FIRST BIRTHDAY PORTRAITS

Cake Smash Photography in Crawley & Sussex

Fun & Relaxed Cake Smash Photography in Sussex

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🎂 Bespoke Cake Smash Sets

🤝 15+ Years Experience

⭐ 125+ Verified 5★ Google Reviews

🏆 Award-winning studio

🎂 Bespoke Cake Smash Sets

🤝 15+ Years Experience

⭐ 125+ Verified 5★ Google Reviews

🏆 Award-winning studio

AT A GLANCE

KEY POINTS

01/
Where is the studio?

Our photography studio is in Copthorne, on the Sussex/Surrey border between Crawley & East Grinstead — conveniently located for families across Sussex & Surrey.

02/
When should we book?

You choose your preferred date when booking online. We recommend booking in advance, particularly if you’d like your cake smash session to take place close to your baby’s first birthday.

03/
What’s included?

Your session includes the studio shoot, cake-smash setup, props, professional editing, viewing session and digital images. To avoid allergy issues, we ask you to provide your cake of choice.

04/
Can we choose the theme?

Absolutely. We have a range of backdrops, colours and props to create a fun first-birthday setup — you can select your favourite(s) as soon as you’re booked in.

05/
What if my baby doesn’t smash the cake?

Don’t worry! Some babies dive straight in, while others prefer to investigate, play or simply look suspiciously at the cake. We never force it — we’ll follow their lead and capture plenty of gorgeous portraits either way.

06/
What happens during the session?

Controlled madness! Depending on the package you choose, we’ll work through one or more fun setups before letting the cake-smashing fun begin — always taking things at your baby’s pace.

07/
Packages from £250

Our cake smash packages start from £250, with digital images included. Choose the package that suits you, with options to purchase additional images if you’d like more from your session.

08/
More than just the cake smash


We start with beautiful portraits of your baby before the cake comes out, so you get a variety of first-birthday photographs — not just messy cake shots.

A baby wearing a cream dress holds a yellow balloon in one hand and a pink balloon in the other, surrounded by a sea of colorful balloons—perfect for capturing magical cake smash portraits in Sussex.

CAKE SMASH PORTRAITS FOR BABY’S 1ST BIRTHDAY

Your baby’s first birthday deserves more than a few snapshots on your phone. Our cake smash sessions are all about capturing their personality, expressions and excitement as they discover their very first birthday cake.

From the anticipation before the cake arrives to the inevitable messy finale, we create fun, colourful portraits you’ll love looking back on for years to come.

Based at our studio in Copthorne, West Sussex, we’re just a short drive from Crawley and conveniently located for families across Sussex and Surrey.

A Few Recent Cake Smash Portraits

A small selection of recent Cake Smash photography sessions, showing the fun we have during these milestone portrait sessions.

  • A baby in a white dress with One written on it laughs joyfully during a cake smash photography session, sitting in front of a pink and white cake, surrounded by colorful balloons and party decorations.
  • 1st birthday cake smash portraits
  • A toddler in a pink dress and headband thoughtfully explores frosting on a cake, capturing the essence of Cake Smash Portraits in Sussex.
  • Cake-Smash-Session-Horley-5
  • A toddler in a pink dress covers her face, embodying the whimsical spirit of cake smash photography. Nearby, a partially eaten cake and stuffed teddy bear rest on a charming cake stand.
  • A toddler sitting on the floor smiles during a delightful cake smash photography session. The scene is beautifully decorated with balloons, toys, and pastel-colored decorations, capturing the joyous moment perfectly.
  • A baby in traditional attire sits on the floor, surrounded by colorful balloons and a cake, ready for a cake smash photography session. The background features a charming ONE sign, marking the joyous occasion of a first birthday celebration.
  • Cake-Smash-Session-Horley-4
  • Sussex-Cake-Smash
  • Cake Smash Photographer Crawley 0123-LT (4)
  • Crawley Cake Smash Photography 0123-RV
  • One year old cake smash portraits 0123-LT (5)

HOW IT WORKS

From booking to beautiful first-birthday portraits

01.

Choose your date & book online

Choose your preferred date and package using our online booking form. Once booked, we’ll send you everything you need to prepare for your session, including the available cake-smash setups.

02.

Enjoy your cake smash session

We’ll guide you through the session, working at your baby’s pace and capturing a mixture of portraits and cake-smashing fun across the setup(s) included with your chosen package.

03.

We select & edit your images

After your session, we’ll carefully select the best photographs and professionally edit and retouch every image before preparing your finished gallery.

04.

View, Select, Enjoy!

