CAKE SMASH AND ONE-YEAR-OLD BABY PORTRAIT PHOTO TIPS
I have some great Cake Smashes and First Year Portrait Photo tips that can really make a session great! First and foremost, your safety and your child's safety are my top priority. I am fully vaccinated and will wear a mask while shooting.
These sessions are amazing and so much fun to have for years to come. First, I start off by doing straight portraits of your child to mark their milestone. Then, when I have what we need, we put the cake down in front of them. Below are a few tips that will help to have a successful cake smash photo session.
I have a really cozy space in Reading, Massachusetts that's really perfect for mom or dad, baby, and me. If you would like to bring someone else, let me know. I know how much the baby loves grandma, but I want them to pay attention to me! If you are having a birthday party, that's the time to show these photos off. Bringing family to the shoot can ruin the big reveal of the photos. It also can distract the little one, so be sure to know the fewer people and distractions the better.
Fact: Not all babies love cake. I know- right?!
- be prepared that the baby may not want to be near the cake. It's OKAY! I am confident we will get some shots of the baby enjoying just being photographed! Some babies are actually afraid of the cake. It makes sense, new place, lots of people staring at them, and then you want them to eat a cake, that normally you'd take from them. What's not to be frightened by! One tip I have found is to show them the cake before the shoot. Have it out on the counter, so it's just part of the kitchen. Point to it, talk about it, it can help! Then they want to touch it and dig in!
- be prepared for a mess! Some babies love (and I mean LOVE) cake, Those are the best, but they can also be the messiest!
- be ready to pry the cake from the baby. Some babies really love the cake and will just keep eating. To avoid stomach aches and sick babies, we rely on the parents to pull the cake when they feel they have had enough. It's always a good thing to double-check with me before pulling the cake. When you think they've had enough, let me know, and I can let you know if I'm all set to be done. Fact: I'll keep taking images until you pull the camera from me.
Cake smashes are a great way to really document a baby's milestone. They don't always go as planned and that's okay! If the baby is sick, or cranky, we recommend not forcing the shoot and just rescheduling. Some kids are teething, some kids are just not in the mood. I also recommend you bring only one other person to the shoot, spouse, mom, or friend. Having too many people can cause the baby to want to be with those people. We want this to be a positive experience for all involved. I keep all props simple. I do not want the baby distracted by props and shiny things that distract. The room I shoot in is pretty simple, nothing to grab, nothing to pull. Simple photo sets for cake smash work best!
TIPS FOR TYPE OF CAKE TO PURCHASE FOR CAKE SMASH
It would be amazing to have this super fancy cake for the cake smash. My advice? Keep it simple. When you go to a professional baker they use fondant frosting. Fondant frosting is really hard for kids to break into and destroy a cake. Also, (truth here) it doesn't really taste good. Keep the cake ingredients to soft frosting, and whipped creams. I have found over the years, that really sugary and butter cakes, don't go over well with kids. What does go over well are the whipped cream cakes. They are easy to smash and make the best mess for fun photos. Also, try and keep the cake to just a cake. No cute prop on top. Kids tend to get distracted easily and if they find a toy on top, it's a deal-breaker.
Planning a Theme for Photos
I let the parents tell me what theme they want for the first birthday cake smash photos. Pink and Gold is popular with the girls, and boys tend to go for Mickey Mouse. I can pull anything off. I just need enough time to pull the props together. One thing that makes our cake smash sessions different is I keep it SIMPLE. I don't want 400 props. I want the feel of the theme and three items. When you add too many props around a baby, they lose focus and the entire point of the shoot is lost. You end up prying props from the baby's hands and then the baby cries. I have found it works best to have a backdrop with something hanging that says Happy Birthday and a little prop off to the side. Simple truly works best, but I am happy to add whatever you want. This is just my professional opinion. I can try anything and if it doesn't work, no harm no foul!
First Birthday gifts that parents love are a photoshoot so we do sell gift certificates. I am also happy to come set up a pop-up studio in your house. I travel to Reading, Lynnfield, North Reading, Andover, North Andover, and Woburn.
Rescheduling advice for Photo Session
I know how much time you put in and you planned to do this session, and then your little one gets sick. You try and push through, "it's only 30 minutes, they will be fine," Right? Unfortunately, It's been our experience that if the baby doesn't feel good the entire session is photos of the baby crying. Our advice? Reschedule. The photos aren't date stamped and if the photos are a few days before or after their birthday, it really won't matter. I don't have a reschedule fee. I totally understand, things happen. As a mom myself, you can't plan every day to be perfect. If your baby has a cold or has run a fever in the last few days, reschedule. If they had an ear infection or you've given them ANY antibiotics or Tylenol in the last 24 hours, reschedule. Also, if ANYONE in your house is/has been or is in contact with anyone who might have been throwing up, PLEASE reschedule.
Reading Photographer Headshots-Portraits-Kids-Families, Senior Portraits 40 Marla Lane, Reading MA 01867 781-315-6030 - aw@cordelephotography.com