Hey, Mama, if you’re looking for first birthday photo ideas, you’ve come to the right place! How about a cake smash photo session?
I Maybe you’ve had a maternity photo session, and maybe you’ve also had a newborn photo session with your little baby. But maybe now your child is getting older and approaching his or her first birthday. Why not keep making memories, especially for something as monumental as your child’s very first birthday?
This first birthday is an epic event, so it needs to be commemorated in an epic way. A great way to do this will be with a photo of the baby doing something that he or she might not have a chance to do again: smash a cake to smithereens!
Whether you’ve had a previous photo session with us or not, we’d love to show you how baby cake smash photography can present all kinds of adorable possibilities to capture the perfect shot.
Possibilities for Pre-Smash Sessions
Marking your baby’s first milestones is important because he or she will never be this age again. Especially if you already have older children, you know that they all grow up so fast! Your little bundle of joy is quickly passing from infanthood to toddlerhood, so of course, you’ll want to capture his or her growth with something memorable. Years from now, you’ll want him or her to see how adorable he or she was at that age, so let us help you make that memory extra special!
Before the actual cake smash photo session, we like to offer you some milestone-marking photo sessions. First of all, you can have a special family session in which we’ll take gorgeous photos with your baby and the entire family: Mom, Dad, brothers, sisters, Grandma, Grandpa—maybe even aunts, uncles, or cousins—everyone! We can have this photo session either at our studio in Hickory Creek, Texas or in a gorgeous outdoor setting.
Second of all, we can have a six- or seven-month photoshoot with your adorable little angel taking a bath (without cake). This is an adorable shot that will document that important milestone of your baby sitting up and bathing in something that people don’t normally bathe in—like flower petals, citrus slices, strawberries, other fruits, or even milk—for an artistic effect. (Who knew that you could get so creative with first birthday photo ideas?)
But, of course, the cake smash photo session is going to give you the most memorable shot of this time in your child’s life!
The ideas for cake smash themes are endless, but in this article, we will shine a special spotlight on baby cake smash photography ideas for a Star Wars birthday. If Star Wars isn’t you or your baby’s thing, please let us know, and we can help you pick something that fits your family’s style so much better! If you think your child will make the perfect Star Wars baby, read on!
A Long Time Ago in a Galaxy Far, Far Away...
If you’re a Star Wars fan, and your baby is approaching his or her first birthday, how about trying Star Wars as your baby’s cake smash theme? With nine movies and other media to choose from, a Star Wars birthday offers so many opportunities for cake smash adorableness!
How do you picture your child as a Star Wars baby? Is he a young Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Lando Calrissian, or Obi-Wan Kenobi? Is she a baby Princess Leia, Padmé Amidala, Maz, or Rey? Or do you see your child as more of a playful Chewbacca, Ewok, C-3PO, or R2-D2? Perhaps your baby is more of a podracing, droid-building Anakin Skywalker or—of course—Baby Yoda.
No matter which costume you’d like for your child to dress up in, or which kind of cake you’d like to see your baby destroy, a Star Wars birthday is an excellent cake smash theme that can get everyone’s creative juices flowing!
And think about all of the possibilities for background props: lightsabers, Stormtrooper helmets, plush dolls, action figure dolls, spaceships, vehicles, planets—so many possibilities for a Star Wars baby! Now let’s tell you about one Star Wars birthday session that was featured in an online magazine.
Star Wars Baby in the Spotlight
I (Stephany) was extremely honored when the editor from POPSUGAR magazine reached out asking to publish Ezra’s Star Wars themed birthday session. I photographed this little one’s Mama for her maternity session, and I also photographed Ezra in his first week of birth for his newborn session. (It’s incredible how fast time flies!)
POPSUGAR magazine shared Ezra’s first birthday session gallery, and I shared a little bit of how it was all created. Read the full article below or click here for the article as it was originally featured in POPSUGAR magazine!
POPSUGAR Article
Luke Skywalker has nothing on 1-year-old Ezra, who was dressed as a mini Jedi for his first birthday cake smash. The smash featured a blue R2-D2 cake—which obviously got everywhere—and the photo shoot is out-of-this-galaxy cute.