Return for a relaxed viewing session and enjoy a beautiful animated slideshow of your images set to music. Then choose your favourite photographs to keep.
Prefer not to return? You can upgrade to receive every image plus the slideshow without coming back to the studio.

Transparent pricing with no hidden extras

Cake Smash Packages

Choose the package that suits you, with digital images included in every package. Each option gives you a fun, professionally photographed cake smash experience, with more images and setups available in our higher packages.

Loved every moment?

The “I Want It All” Option.

Upgrade any collection to your full gallery (+£150), including all images and a cinematic slideshow — no need to return to the studio.

Why Choose Baby Shoots?

Your baby’s first birthday is a big milestone — and choosing the right photographer matters. At Baby Shoots, we’ve spent more than 15 years photographing little ones and creating relaxed, fun sessions where beautiful images happen naturally.

A toddler in a blue cap and shirt with suspenders is sitting thoughtfully in front of a cake adorned with strawberries, perfectly capturing the charm of cake smash photography.
A toddler in a beige outfit sits on the floor, delighting in a cake smash photography session. The child beams at the blue and white cake, surrounded by balloons, a teddy bear, and a gold ornament.

15+ years of experience

We’ve been photographing babies and families for more than 15 years, so we know how to get great photographs – even when things don’t go exactly to plan!

A studio designed for babies

Our warm, comfortable studio in Copthorne gives us a controlled environment where your little one can relax, explore and make as much mess as they like!

We follow your baby’s lead

There’s no pressure for your baby to perform. We work at their pace, allowing time for cuddles, breaks and plenty of personality.

Beautifully finished photographs

We don’t simply hand over the files from the camera. We carefully select, edit and professionally retouch your finished images so they’re ready to enjoy.

125+ verified 5★ Google reviews

Parents have trusted Baby Shoots to photograph their families for years. Our reviews reflect the experience we aim to give every client.

No hard sell

You’ll have time to enjoy your photographs and choose what you’d like to keep. There’s no pressure to buy more than you’ve already planned.

“They were so patient, gentle, and professional, making us feel completely at ease”

Olivia T.

Frequently Asked Questions

What type of cake is best for a cake smash photoshoot?

We recommend a simple, baby-friendly cake that’s easy for little hands to explore and smash. Choose something your child will enjoy, with ingredients you’re happy for them to have. You provide the cake, so you have complete control over the size, flavour and ingredients — and don’t worry about making it perfect; it’s going to get messy!

How do we choose our backdrop?

Once you’ve booked, we’ll send you a short session questionnaire showing all the cake smash backdrops currently available. Simply choose your favourites, and we’ll have everything ready for your session.

What should my child wear for their cake smash?

Bring a favourite outfit from home if there’s something special you’d like your child to wear. Avoid large logos or lettering if possible, we want your child’s expressions and personality to remain the focus. We also have a small selection of cute outfits available if you’d like some inspiration.

Can we bring our own decorations or props?

Absolutely. If there’s something personal you’d like to include — such as a favourite toy, birthday decoration or special outfit — just let us know. We’ll always do our best to incorporate it into the session.

What if my baby doesn’t want to smash the cake?

Not a problem! Not every baby dives straight into their cake — some are cautious, some prefer to play with it, and some aren’t impressed at all! Some babies just have lots of fun playing with balloons – and that’s fine too. We never force it. We’ll follow their lead and concentrate on capturing beautiful portraits and their genuine expressions.

Can we (parents) be in a few pictures with our baby?

Yes! With our Signature package, we can include a small selection of photographs with parents or a sibling using a simple third setup, if you’d like. For all packages, parents are usually involved behind the scenes too — helping keep little ones in position, encouraging smiles, and generally keeping the session moving!

Can we (parents) be in a few pictures with our baby?

Yes! With our Signature package, we can include a small selection of photographs with parents or a sibling using a simple third setup, if you’d like. For all packages, parents are usually involved behind the scenes too — helping keep little ones in position, encouraging smiles, and generally keeping the session moving!

What happens after our cake smash session?

We’ll carefully select and professionally edit the best images from your session, then invite you back for a relaxed viewing session. Choose your included images or upgrade to receive every finished image for £150. If you already know you’ll want the complete gallery, you can also pre-purchase it without returning to the studio.

Got more questions? Let’s chat!

How to PREPARe FOR YOUR Cake Smash SESSION

A few simple tips for a happy, messy cake smash

Make or buy a scrummy cake!

Choose a cake your little one will enjoy exploring (and tasting), that will match your backdrop of choice. Make it as messy, or simple as you like.

