How I Design a Custom Cake Smash from Scratch…Every Single Time

There’s a reason my cake smashes are so popular. Unlike other studios that provide just a handful of setup options to choose from, I give you ALL the options. Literally! Every single one of my cake smashes is designed and created from the ground up, based on your vision for your photoshoot.

When I get a cake smash inquiry, I first work with you to figure out what kind of theme you want. This can be very general (maybe you just have an idea of the colors you want to use and the general vibe) or it might be very specific (maybe you want it based on a particular movie or you already have an idea of what you’d like the outfit and backdrop to look like).

One cake to rule them all. This little Lady Arwen loved her Lord of the Rings cake smash!

Once we’ve settled on a theme, I’ll start getting to work! I’ll design the backdrop and have it made to order, buy any balloons or props we might need, and shop for the perfect outfit for your little one. The only thing you have to take care of is the cake. (This is due to allergy concerns. The safety of your baby always comes first. If you need a bakery recommendation, just ask!)

Once everything has arrived, I’ll set up the studio and get everything looking just right. I get so excited when I see everything in place—and I know you’ll feel the same way! It’s so fun to see the expressions on people’s faces when they walk in and see the cake smash they envisioned right there in real life!

Strawberries are the one food that might be even better than cake. So, why not have both?

Remember, designing a custom cake smash from scratch takes time. If you’re interested in this extra special birthday experience, remember to get in touch several months before your little one’s first birthday. I can’t wait to start designing!

ONE-der WOman Cake Smash | New Jersey/New York 1st Birthday Photographer

Man, this year is flying by! I figured I would sneak in one more cake smash session before 2023 gets away from me altogether!

ONE-der Woman Cake Smash

This cute little Wonder Woman fan (or should I say ONE-der girl?) came to my New Jersey photography studio recently for her first birthday and we had so much fun together! I knew we would, because I’ve gotten to know this family pretty well over the last few years (I did this little girl’s newborn session and also her older brother’s newborn and cake smash sessions) and we always have a blast!

Custom Sets for Your Cake Smash

I had so much fun creating this set. Creating a custom set is one of my favorite things to do as a NJ/NY baby photographer. It’s so rewarding to see it come together and know that I’m bringing my client’s vision to life. And I love the creative process as I gather materials and combine them in a way that’s totally unique and perfect for that little one! (This is probably the biggest reason I recommend booking your baby’s cake smash session several months in advance. That way we’ll have plenty of time to plan your session and get all the details just right.)

First Birthday Party

Of course, the culmination of my effort is always when the birthday kiddo comes to my photo studio and we get to party! This little one did such an awesome job (what else would you expect from a superhero in training?) and I love the color and energy of these photos. Such a fun choice on mom and dad’s part!

Your Baby’s NJ/NY Cake Smash

Do you have a unique vision for your baby’s first birthday cake smash? Get in touch and let’s talk about it! I would be thrilled to help you plan this extra special celebration for an extra special someone!

How to Get Ready for a Cake Smash Session | New York & New Jersey Photographer

If you know my style as a New York/New Jersey photographer, you know that I like to have fun! Which means that I LOVE doing cake smashes! I want it to be fun for you and your baby too, so here’s how to get ready for a cake smash session:

Book Early!

First and foremost, you’ll want to book your session well before baby’s first birthday. Like, as soon as they turn 6 months old! I create all my cake setups from scratch, which takes 6-8 weeks, and I also like to photograph baby a few weeks before they turn one, so we want to make sure we have plenty of time.

Do a Trial Run

Practice makes perfect—and that goes for cake smashes too! Most kiddos are used to being given small pieces of things to eat, and sitting in a highchair for meals. Being presented with an entire cake and being expected to eat on the floor can feel super unfamiliar and overwhelming!

To set the birthday boy or girl up for success, I recommend giving your little one a taste of what to expect a few days before you show up at the studio. For easy cleanup, buy a cheap plastic tablecloth, lay it on the floor for your baby to sit on, and then give them something fun, sweet, and messy to eat! (A tub of cool whip, pudding or yogurt, a cupcake or mini cake are all good options.) Then, let your kiddo go to town!

I’ve found that helping them get ready for a cake smash session with a trial run at home makes them more comfortable doing it at my New Jersey studio with lights and a camera!

Bring a Few Things from Home

I have lots of props, but if you have anything special you want to include, please feel free to bring it.

If you’re doing a splash after the smash, you’ll also want to bring a bath towel. And of course, outfits!

