Babies 1st Year Cake Smash Photos FAQs ~ Linda Hewell Maternity & Newborn Photography

Celebrate baby’s first birthday with one of my very special birthday sessions! These cute cake smash pictures showcase one of your baby’s very important milestone! The big 1 year! These sessions are so much fun, I simply adore all the little emerging personalities from shy and reserved, to outgoing and bold. A lot of babies I see at this age, I have also photographed as newborns, so for me, this is a special bonus as I love seeing my little tiny newborn clients all grown up!

Here are a few questions most commonly asked by parents before making a booking. If you have any other questions, feel free to ask

Can I bring baby’s Grandparents and other family members for one family photo?

Family photos done in front of the full Smash & Splash cake smash setup is just one pose, and are reserved for parents and siblings only. These shots are taken with everyone sitting down on the floor. There is not enough room for additional family members. Extended family, or wanting more poses with baby warrants a new general family session and is best done on another day as one-year-olds tire very quickly, their window of good mood only lasts a very short time. You are coming for milestone cake smash photos, so let’s just focus on getting the best possible images we can

Keep family members to an absolute minimum. While it’s nice to bring additional family to come watch the shoot, I don’t get as much eye contact as they are constantly looking at everyone else. It’s much harder for me to get baby’s attention when there are so many other people in the room.

The best sessions seem to be the ones where only the parents bring bub. That way, I can get a chance to make friends with baby, they get to trust me and I can interact with them much better

Do you provide outfits?

I have a range of smash outfits for baby to get messy in if you didn’t want to get bubs own clothing to get messy. If you are bringing your own cake, please ensure no darker or vibrant dyes are used as they can leave stains on the fabric.

For pre-cake portraits, most parents like to bring a special birthday outfit for bubs to wear. If not, you can still choose something from my rack to wear

See available girls outfits

See available boys outfits

My baby is quite shy around new people. Will we still be able to get great shots?

For shy babies, it’s best to keep the session very low-key and quiet to begin with. Baby has just arrived to a new environment, often just woken up from a nap in the car. We don’t want to confuse them by parents jumping up and down behind me trying to get them to smile as soon as they are set down. I allow time in the session for warm-up time and don’t need to rush into getting those pictures asap. The most important aspect of a successful cake smash is to make them feel comfortable with me.

What’s the best way to help my baby enjoy cake? They haven’t really tried it before?

If you want messy, cake smash photos, then it’s a great idea to introduce cake beforehand. Most one-year-olds who have never had cake before actually don’t like it. In fact it’s the part of the session where it can turn bubs good mood onto a bad one. Or they can be disinterested in it, or worst, scared of it (yes babies can be terrified of the cake!).

Practicing with canned whipped cream beforehand can get bub used to the texture of frosting. A lot of one-year-olds don’t like the texture of frosting on their hands and can get upset when it touches their skin.

Bring favourite snacks to hide in the back of the cake to encourage baby to eat it, especially if they are uninterested.

My baby loves to be held by me and is not keen on being put down by themselves. What can we do in this situation?

Often bubs are more clingy to one parent and do not want to let them go. In this instance, I ask that parent to leave the room and hide around the corner so baby can’t see them.

Sometimes, no matter what we do, some bubs really don’t feel comfortable unless they are with their parents. Be prepared to be in some photos even if you don’t want to be in any. Wear lighter-coloured clothing, or colours that compliment the set so if we need to include you, or your arms, hands, etc. The most extremely shy babies need their parents with them and the session can turn into a fun family session in front of the decorated setup. They are still birthday photos and are still very cute!

My baby is a bit unwell or has just gotten over an illness. Will the session still be okay to go ahead, he/she seems fine?

Please don’t bring baby if they are sick, or just getting over an illness. This can really break a session. It makes such a huge difference, I don’t mind at all if you need to cancel on the day if they wake up feeling unwell. Sick babies (even slightly) can become so miserable during the shoot. Even if they seem fine at home, things change once brought out to a new place with new faces. Please make sure baby is 100% well and back to their usual self on the session day. Runny noses are okay, they can linger for a long time after recovery.

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