Bring a change of clothes

Cake smash sessions can get gloriously messy! Bring a spare outfit for the journey home, particularly if you’re travelling a little way.

Don’t worry about the mess

That’s all part of the fun! We’ll take care of the photography, and clear up the mess afterwards.

Crawley Cake smash portraits Sussex

Keep your little one fed & rested

Where possible, try to arrange your session around your baby’s usual nap and meal times. A well-rested, fed baby is generally much happier to explore something new.

Bring anything special you’d like to include

A favourite toy, birthday decoration or special outfit can add a lovely personal touch. Just let us know what you’d like to bring.

Most importantly, don’t put pressure on them

Some babies dive straight into the cake. Others take their time, poke it cautiously or decide they’d rather look at us! There’s no right way to do a cake smash — we’ll follow their lead and capture the fun as it happens.

Top rated
Baby Shoots Photography5.0
Based on 144 reviews
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olivia L.
2 years ago
Rob and Karen are absolutely fantastic! The photos are not only professionally brilliant, but Karen and Rob were so amazing with my little one, making him smile and laugh and ultimately capturing his personality perfectly! Would highly recommend
Nyarai M.
6 months ago
Wow!!! What amazing brilliant work you did Karen and Rob!! We can’t get over the beautiful images you captured of our little girl’s 1st birthday!! All our family members back home in Africa can’t believe how incredible the images look, we are all very happy with your work and surely will be coming back for more shoots. Munashe & Nyarai.
Penelope S.
7 years ago
Amazing service from Karen and Rob - I took my time searching around on the net before I booked baby shoots for our newborn pictures. I was really impressed with their standard of photos and loved all the props they used. Our shoot took around 4 hours when our baby was only a week old. Karen was so gentle and caring when handling our little girl, her safety and well-being was the main priority, and that put us new parents at ease! Time was taken between outfit changes, nothing was rushed and the studio was lovely and warm and our baby slept right through. Karen and rob make a fantastic team and the photos we received at the end are amazing, we will cherish them forever! There was no pressure from a sales perspective to purchase any products and I highly recommend booking with baby shoots, we will definitely be back for the 1 year cake smash! Thanks again Karen & Rob!
Leah O.
5 years ago
Honestly such an amazing experience! I have never wrote a review before but this deserves one. Our little one wasn’t the easiest to photograph (sorry) but the pictures came out perfect that I sobbed! Worth the money as the time and effort and professionalism that went into everything to make sure we was happy. See you again when he’s 1! Thank you!
omobolanle F.
8 months ago
Rob and Karen are fantastic people and they sure know what they are doing. They photographed my first baby and now my second, we had an amazing time with the new born shoot and the pictures were so beautiful that we had to buy everything in the gallery after our viewing session. We shall be back soon. Thank you.
Lauren G.
4 years ago
I have used baby shoots photography for our new born baby shoot and our cake smash session. Rob and Karen are lovely, they make you feel welcome and are extremely patient even if you have a crazy toddler running around trashing the place. I highly reccomend them not just for their superb customer service but the photos they produce are stunning and flawless.
Jen B.
2 years ago
I have been meaning to write this review for a while, but I never had a spare moment! I found Baby Shoots Photography online after a thorough search for baby photographers. This business stood out to me purely because of their reviews as well as having the most professional and gorgeous photos on their instagram account (which you should totally follow!). I was a little anxious at first as I had a previous photographer for all my baby/family photoshoots who we were so loyal too, but unfortunately for us, she undertook a new venture! However, the anxiety quickly disappeared when Karen and Rob took time to listen to what I wanted and reassured me that they would do their absolute best to meet my needs with such patience and kindness. Karen and Rob did such a wonderful job for us (back in February this year). Karen was so good at setting the scene with variety of warm colours whilst Rob took some beautiful, heart-warming photos. I truly had tears of joy with the outcome, and I am very much looking forward to working with them again, particularly when our bubba turns one! I hope to see them both again soon.
Manoo
2 months ago
We have used Karen and Robs skills 3 times now and the fact that we have done so shows how highly we think of them! Being able to calm newborn babies and get purely shot photos is really an art they have mastered. Also having 1st birthday cake smash was also great fun with them. Really pleasant people, communicate well and most importantly high quality work. Would highly recommend them
A toddler in a blue shirt, face adorned with birthday cake remnants, is joyfully reaching out amidst the pastel hues and balloons—a perfect moment captured in cake smash photography.

“What can I say – absolutely amazing from start to finish…

5 stars isn’t enough for BabyShoots”

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