A First Trip Around the Sun Cake Smash

Happy birthday, Brandon! This little astronaut came to my Saratoga Springs NY studio for his first birthday cake smash - complete with an outer space theme. When Brandon’s parents inquired and began planning their portraits with me, I was super excited about the theme they mentioned. As we dove further into possible colors and ideas, we settled on some blues and oranges, with silver accents. Everything felt super space-y and was the perfect fit for their little birthday boy! Brandon was an absolute joy to photograph. He loved the spotlight and was excited to dig into his cake from Kelly Skitchenny! I don’t blame him… it looked delicious!

We rounded out his first birthday portraits with family portraits on the sofa in my studio. I love the classic and simple feel to these portraits - just these three and lots of smiles! What a perfect way to celebrate a first birthday!!

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Best of 2017 Cake Smashes with Boston & Saratoga Springs Baby Photographer

Sugar, sprinkles, and lots of belly laughs!  That’s what our cake smash sessions are all about here at the studio.

Your baby’s first birthday is truly a once-in-a-lifetime event, and it deserves a little celebration!  You’ve survived 365 days of parenthood, and you’re raising an amazing, funny, and loving little child whose smile melts your heart every single day.  

I love our cake smash sessions for this very reason — we freeze time, just for an instant, and we celebrate your baby and your family as you are right this very moment.  Many of my cake smash babies I saw as newborns when they were just a few days old, and it’s always amazing to me to see how much they’ve grown in the past year.

Each birthday session is unique and includes family portraits, baby portraits, and a celebration at the end — usually with cake, but sometimes with a different food alternative (donuts, pie, cheerios, so many possibilities!).  Plus, some families like to add a bathtub splash to their session after the cake smash!

Every year I love going back through our sessions and sharing a few favorites on the blog.  Enjoy a peek at a few of our most memorable birthday babies from 2017, and be sure to check out our other “BEST OF 2017” blog posts!

Did you love this BEST OF 2017 post?
Check out our other top posts on the blog!
 

Best of 2017 Maternity Sessions
Best of 2017 Family Sessions
Best of 2017 Lifestyle Newborn Sessions
Best of 2017 Studio Newborn Sessions
Best of 2017 Fresh 48 Sessions
Best of 2017 Brothers & Sisters: Candid and Fun Sibling Portraits
Best of 2017 Beach Sessions on Cape Cod
 

Dreamy Family Session and Butterfly Cake Smash Birthday Session {Boston Family Photographer}

Really, now...  how cute is this family???

Mary called me soon after the HHP workshop in January, excited to plan a family session and first birthday session for her little girl Aubrey.  I absolutely adore this family, and I was so excited to capture them on camera again.  We met during a newborn contest I was running last year, and this was our third time together since Aubrey was born.  You can tell they're naturals at being in front of the camera now, can't you?  Plus, I was thrilled to be able to do my first full family session in the new studio space (more on that coming to the blog very soon!!)  I love how the photos came out, how much love these is between these four, and how gorgeous every single one looks!  Be prepared for photo overload...

This creamy set up was exactly what I had imagined, and it is absolutely dreamy...

Little Mr. Carter has so much personality.  The first time we met I told him he was a knight, Sir Carter.  He loved that!!  He was full of smiles and giggles for our latest session.  I'm pretty sure these laughs were all from talking about his sock-free and "stinky" bare feet!  ;o)

The sweet little bonnet was handmade by yours truly especially for this session.  The quilt in the photo below was used during Aubrey's Simply Baby session when she was 5 months old, and we were able to incorporate it into her latest milestone session!  What a special way to tie the photos together.  

And, what would a first birthday session be without a cake smash?  I loved having full creative reign for this set up since it was in the studio.  Mary and I planned this down to the very last detail, choosing the tutu and crown and coordinating all of the details.  I love how it turned out, and how we can see Aubrey's curiosity and wonder on full display in these photos.  Isn't she such a little princess in this tutu and crown?

Thinking of a first birthday session for your little one?  Let's plan something together!

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Stevie's 1st Cake Smash

Stevie is turning one!  Remember his sweet newborn photos from last winter?  It's hard to believe that this little December baby is a year old already.

When I met his mom a year ago for his newborn session, she excitedly asked me if I did cake smashes.  I love babies.  I love cake (like, I REALLY LOVE CAKE).  And of course, I love photography and capturing moments in time.  So back then, cake smashes were something that I was so excited to get into and I was thrilled that we were already planning a session a year out.  When chatting about the smash again over the summer, she asked me the most important question of all: "Is it good cake?"  I reassured her that of course, it was the most delicious cake ever provided by the talented Jacqui at Cakes by J&J.  Jacqui made us a gorgeous cupcake cake with a stunning chocolate base, and it was perfect.

I love the photos when the cake first piques the babies' curiosity.... "Just checking things out... What IS this thing?!?!...... For ME?!?!?!"

Stevie was a little hesitant at first...

But before long he was really into it, smashing away and busting out some dance moves to show how much he was enjoying his first birthday cake.  Mom, Dad, and I were dying laughing and enjoying the little show he was putting on for us.  That's the best thing about these smashes -- the curiosity and the laughter that comes with the babies' pure joy and elation!

SUCH a fun cake smash.  I love his little expressions in these photos.  What a great afternoon!

Happy Birthday, Stevie!

Ryan's 1st Birthday Cake Smash

This is my new FAVORITE type of session!  I'm so excited about all the opportunities that will come from this first birthday cake smash. I've been wanting to get into cake smashes for awhile, and when Kristi contacted me to schedule her little boy Ryan's 1st birthday cake smash, I was thrilled.  We exchanged so many emails before the session, planning it right down to the colors so that everything would coordinate with Ryan's little birthday outfit.  Check out his cute tie, hat, and diaper cover from Etsy!  I made the ribbon streamer backdrop to match!

We met at Hanson's Farm in Framingham, a gorgeous location that was very special to the family.  I happen to have an affinity for farms and barns, so I was in love with this location for our shoot!

After our gorgeous family pics....... out came the cake!  Kristi ordered the cake from the talented Jacqui over at Cakes by J & J in Framingham, MA.  Jacqui and I are now partnering up for future cake smashes and events!  So thrilled at this networking opportunity!

Ryan was all over this cake.  At first he was a little hesitant, but once he realized that you could eat it... wow, he went wild!

Ryan was absolutely adorable!  He really got into it, and Kristi and I were just laughing so hard watching him.  When your own two hands aren't enough, what's a boy to do?  Use his foot to hold the cake in place!  Limbs were flailing everywhere -- so sweet!

I loved capturing his amusement and wonder on camera.   :)

Just wait till you see what we did for Ryan's AFTER the cake smash portion of the session... check back tomorrow for more!  You're going to LOVE this!!

Happy 1st Birthday, Ryan!

This cake smash was so much fun.  I can't wait to schedule a few more!  There are so many creative options that we can do with this type of shoot -- what would YOU like to do for your child's first birthday cake smash?  The possibilities are truly endless.  Let's chat!