Smash That Cake

You cannot believe it, but it has been a full year since a new little person came into your life.  A child’s first birthday has plenty of things to think about including planning a party to celebrate with your friends and family. It is one of many milestones in your child’s life that you will want to have photos to look back on. I want to help you make sure you get the most out of your first year photos.

Schedule a Separate Session

Be sure to set up a separate photo session focused on just the birthday baby, and that can include a few with parents and siblings. Especially if you want a smash the cake as part of your session, trying to fit portraits in during a birthday party can end up being too much for you and the guest of honor.

Take photos before you set the cake out.

If you have multiple outfits, you want to have the last outfit be what ever the cake is smashed in. The cake signifies the beginning of the end of a one-year-old session.  Sugar highs and crashes set in very quickly with a one-year-old especially if they have never had anything so sugary before.

You can also never tell how kids are going to react to the hand in the cake/frosting. Some love it and dive right in. Others are not so happy with the process. If a melt down occurs, you already have a great set of photos.

Stage it out on the floor

If you are hiring a photographer and scheduling a separate session outside the birthday party, this most likely will be the course of action anyway. But, if you are doing a cake smash in your own home or during the festivities, set something up on the floor. While it is tempting for clean up, having the cake smash in a high chair will not get you that clean and simple look that you want for a frameable cake smash (except for, you know, the messy cake). Plus you will miss out on catching any cute outfit you arranged for it.

Minimal clothing is best for the cake smashing outfit. 

Frosting will go everywhere.

Cake Smash Cake

I suggest a white cake mix with a color frosting. This is not anything technical, I just prefer how it looks in photos. I feel like white cake mixes better with whatever color frosting you choose, so once it is all smashed in a child’s fingers, or on their face it still has a pretty color to it instead of just looking dark or brown.