It’s also super important to bring a few solid foods that your child really likes to eat. Some kiddos won’t eat the cake, but we can totally fake it with their favorite small snacks and nobody will know the difference!

Be Prepared for Anything!

Those are the basics of how to get ready for a cake smash session beforehand. Once you show up at the studio, the best advice I can give is to be prepared for anything! As long as you are relaxed and ready to have fun that will go a long way to helping your baby do the same as we celebrate this big milestone in their lives!

Have more questions about how to get ready for a cake smash session? I’ll send you my complete guide after you book, and you’re always welcome to reach out anytime!

What to Expect at Your Cake Smash Photoshoot

Cake smash photoshoots can be a little unpredictable because…babies are a little unpredictable! I love working with these little ones and know how to get great pictures regardless of whether they’re all about digging in or want nothing to do with their cake. No matter which category your kiddo falls into, here’s a bit about what to expect at your cake smash photoshoot.

Before You Come In

Read over the cake smash prep guide! I’ll send this to you after you book your photoshoot so you know exactly what to do to get your little cutie ready for their big day. The guide will detail what to bring (like favorite snacks and toys) and also how to prepare your kiddo. (I recommend doing a practice cake smash at home just to get them used to the idea of tackling a ridiculously large portion of food while sitting on the ground!)

When You Arrive

When you get to the studio, we’ll take things slow. One-year-olds can be a little tricky since they’re often wary around strangers and new surroundings. Instead of diving right in, we’ll just sit and chat for a bit so they can see it’s all okay. I’ll go over what the session will look like and everyone’s role. Be prepared to take an active part in your kiddo’s cake smash! If baby is mobile, then Mom might be corralling the little one. If they’re not happy, we might do the entire smash with Dad sitting two feet away making silly faces. It’s a little more work on your part, but totally worth it!

During the Cake Smash

I usually get some milestone portraits first. This helps baby warm up to the camera and also allows us to get some super cute shots before things get messy!

Once we break out the cake, like I said, be prepared to get involved…and possibly smeared with whipped cream. You just never know! The most important part here is that you, as the parent, are relaxed. Your baby will probably take their cue from you. Don’t worry, even if we have tears and tantrums (it happens) I will make it look like they had a blast!

If you’ve included a splash session with your cake smash, we’ll wrap up with some tub time!

After the Party

I don’t waste any time, because I know you can’t wait to see those cake smash photos! Right after your cake smash session I’ll send you your gallery proof and you can select your images. (You’re going to have a hard time choosing, I can tell you already!)

Book Your Cake Smash Photoshoot

A cake smash photoshoot is the perfect way to celebrate your little one’s first big milestone: Turning ONE! Are you ready to party? ‘Cause I am!

Baseball Cake Smash New Jersey

Batter up! Can’t wait to show off a few of the photos from this baseball themed cake smash in my New Jersey studio a few weeks back! This cute lil guy is a former newborn client of mine, and I couldn’t believe how much he’s grown. (I never can. You’d think I’d be used to it by now!) It is seriously the best feeling when a client books me again for a future session. Little man was amazing for his newborn session and I’d say his first birthday cake smash was a homerun too!

I always like to start out these milestone sessions with some traditional portraits and family pictures. You’re here, so we might as well, right? Doing these portraits before we really start swinging can also help little ones to feel more relaxed and ready to dive into cake when it’s time.

Since there’s nothing more American than baseball (and maybe apple pie, but we went with the cutest baseball cake instead), I set up the studio with lots of red, white, and blue balloons, plus a scoreboard as the backdrop and some genuine baseballs to finish it off. Customizing every session takes some extra work, but it’s so much fun and I get carried away with it every time! Totally worth it, don’t you think?

The birthday boy really knocked his session out of the park! He did great with his cake and loved his splash in the tub afterwards. These cake smash pitchers (sorry, pictures!) were so fun to create and this little all-star and I really had a ball together!

New Jersey Cake Smash Photographer

Ready to book a customized cake smash for your own little one? Don’t wait! The best time to book is at least four months prior to their first birthday, so get in touch now and let’s start planning!

Cake Smash Photo Sessions with Jennifer Parrello Photography

When your baby is a newborn, you think there’s no way they can possibly get any cuter—and then they become toddlers, and guess what? They just keep getting more adorable! How do they do it? Your little one’s first birthday is a huge milestone and such a fun age! And there’s no better way to document it than with a cake smash photo session!

