Your Birthday Session Guide

Milestone Memories!

Lots of fun & perfect memories for this important and adorable milestone! Available year-round and can be adapted to any age.
We never shoot in rain, in the event of a rainy day we will move your session to a new date as soon as possible.

Outfit Recommendations

For Boys:
Spring/Summer - Dungarees, with either no top or a plain, neutral coloured vest or t-shirt underneath. A cardi or jumper. Bare feet.
Autumn/Winter - Layers; dress your little one for the weather in appropriate clothing, warmth is paramount!

For Girls:
Spring/Summer - Pretty lace or vintage style rompers and dresses with a nappy cover or tights to cover nappy. A pretty cardi. Bare feet.
Autumn/Winter - Layers; dress your little one for the weather in appropriate clothing, warmth is paramount!

As a general rule, the most appealing styles of clothing for sessions are vintage, timeless items in neutral or earthy toned colours.

I have some of my own outfits that you are welcome to use - Girls Outfits & Dresses and Boys Outfits & Accessories.

As for all sessions, I recommend avoiding very bright, clashing or neon colours, and character clothing. I also recommend avoiding socks without shoes as this looks quite unfinished. Even if your baby is not yet walking or wearing shoes, a simple, stylish pair of baby shoes will be ideal to cover little one's socks in the cooler months.

Please removed phones, keys and all other items from your pockets, as these will show in the photographs.

In the warmer months, you are welcome to bring an outfit change to add more variety to your session, but please bear in mind that changing will eat in to our session time.

Warmth is paramount for babies & children in the cooler seasons. On cold / frosty winter days it is imperative that your children have on lots of layers, a coat, gloves and a hat if necessary. These can be removed during the session if the children are comfortable to do so. Painfully cold little hands are distressing for young children and will effectively put an end to the session - please bring gloves.

View Full Dressing & Styling Guide

Preparation:

If we will be using balloons or bubbles during your session, it is a good idea to get your little one used to these at home first. Some 1 year olds, who have never been around balloons and bubbles before, can be absolutely terrified of them - which isn't a good way to start a session! If you find your little one doesn't like balloons or bubbles at home, this will most likely be the same on session day. There are other things we can use instead if this is the case, such as bunting, a wooden '1' etc.

Things to bring:

♥ 2 favourite outfits
♥ A cake, if you would like to include one
♥ Any special teddies, toys, or any other meaningful items
♥ Spare clean clothes for the journey home
♥ Drinks and snacks for your little one
♥ Bug repellent in the warmer months, if you use it
♥ Baby wipes

During the first half of the session we will take some regular non-birthday themed family & child portraits.

The second half of the session will be birthday themed - if you decide to have a cake smash, these images will be taken last, as your little one will get messy!

Expectations

With toddlers being toddlers, please don't feel awkward or worried that any crying or tantrums is disruption our session, it is perfectly normal and we will take the time to rest with your little one, and feed and comfort him or her as needed.

A Note About Toddlers with Dummies

If your toddler is unhappy without a dummy, this can make for a very difficult situation on session day. I can't Photoshop dummies out of mouths, and I have no magic way of taking the dummy away without causing upset to your child. If you don't want images with a dummy (or images with a little one who is constantly upset about not having a dummy), I strongly recommend weaning your little one off in time for your session.

Session Time

Sessions always take place in the few hours approaching sunset or following sunrise, when the light is soft and there are no harsh shadows, the sun is low in the sky which makes the surroundings look rich, golden and vibrant. The time of your session will therefore depend on the time of year.

Sessions are generally around 1.5 hours, although there are no strict limits and you will not be charged any additional fee for longer sessions.

Cakes

If you would like to include a cake, please bring your own - you can make it yourself or see some talented local cake suppliers below. I can provide a cake stand, or you can use your own if you prefer (for safety reasons please do not use glass stands).

Colours & Props

We will decide on the perfect colour scheme to your taste, and to suit the surrounding colours of the countryside.

Bear in mind that on very windy days, balloons won't be suitable as they'll be blowing around all over the place getting all tangled up.

If you have any favourite props that you would like me to use, just let me know and I'll bring them along - you can see a full list of props here.

Helium Balloons

Fees apply for use of helium balloons, to cover the cost of the helium, the time it takes to inflate and set up sets, and additional time taken to edit certain shots such at the hot air balloon set up. See Pricing & Packages for helium fees.

Location

The ideal location will depend on the time of year. This is often decided nearer your session time, so that I'm able to check out different areas of the countryside nearer the time and see what's happening. Different locations vary year-to-year and it can be impossible to know exactly what will be growing or how a location will look in advance.

After your Session

Your private proof gallery will be sent out to you within a week of your session. This gallery contains around 35 images as unedited proofs, with a selection of edited examples, so that you can see how your images look when finished.

There will be a link to the Client Shop included in your proof gallery, where you can upgrade your package or purchase additional prints, products, giftware & other items. The Client Shop is password protected for clients only - just use your proof gallery password.

The gallery will remain open for 1 week for you to choose your package-inclusive images/products, upgrade your package, or order additional items separately.

Each of your chosen images is lovingly hand-edited; first processed from its Raw file, before skin touch-up, colour cast removal, natural teeth whitening, detail enhancement, natural eye enhancement, shadow & highlight correction, removal of any background or foreground distractions, sunset sky editing (if the sky is visible in images) and beautiful, natural colour enhancements.

There is also the option to purchase special editing add-ons, such as falling leaves, faeries & magic, winter wonderland snow editing, friendly creatures, & classic black & white.

Hand editing is the only way to get the very best results for your portraits. I don't batch-edit or cut corners, so it is a time-consuming process; I advise clients to allow a month to receive their orders, although this will often be sooner.

I will let you know when your order is ready, and you can choose to either collect in person or sent via post.