, but you don't need to do everything. Do most, and it'll make the difference between your being a good airsofter and an excellent "splinter cell/call of duty4".
Read the topic on WikiHow entitled "Take Out an Airsoft Sniper". Learn from it. If you know the enemy tactics, you're more likely to learn how to counter it. Try this: read an anti sniper tactic, and then contemplate how you could counter it in the real world (usually the best answer is to sneak away). Do this excercise on as many sites as possible, including mlitary sites. Always remember that you can learn as much if not more from an enemy than you can from an ally.
I reccomend the second external link. All information comes from military manuals.
If you're just playing with a few friends, try to avoid these tactics. Alot of people think these tactics are really unfair in a backyard shootout, or even a casual game in the woods. But remember, while you wouldn't want to use the tactics specifically, keep in mind the simpler tactics on which these are based: speed, stealth, patience, and most importantly, intelligence and the will to strive for excellence.
Good cover and an escape route is more important than field of vision. Some people will tell you that a good sniper never gets spotted. Well, a better sniper knows how not to get caught. That means high up in trees is a no-no.
A good sniper rifle is a Tokyo Marui VSR, or a cheaper route would be the Jing Gong B.A.R-10 as with simple modifications such as cutting down the piston it can fire over 500 fps.
Here are some good sites for airsoft guns, airsoftgi.com, redwolfairsoft.com, shortyusa.com, federalairsoft.com. Never, I repeat never, buy from hobbytron or airsplat, and avoid sites that do not specialize in airsoft or sell other things unrelated to airsoft.


Check out Wiki-how for great guides about making ghille suits and tkaing out snipers