PREPARING FOR YOUR BABY’S FIRST BIRTHDAY CAKE SMASH SHOOT
If you’re reading this then you’ve probably already booked a birthday photoshoot with me for your little one. Thank you for trusting me to create these first birthday milestone portraits for you!
Here are a few hints and tips on getting the most out of our session, cake prep and what to bring with you.
If you’ve any queries please just ask.
1. Getting to know your family. Please share a bit of information on the family and your baby here to help me get to know everyone a little better before the day. This helps me connect with your baby more quickly when we meet, and get the most out of the session.
2. Picking a theme & props. Take a look at the Birthday Themes document (already shared) so we can start planning decor, props, colours and outfits for your session. Themes ideally coordinate with the cake and outfit too. It is always worth considering how your home is decorated as well when picking key colours, so that any images you hang on the walls coordinate beautifully with your home too. If you see a set up you love just as it is, let me know so I can recreate it for you; or if you see individual items / colours you like, let me know and I can come up with set-up suggestions for you.
3. Choosing outfits. I have a number of outfits we can pick from for your session, detailed in the Birthday Themes document. Some families like to bring their own outfit for the birthday themed portraits before the cake comes out and then change into one of mine / something else for the cakesmash part (which they don’t mind getting cake on) or to keep one outfit of their own on baby, throughout the session. I recommend simple outfits avoiding characters / text / logos / branding so that the focus stays on baby and not the clothes. Clothing with characters / writing on often don’t photograph well, as depending on baby’s body position, parts of the writing / characters can be hidden from view. Remember that at the very beginning of the session I also offer a neutral themed, family portrait. You may wish to have a further outfit for this photo, in which case please arrive with baby wearing this.
4. Picking the cake. Unfortunately I am not insured to provide these for allergy reasons but I do provide lots of help and guidance on picking a cake. There are loads of suitable store bought cakes and you can see some here. Alternatively if you prefer a bespoke cake then I suggest Silvia of Fairypan Bakery who is located in the studio next door to mine and bakes delicious cakes, or Jodie of Simple but Delicious who makes stunningly decorated cakes in E14 and can deliver.
When picking a cake, please follow these essential tips:
Choose a soft buttercream style icing so your baby can break into the cake easily and enjoy his/her cakesmash session. Hard icing is almost impossible for babies to break into and makes for less attractive images.
Generally, avoid dark / milk chocolate cakes - they can look like pooh when smashed up! (Having said that, there are some beautiful chocolate cake options out there!).
Watch out for any decorations that could be a choking hazard.
If you want something more bespoke, without using a cake baker you can decorate your own store bought cake - pick a cake which you can remove simple decorations from or pick a plain cake and decorate it yourself. You can buy lots of beautiful add on decorations from Amazon and other retailers.
If you store the cake in the fridge, take it out 24 hours before the session so it has time to soften up before the cake smash, otherwise baby may struggle to break into it.
Remember some store bought cakes need to be pre-ordered 7-10 days in advance of your photoshoot.
Most store bought cakes are a suitable size for a cakesmash. If you are having a cake made for you good sizes are around 6-7” diameter x 4.5” high, or around 9-10” diameter x 5.5” high.
If having a cake made, please ask for a cake board which is the same diameter as the cake. (This is not always possible depending on the construction of the cake. If not, please advise your cake baker that the cake may be removed from the board and so should be easy to take off with a cake-slice).
Writing on bespoke cakes is often not visible during the shoot, and so is best avoided.
5. Preparing your baby for cake. Let your baby taste and play with a similar looking, buttercream-iced cupcake one or maximum two days before the session. By doing this a day or two before the session, it means that your baby is more likely to remember what it is, and remember enjoying the taste of it when it comes to the session (since this is often a baby’s first taste of cake). Being familiar beforehand helps them get into the spirit of the smash more quickly.
6. Food or food? Please ensure that your baby arrives well fed (and well-rested) before the session. Although babies enjoy a bit of cake, the sweetness can become overwhelming for them and they don’t actually end up eating that much. For this reason it is important that they are full when they arrive. Feel free to bring another snack or pouch of baby food etc with you, if you think your baby may want to eat something else during the session. Please also bring a beaker of milk / water as eating cake is thirsty work for babies.
7. For the clean up. For the wash part of the session I use a little warm water and Earth Friendly Lavender bubble bath. If your child has any skin sensitivities, allergies or you have specific products you would like used on their skin, please feel free to bring your own bubble bath. Please also be sure to bring a clean towel for drying baby off afterwards.
8. What to wear (grown-ups)? At the beginning of every session I offer a quick family portrait. Come wearing what you would like to be photographed in. You can find my general outfit guidelines here. The family photo will be taken from the waist up so you don’t need to worry about shoes or the bottom half. Also bring something to get changed into for the main part of the cake smash session which you are happy to get cake on, as you will be involved in repositioning your baby during the session (especially if they are very mobile). (Please note that some icing colours can be hard to wash out). Be sure to have spare socks for grown-ups too. At the end of the session you can get changed back into the (still clean) clothes you arrived in, to go home.
9. Where to come to. The studio space is located at 8 Cody Road, E16 4SR – 1 min walk from Star Lane DLR and accessible via the A11, A12 and A13. There are more directions and details in your calendar invite. There is free street parking on Cody Road, and a private parking spot is also available a few mins walk away. If there are no nearby spaces, I can come and pick up bags and cake from you at the front door, to save you carrying them once you’re parked. The studio is on the first floor. There is an area to park a pram on the ground floor, if you come with one.
10. What to bring with you - checklist.
Cake (unless it is being delivered directly to the studio, by prior arrangement only).
Something to take left over cake home in.
Baby’s outfit for the cakesmash (if you are not using one of mine or want an extra one as detailed above). Bring baby dressed in the outfit you would like for the initial family portrait.
Baby’s clothes for going home in.
Nappies, wipes, nappy bags and any other change bag usuals. (There is a change mat you can use in the studio).
Beaker of water / milk.
Snack for baby (optional).
Your own brand of bubble bath (optional).
Towel for drying baby off after the session.
Sentimental hooded towel which suits the theme, that we can use in some photos (optional). I have a simple white one we can use otherwise.
Sentimental stuffed toy / teddy bear which we can use in some photos (optional).
Clothes for the grown-ups which you are happy to get cake / icing on.
Come wearing the clothes you’d like the family portrait to be taken in (and which you can wear home too). Remember spare socks.
11. Any questions? Just give me a call or drop me an email.