The sputter deposition of high‐temperature superconducting thin films was studied using optical emission spectroscopy. Argon or oxygen ions generated by a Kaufman ion gun were used to sputter material from a composite target containing yttrium, barium, and copper which had been oxygen annealed. The impact of ions onto the target generates a plume of sputtered material which includes various excited‐state atoms and molecules. In these studies, optical emission is detected for all the metallic components of the film as well as for metallic oxides ejected from the target. No emission due to atomic or molecular oxygen was detected, however. Variations in sputter conditions such as changes in sputter ion energy, oxygen content of the beam, and target temperature are shown to greatly affect the emission intensity, which may correlate to the characteristics of the sputtering and the quality of the films deposited. The results suggest that optical emission from the sputtered material may be useful for real‐time monitoring and control of the sputter deposition process.