“I photographed this little one’s parents for their maternity session, and I was so happy when mom reached out to schedule Ezra’s first birthday session!” Stephany of Stephany Ficut Photography told POPSUGAR. “I am always up for a good challenge, and I was extremely excited when mom told me the theme they chose for the cake smash [was] Star Wars.
I spent quite some time organizing the ideas and planning the décor because I wanted it to be extra special. On the day of the session, mom takes out of her bag the cutest outfit for Ezra—this cream and brown cloak that she sewed herself! The cake from Candy Haven & Cakes matched the theme perfectly... Ezra went straight for it, and he gave us the best smiles and the cutest little faces. May the force be with you, sweet boy!”
Read through to see Ezra's delight as he indulges in his delicious-looking Star Wars droid cake— and LOL as he gets progressively more blue as time goes on.
Read the full article here on Popsugar magazine.
Other Fan Ideas
We hope you enjoyed reading about little Ezra’s cake-smashing photoshoot, but remember: If you don’t really see your child as a Star Wars baby, that’s okay! We can help you pick the cake smash theme that’s right for you and your family.
Is your family into Narnia or The Hobbit? Are you Trekkies? Or maybe sci-fi and fantasy just aren’t your things at all. That’s okay, too! Maybe your family is into sports or other hobbies, or maybe you all like to watch TV together. Does your family love Public Television shows like Teletubbies, Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood, or Sesame Street?
Or are you fans of Nickelodeon shows such as Blue’s Clues, Dora the Explorer, or SpongeBob Squarepants? Maybe you all like to watch Disney movies together like Frozen, Dumbo, The Little Mermaid, Pinocchio, or Lilo & Stitch. Maybe you’re huge fans of Finding Nemo, Monsters, Inc., or the Toy Story movies.
Or maybe your family is really into the adventures of Gru and his minions. The list of possibilities is almost endless, and our fine art photography team can help bring your ideas to life!
The Practical Details
No matter what cake smash theme you choose, there are some important details that we’d like you to know about.
1. The cake itself
During your cake smash photo session, we will provide everything for you except for the cake. The reason why we ask you to bring your own cake is to ensure that we won’t accidentally feed your child something that he or she can’t tolerate or is allergic to. Your baby won’t hold anything back while he or she is tearing into that cake, so make sure it’s completely safe for him or her!
We’ll take care of everything else: the diapers, the baby wipes, the hand sanitizer, all of the props and decorations that will bring your cake smash theme to life—whatever you need, we’ve got it. If you need to bring anything else that’s specific to your photo session, we’ll let you know ahead of time. But we’ll take care of the rest—except for the cake! Just bring your baby and your cake, and you’ll be all set!
2. The cleanup bath
Your baby will get pretty messy during the session, of course, so a great way to take care of the cleanup will be to photograph your little angel taking a bath. A photo of your beloved child bathing in strawberries, fruit slices, milk, or flower petals will be adorable!
Make your baby cake smash photography a package deal. Your child will only have his or her first birthday once, right? Combining a cake smash photo session with some quick bath shots is a fantastic way to commemorate your baby’s first birthday!
3. The finished product
About two weeks after your baby’s epic cake smash photo session, you can come back to our studio in Hickory Creek, Texas, to pick the photos that you like the best. Seeing all of our first birthday photo ideas come to life will be such a magical experience for you! Working with moms like you is such a rewarding experience for us. We can only imagine how much fun it is for you to see your child celebrate his or her Star Wars birthday (or whichever cake smash theme birthday that you chose)!
Helping you create photographable memories with your little baby as he or she is growing up is our specialty. You’ll be very happy with what our fine art photography team will put together for your child’s cake smash photo session!
Let the Cake Smashing Begin!
Again, we hope you enjoyed learning about little Ezra and his galactic adventures as a Star Wars baby, and we hope that we’ll be able to work with you to create a baby cake smash photography experience that your entire family will be able to remember for the rest of their lives!
Now that we’ve hopefully gotten your creative juices flowing, contact us here to book your design consultation for your child’s unique first birthday photo session. Still, need help collecting ideas? No problem! Follow us on social media for more first birthday photo ideas. Our Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest pages can give you a great place to start for some first birthday photo ideas. Remember, the sky’s the limit!
And may the Force be with you!