Who needs one-on-one student-athlete portraits?

It’s no secret about how challenging the journey is for high school student-athletes, especially for those whose dreams (if turned into reality) involve playing at an elevated level.

Whether we’re talking about coaching or travel clubs, training or networking with college reps, we want what’s best for our sons and daughters.

We want them to have every opportunity and gain every edge they can so they can excel and advance as far as their athletic careers can take them.

We parents are their No. 1 fans, after all. And we certainly don’t want to look back and wish we had given our young athlete’s everything we could.

Let's look today at who benefits from one-on-one athlete portrait sessions.

Once this time is gone, for both us as parents and our teenage athletes, there’s no getting it back.

Today, I want to talk about who specifically benefits from one-on-one athlete portraits and why they are valuable.

It may not seem obvious at first, but you may find yourself and your student-athlete land squarely among those who can get the most out of these portraits experiences, which can enhance their athletic journey and help propel them toward achieving their sport dreams.

Let’s take a look.

Athletes who are graduating

The crossroads has arrived for those who are entering their senior year of high school. They’ve reached the high watermark after all the training, practices, games, tournaments.

They face a crucial choice. Keep playing after graduation or hang up the jersey for the last time.

Once this time in a young athlete's life is done, there's no getting it back.

No matter what a student-athlete decides to do after graduation, making it to your senior year is the culmination of the journey.

For many of them, casual senior portraits in a wildflower field just isn’t the right fit. Or you’re looking to complement casual senior portraits with a more athlete-focused portrait session.

They (and you as their parent) want to celebrate their achievements, their unique personality, and what this milestone means. Their school experience has been largely shaped by what they’ve done on the field, the court, or in the pool.

So celebrate. Treat your student-athlete (and yourself). Preserve this fleeting time before it’s gone.

Athletes competing at an elevated level

For many teenage athletes, the path they want to follow leads to Division 1 college competition, semi-pro leagues, even Olympic or professional opportunities.

Plus there are NIL (Name, Image and Likeness) and endorsement opportunities unlike any other time before.

Those athletes have to act as their own public relations rep. It’s up to them to reach out to coaches through email or social media direct messaging, to garner independent media attention, to build a following of fans that go with them to wherever they play.

Elite-level athlete portraits can help you make strong first impressions.

Professional portraits for these student-athletes can be used in emails to coaches or press releases to the media or shared with potential endorsement partners.

Think about it. For any of these scenarios, do you want to send a boring team picture day image, a poorly lit selfie, or an elite-level professional portrait?

Which one do you think will make the strongest impression?

Athletes who want to build a personal brand or social media fan base

I know. I’m the parent of a teenager who plays sports. The idea that as teenagers our kids can do what adult athletes in the NFL, NBA, MLB and so on can do - build a personal brand - is kinda of scary.

But we’ve left the past behind. It’s time for us as parents to embrace the upsides of modern day marketing when it comes to our student-athletes.

Are there downsides to social media and personal branding at such a young age? Yes, and as a responsible parent, we must be vigilant about that.

Elite-level athlete portraits can help connect you with your fans and build your personal athlete brand.

However, if our student-athletes avoid developing a fan base through, among other things, social media marketing, then we’re missing out on the positives of the opportunity.

Personal branding and social media go alongside on-the-field achievements. Millions of high school athletes have stats they can tout, things they have achieved, highlights, and so on.

Very few them, though, know how to market themselves to fans, coaches, and recruiters. Few of them know how to get a potential coach at the next level (where your teenager wants to play) to stop scrolling on social and pay attention to your student-athlete.

And we know that coaches and recruiters definitely are looking at your student-athlete’s social media.

What does their TikTok or Instagram say about your son or daughter? What does it say about why your son or daughter deserves that scholarship or that opportunity to play at an elite semi-pro or pro club or garners a sponsorship/endorsement?

Ready to get started? It’s easy, and I want to be on your team to help you elevate your experience. Start by clicking on this link to learn how one-on-one athlete portraits work.

Dave Pidgeon is the owner of and chief image maker at Creative Sports Photography, an elite-level image making service for athletes and teams. He’s based in Lancaster, Pa., and available anywhere. You can reach him at dave@creativesportsphotography.com.