Here’s some info to help your cake smash session run as smoothly as possible…

• We usually book Cake Smash shoots starting between 9am and 10am as we find most children are at their best in the morning. If however this interferes with your child’s naps or you feel they’d be better at a different time, let me know. We’d much rather a happy child.

• Please bring snacks, a drink and, dare I say it, anything that might be used as (ahem) blackmail, just in case they need a little encouragement. 

• Favourite toys are welcome, and welcome in shots too - we’ve even had a dinosaur tea party in the studio.

• Photographing children is a joint effort, and usually a lot of fun. We put on some tunes and I usually end up balancing something or other on my head. But mummy/daddy/grandparents will always get the best smiles, so i’ll almost certainly be calling upon you to help get the best out of your little ones.

• Of course cake smash shoots get messy. I’ll need you on hand and you might get messy too, so please bear this in mind when deciding what to wear. You can always change between the family pictures and the smash pictures. Please be warned the coloured icing may stain white clothes.

• People often ask what to wear. Some Parents pick a special outfit, a number one t-shirt or even a tutu! Some prefer the natural look and leave them in their nappy and use my terry nappy cover to cover the disposible. Its completely up to you, feel free to discuss it with me in advance. We have some ‘1’ onesies, tutus, nappy covers, braces and bow ties in the studio for your use.

• I try and keep a 1:1 ratio of adults to children under 4 in my studio, excluding me - this only applies if they’re mobile, i.e. crawling or walking. Its For their safety as obviously i have photographic equipment and backdrops out. if this is an issue, please discuss it with me in advance. 

• Clothes wise for the parent/family shots at the beginning: The plainer the better and try and avoid bright clashing colours and logos. Avoid anything that might date quickly and big blocks of black. Neutrals work well. Jeans, a plain top and bare feet always works. Most importantly, both you and the children need to be comfortable. You are welcome to change out of your ‘best’ before the mess begins!

• I try and keep a 1:1 ratio of adults to children under 4 in my studio, excluding me - this only applies if they’re mobile, i.e. crawling or walking. Its For their safety as obviously i have photographic equipment and backdrops out. if this is an issue, please discuss it with me in advance. 

• After the cake smash we usually continue the shoot by putting baby in a mini bath to clean up. If you don’t want this part of the shoot, its not a problem, just let me know in advance. I will provide towels for afterwards too. In the bath we usually use Child’s Farm bubble bath to create lovely bubbles. I have found this very mild and suitable for even eczema prone skin, but if you would like me to use something else, or have any concerns please let me know ahead of the shoot.

Themes and choices

Decorations

We can offer balloon arches, bars or a single large balloon. We find the bars better for crawling babies who are likely to bash the arches as they are a little more resilient. For a more natural look we can offer a moss garland, with or without flowers.