If your little bundle is growing up fast and approaching their first birthday, here’s what you should know about cake smash photo sessions with Jennifer Parrello Photography:

When to Book Your Session

The first thing you should know is that I take my cake smashes seriously! Every single one of my sessions is fully customized with a one-of-a-kind set and outfit to match. And yes, that does take time. I recommend booking your cake smash about 3-4 months in advance, so there’s plenty of time to plan and create the perfect photoshoot. And don’t worry about hitting the first birthday exactly—anytime around the 11-12 month mark is a great time for a first birthday cake smash.

How to Get Ready to Party!

Cake smashes don’t require too much prep work on your part, but I do recommend a little practice with baby about a week before your session. A great way to do this is just to put some whipped cream in front of them and let them explore it. Stage fright can be a thing with cake smashes, and it really helps everything to go smoothly if kiddo already knows how fun it is to shmear themselves with edible goodness! (And don’t worry, I’ve got all kinds of tricks up my sleeve to help little ones relax and have fun!)

What to Expect at Your Cake Smash Session

I like to get some milestone portraits of your little one before we break out the cake. This can help them relax and it’s also a great time to get family photos if that’s something you’re wanting to do. Once we’ve gotten those milestone pictures and more traditional portraits, we’ll move on to the cake smash. I often follow this up with a quick splash in the tub so we can get baby all cleaned up afterwards—and yep, we’ll get photos of that too!

If you ask me, cake smash photo sessions with Jennifer Parrello Photography are THE BEST way to celebrate your child’s first birthday. Cake, cuteness overload, and professional pictures so you can remember it forever. What could be better?

Pumpkin Cake Smash | New Jersey Baby Photographer

Happy first birthday to this sweet little pumpkin! I photographed her as a newborn and was so excited to have her back in my New Jersey photography studio for a pumpkin cake smash! Get ready to fall in love with these autumn-themed birthday pictures:

Cake Smash in the Pumpkin Patch…Under the Harvest Moon!

Since we’re getting so close to Halloween, Mom requested a nighttime pumpkin patch theme for our cake smash photoshoot. I instantly knew that the studio would look so cute decked out in straw bales, pumpkins, and fairy lights, and before long I realized there was a way to make it even more incredible: A harvest moon! Ended up looking so good in the middle of that starry night sky backdrop. Yeah, I had way too much fun designing this set for all the fall feels, haha!

The Cutest Pumpkin in the Patch

This birthday girl was little Miss Smiles—how can you resist a frosting-coated grin like that? Absolutely adorable—and she knew it! She loved every second of being in the spotlight. And yes, she absolutely LOVED her cake too! Eating it, smashing it, squishing it all over her face. Nom, nom, nom! Who needs to go trick-or-treating when you can have a whole cake to yourself? :)

So glad I could celebrate this little girl’s special milestone with a pumpkin cake smash. Combining pumpkins with this sugar-and-spice-and-everything-nice cutie couldn’t have been more perfect!

New Jersey Cake Smash Photographer

I’m already booking sessions for next year, so if your little one is approaching the big ONE, get in touch and let’s start planning some magic! All of my sessions are fully customized, so bring your ideas and we’ll  figure out the perfect theme for your baby’s cake smash photo session!

Hot Air Balloon Cake Smash in New Jersey

Phew! I am up to my ears in shooting and editing holiday mini sessions right now (my photography studio in Northern NJ was basically one big holiday pajama party last week!) but I’m taking time out to share some adorable cake smash photos with you!

Hot Air Balloon Cake Smash

As you may or may not know, cake smash photoshoots are some of my absolute faves! I love creating unique, one-of-a-kind setups for my clients, based on the theme they want for celebrating their little one’s first birthday. This mom wanted some kind of hot air balloon theme and these specific colors of blue and yellow. I took that and ran with it, and here’s what I came up with!

Color Schemes for Girls

I love doing out of the box, non-traditional colors for girls. While you can’t go wrong with beautiful pinks, a lot of parents want to do something a little different—and that’s great! Our color scheme for this hot air balloon cake smash was bright and sunny, perfect for sailing through the clouds!

Baby girl was amazing and gave me so many smiles! She brought along some animal friends (because what’s a hot air balloon without company?) and had a great time partying in the studio, eating cake, and splashing in the tub afterwards. She’s one year old and ready for adventure!

New Jersey Cake Smash Photographer

Nothing says happy birthday like a cake smash! Feel free to explore the blog for more information about when to book your session and how to prepare, plus lots of other cake smashes to inspire you! Book your session here, or get in touch with questions. I’m happy to guide you through the process and help you create an amazing custom cake smash for your baby!

