Prepared for Carson & FTG Elite
A media day built around athlete identity, your culture, and everything you're creating with FTG Elite.
Why I'm Reaching Out
After our conversation, I kept thinking about what you've done. You are a seventeen-year-old who built a club basketball program from the ground up and got it into the Adidas and Under Armour circuits. That has not been done before. Not like this.
And the thing is, the basketball world does not always stop to document the origin story. Everyone wants to talk about what you become. I want to capture who you already are, right now, while you're in the middle of building it.
"The way a young man sees himself changes everything. How he plays, how he leads, how he shows up for the people around him. My job is to create the moment where he sees it in himself. Our cameras just catch what is already there."
This media day is your program making a statement. To every recruit you're bringing in. To every college coach watching your players. To every potential sponsor or facility partner you'll be sitting across from as FTG Elite grows. You head into the summer live period looking exactly like the program you've worked to become.
The Philosophy
The problem is not talent. It is not work ethic. The problem, more often than anyone wants to say out loud, is a young man who does not yet believe he is worth the space he takes up. Athlete identity is what I build. It is the core of every shoot, every set, every interaction on this day. And when a young man walks away from it feeling genuinely seen, this is what changes for your program.
When a young man has been genuinely acknowledged, his relationship with pressure changes. He stops playing to prove himself and starts playing to express himself. Starting your summer live period with that shift already in place is a real competitive advantage.
An athlete who believes in himself buys into the team around him. He trusts the system. He plays for the name on the front. This day gives your athletes an emotional anchor to who they are and what FTG Elite represents, before the season even starts.
Every image from this day becomes an asset for FTG Elite. When your athletes are being recruited, their stories deserve professional visuals behind them. College coaches and club directors are watching. This content is built to show up in exactly those places, long after the day is done.
When a parent sees their son photographed like he matters, like he is worth the professional light, they do not forget it. They tell other parents. They stay in the program. They refer their friends. This day is not just good for the athletes. It is good for everything you are building around them.
Two Levels of Investment
Tier One · To Elevate
One cinematic set, fully retouched gallery delivered in two weeks.
Tier Two · All In · Full Production
Two photographers, action and portraits, content crew.
The Investment
You collect from families however works best for you. Boosters, participation fees, or program budget. We handle the rest.
| Athletes | The Standard | The Experience |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | $1,400 | $2,150 |
| 15 | $1,725 | $2,475 |
| 20 | $2,050 | $2,800 |
| 25 | $2,375 | $3,125 |
How it's calculated
The Standard
$750 base
+ $65 per athlete
The Experience
$1,500 base
+ $65 per athlete
Programs larger than 30 athletes, reach out for a custom quote.
The Family Side
Once photos are complete, your program receives a full online gallery to share with families. Families purchase prints, canvases, and digital downloads directly through the gallery.
Your budget covers the production. Families choose what they want to take home. Program cost and family purchases are completely separate.
For Your Program
Copy and paste into your team app, GroupMe, or newsletter.
"Media Day with The Heather Experience is coming up. The participation fee covers your athlete being professionally photographed, fully edited and retouched images delivered to the program, and access to the online gallery where you can purchase prints, canvases, and additional digital downloads.
This is not your average picture day. Your athlete will be treated like a professional from the moment they step on set. It is also a day for them to be poured into, built up, and celebrated for the work they put in. Confidence increases performance in the game and in life, and that is what this day is really about. That is what FTG Elite, Fearless to Grow, is about."
Add On
Branded Canva Templates
A set of fully branded, ready-to-use Canva templates designed around your FTG Elite identity. Your athletes and staff drop their photos directly into the templates and post. No design experience needed. Built for Instagram feed, stories, and recruiting graphics. Yours to keep and reuse all season.
$150 – $250
Who You're Working With
I am Heather, founder of The Heather Experience. I was born and raised in San Diego, grew up on the basketball court watching my dad play, and I have spent the last several years building a media and storytelling brand specifically for the world of youth basketball in North County San Diego and beyond.
My work is built on one belief: athletes deserve to be seen, not just as players, but as people, as young men building something real under enormous pressure. I bring that belief into every experience I create, with the intention of leaving every athlete more rooted in who he is than when he walked in.
I am also a basketball parent. My son has lived the recruiting journey firsthand. I know what your players and their families are navigating, and that understanding is in every single frame.
I know this basketball community. I know the spaces your program is operating in. This is not a generic service. It is built around what you are specifically creating with FTG Elite, and I cannot wait to collaborate on this vision and help bring it to life.
— Heather Cleaves
Founder & CEO, The Heather Experience
Booking
To Hold Your Date
10% deposit required at booking
Remaining Balance
Due day of the event
Gallery Delivery
Within 2 weeks of your event date
Dates book fast heading into the summer live period. Let's connect and get your team's day locked in.
Let's Connect