Cake smash sessions are a fun and joyous way to commemorate your little one turning one! I have found a few tips and tricks over the course of the last 15 years to help you prepare for your upcoming cake smash session!
What to Wear
Most of my one year clients are photographed in two outfits, a first birthday outfit and cake smash attire. Cake smash attire typically can be a diaper cover, bloomers, or a cloth diaper.
Props
Although I don’t recommend balloons for inside the studio, they work super well outside! I also think fabric banners work well also. Think about your theme and what kinds of props would work well. Communicate your ideas with me, as I have also collected a lot of props over the years!
The Cake
I ask my clients to bring their own cakes due to allergy concerns. A small, simple cake works perfect, it doesn’t need to be fancy. Please make sure your cake is buttercream icing and not fondant. Soft and muted colors tend to work best. Stay away from chocolate cake and frosting, it will look literally like poop in photos. I also suggest avoiding cakes with a lot of red icing.
Remember to stay realistic. Not every baby likes cake, and not every baby likes being messy. We will just go with the flow, and I promise you will still get beautiful images! It may be helpful to bring babies favorite snacks like puffs to put in the cake to try to get them to eat the cake.
Occasionally babies can have aversions or allergies to cakes, so its important to try a test run at home with a small cupcake.
Prepare for the Mess
This session could get REALLY messy, so its best to bring plenty of wipes, or maybe even a towel to clean up afterwards. You will want to bring a fresh outfit to put baby into also when they are done so you don’t have to drive home covered in cake!
How long is the session?
Cake smashes typically take about an hour. You will come in prepared to take babies photos without the cake, and then we will introduce the baby to the cake and they will be ready to rock! The smash portion of the session tends to take only 10-15 minutes MAX.
Leave siblings at home
If possible, leave siblings at home. Depending on their age, they probably won’t understand why they can’t have cake too. This session is a special milestone for your little one, so we want to make it all about them! 
