The first year with a baby is something else. It is exhausting and emotional and completely wonderful, often all three at the same time. You go from not sleeping to somehow functioning on four hours, from tiny newborn grunts to a little person who has opinions and a personality and their own very specific feelings about dinner.
By the time that first birthday rolls around, you have genuinely earned it.
And cake smash sessions are honestly one of my favourite things to photograph, because they are chaotic and funny and real in a way that most photoshoots are not.
So what actually happens?
We start with some simple portraits while your baby is still clean and curious and not yet covered in buttercream.
This part is usually pretty easy because everything in the studio is new and interesting and babies at this age are generally pretty happy to just look around and take it all in.
Then the cake comes out and this is where it gets good.
Every single baby reacts differently and I have never once been able to predict which way it will go. Some babies look at that cake for about three seconds and then just go for it, both hands in, completely committed, icing up to their elbows before you have even finished your sentence. Others are deeply suspicious. One finger, very carefully placed into the icing, then a long pause while they consider the implications. A few babies look at the cake, look at me, look at their parents, and then look back at the cake like they are waiting for someone to explain what is happening.
All of it is gold.
Parents usually sit just behind me during the session, cheering their baby on and laughing, and those little moments of connection between a baby and their parents are often some of the best frames of the whole shoot. It is not posed. Nobody is being told to smile. It is just your baby doing something completely new while you watch.
When should you book?
Around ten or eleven months is the sweet spot. That gives us enough time to photograph the session, get everything edited and have your gallery ready before the birthday actually arrives. A lot of families use the photos for invitations or decorations, so getting in early means you are not rushing at the end.
Studio sessions fill up, so if you have a date in mind it is worth reaching out sooner rather than later.
What the setup looks like
I photograph cake smash sessions from my home studio in Banora Point or outside by request. The space is set up specifically for babies and young children so it is calm, easy and there is absolutely nothing precious in it.
The setup is kept simple on purpose. Soft backdrops, maybe some balloons or bubbles, the cake. That is really it, because the whole point is your baby, not a heavily decorated scene that competes with them for attention.
A lot of parents bring a special outfit for the start of the session, and some of the sweetest photos happen when babies are just in a nappy cover with those incredible chubby legs doing exactly what they want. I also have an extensive collection of rompers from my previous clothing brand, Garden of Eadie, that parents are welcome to use if they want something a bit special. Just message me after booking and we can chat about what might work.
What you need to bring
Genuinely just your baby and whatever outfit you want them in for the start of the session.
I take care of the setup, the cake, the props, the clean-up supplies and everything else. You just need to show up. The aftermath of a very enthusiastic cake smash is my problem, not yours.
Why these sessions matter
I know a first birthday can feel like just another thing on the list when life is full and busy. But that baby you are photographing is right on the edge of something. In a few months they will be running. They will have words. The chubby hands and the gummy grin and the complete bafflement at a bowl of icing will be gone.
These photos are the ones you find years later and completely fall apart over.
I photograph cake smash and milestone sessions for families across the Tweed Coast, Banora Point, Terranora and the southern Gold Coast. If your baby's first birthday is coming up, I would love to hear from you.
Because the first year really does go faster than anyone warns you it will.