Outer Space Cake Smash Photoshoot in New Jersey

Look out NASA, here he comes! What a blast to do an outer space cake smash photoshoot with this handsome little birthday boy! He was a former newborn client, so I was super excited to see him back in my New Jersey photo studio for his first birthday pictures.

I customize all my cake smash photoshoots, so when you book a session with me you can be assured it’s one of a kind. In this case, little man’s parents had requested an outer space theme. They wanted something unique, but not prop heavy. Not a problem! Instead of props, I created a little lunar landing pad in my studio. I love the way the moon at the bottom turned out, and all the asteroids, stars, and planets in the background (plus rocket ship, of course!) were so fun!

This little guy was such a chill and happy dude and was totally fine with just hanging out and getting photographed during the portrait part of our session. (Formal pictures with the cake smash are a must!) And when we moved on to cake, he was over the moon, if you’ll pardon the pun. ;) He dug right in and got frosting all over himself from his fingertips to his toes. Love that kind of enthusiasm!

Ended our outer space cake smash photoshoot with a SpLaSh, as always! Happy first birthday to this adorable little astronaut in training!

New Jersey Cake Smash Photographer

Looking for a New Jersey photographer to capture memories of your own little star? I specialize in photographing babies from their very first days as a newborn through their first year, and I’d love to design a custom session just for you! I’m already booking into 2023, so get in touch as soon as possible!

When to Book Your Cake Smash Photo Session

If you ask me, a cake smash photo session is THE BEST way to celebrate your kiddo’s first birthday. Cake, cuteness overload, and professional pictures so you can remember it forever. What could be better? Just like with newborn photos though, you’ll want to make sure you schedule your child’s cake smash ahead of time for the best experience possible.

When to Book Your Cake Smash

I recommend getting in touch with me at least 3-4 months before your little one’s big day. My schedule books up fast—especially for cake smashes, which are some of my most popular (and personal favorite) sessions! Getting on the schedule early guarantees you a spot on the calendar.

Why So Early?

Aside from making sure you get a prime spot on the calendar, there are a couple of other reasons why booking your cake smash photo session early is a good idea.

Time to Customize – Every kiddo is unique, and their cake smash should be one-of-a-kind! I create custom setups for each and every one of my cake smashes based on your requested theme and other preferences. That kind of attention to detail takes time, and I want to make sure everything is perfect for baby’s one-year photoshoot. It generally takes at least 6 weeks to plan a custom cake smash and get everything created and delivered to the studio.

Product Prep – Do you want photos of your kiddos cake smash to give as gifts to family around baby’s birthday? Or maybe you want to use these cake smash photos to create birthday party invites? Then you’ll also need to allow time after the session to edit the photos and use them in your chosen designs. But wait…wouldn’t that mean getting first birthday photos before baby turns a year old?

Yes, which leads to my last point:

Flexibility – One of the great things about cake smashes is that there’s some flexibility in when we do them. Anytime between 11 and 12 months is a perfect time to capture this first birthday milestone. You may want to get baby in a little earlier than their birthday so you can have all those photos and products ready for when the big day actually arrives.

I can’t wait to start planning for your session! Get on the schedule or reach out with questions and let’s get this party started!

Top One Cake Smash Photography Session

This little redhead was the cutest birthday boy, and his Top One cake smash photography session couldn’t have been more perfect! The Top Gun movie was coming out around the same time we had our cake smash planned for, so the stars aligned. Gotta love it when that happens.

I love customizing each and every one of my cake smashes so that it’s unique to each client, and this one was no different. We created an awesome setup for our little all-star, and he loved it! Check out that winning smile. Tom Cruise has got nothing on this guy!

We kept baby boy in the same outfit for portraits that we used for the cake smash, but with the addition of a bomber jacket that was just his size. Talk about cuteness overload! He was the happiest little guy and gave me tons of huge grins and giggles.

Although he enjoyed his portraits, the real fun started when we brought out the cake. This kid meant business and he went for it! You can see that we started with this beautiful three-layer creation—and in no time flat it was, well, flat! He was totally hilarious with his cake and thought smashing it and crawling through it was the best thing ever. At least, he did until bath time, at which point splashing in the tub became the best thing ever! He was just totally enthusiastic about everything and wasn’t shy about getting into it! His energy and enthusiasm mean that our Top One cake smash photography session was a blast from spectacular start to frosting-smeared finish.

Happy birthday, little man!

Interested in booking a cake smash photoshoot for your kiddo? Let’s talk! I’d love to help you plan an amazing themed birthday smash and can’t wait to transform my studio space to fit your vision!