Photographing Cupcakes

It’s been so long since I’ve written anything that I had to have a quick tutorial from my son so I could even log in! I promised myself that I wasn’t going to mention the term (home schooling) and, as I’ve put it in brackets, it doesn’t actually count! The truth is that the technology priority at home hasn’t been mine. I’m not alone there I know. Anyhow, it’s now half term holidays and I’ve managed to log in!

We’ve just had Valentine’s day and the week leading up to it was a mad flurry of activity. Not least because after a chat with the lovely Sally of Sally Parkinson Photography, who I bake for (under normal circumstances) for her Cake Smash sessions and I miss loads – we just seem to brainstorm really well together (and have a giggle), Sally suggested that I do some baking and she would photograph the cakes.

In usual times, I would have been able to be at the photo shoot and we would build the images together, throwing in ideas and trying different things out. I probably would have baked a lot less cake and just swapped the toppers and boxes, etc around. I couldn’t be there because of the pandemic so, armed with copious amount of cake, all filled, butter-creamed and individually decorated and various bits of ribbon and frill, I deposited my goodies on Sally’s doorstep for her to fend off her partner Martyn, from ingesting the lot, to be photographed the next day!

So lucky to see the process. Sally works her magic!

I wish I had been able to be there. Purely because it would have been great fun! My family and I managed to squeeze in a family shoot with Sally, between lockdowns, even our dog was in on the shoot. It was so much fun. Sally has a cube set up in her studio that we all took turns to mess around in – sometimes together and sometimes on our own. Our little JRT was jumping around, shedding his hair all over the place. The images were brilliant. I’m so pleased that we managed to get a session with Sally before the lockdown came back. I’ve never seen my family in the traditional portrait configuration (not that they aren’t lovely, it’s just not how we are) but the Cube shoot was perfect! Take a look at the CUBE experience and see for yourself!

I provided Sally with a mix of flavours and styles, some had centres of strawberry conserve, lemon curd and Biscoff (basically our favourite fillings). All individually decorated. Some grouped in clusters of 4 or 6, some whimsical, some overtly romantic and some that could easily be given to friends, work colleagues or somebody that needed a lift of spirits!

I wanted to created a palate of toppers that could easily be mixed and matched, swapped around to give the perfect sentiment to your gift and at the same time, demonstrate some of my skill set. I particularly love the use of block colour and simple forms and I think that Sally complimented my work superbly, with her use of black and raspberry backgrounds.

If you would like more information on what is possible in the world of cupcakes or photography, please do contact me or Sally. Life will return to normal and both Sally and I will be there to feed your inspiration and capture the moment!