Atlanta Baby Photographer | Ella is ONE!

I first worked with Cindy for her maternity session, and then again for her daughter’s newborn session! You can view Cindy’s studio maternity images by clicking here, and her newborn images by clicking here. Cindy brought Ella in for our 2017 Santa event, and I loved seeing how big she had gotten! We were thrilled to hear from her when she called to schedule her daughter’s First Birthday session! 

Cindy LOVES our studio wardrobe because she never has to worry about getting ready or finding something to wear. She’s shown up at every session confident that she’ll find something she loves - and she does. She tried on a couple of dresses and chose a gorgeous off the shoulder chiffon floral dress. She had brought a simple pastel pink dress for Ella to wear for the cake portion of her session, but needed something for the parent/solo portraits. I pulled out a few options for her to look through, and this sweet little lace romper was the winner. The chambray bow is also part of the studio wardrobe as we have a few on hand for when moms forget or decide last minute they want to add one! If you’re not interested in the studio wardrobe and prefer to wear your own clothing, that’s totally fine! The wardrobe is simply an option to booked clients should they wish to utilize it. We’ll send you a helpful style guide when you book that will walk you through best practices for dressing everyone participating in the session. 

On the day of their session, Cindy arrived with Ella and her sister! Her sister had not planned to be in the photographs and wasn’t dressed to be. When Cindy expressed her desire to have a couple of aunt and niece images taken, her sister was worried about her outfit. I told her it wasn’t an issue and pulled off a few pieces from our wardrobe for her to try on and choose from. She picked a simple gauze textured dot dress that was the same style as the shirt she had worn to the studio to begin with, and it worked perfectly with what Cindy and Ella were wearing! 

We started off with Ella and her mom together. As Ella warmed up to me, we moved into the solo portraits of her. Ella is a more serious baby, and her personality is perfectly reflected in her images. Ella also showed off her newly acquired walking skills too! Not every one year old is walking yet, but we’ll capture them exactly as they are at the age of 1 even if they’re still crawling and not quite upright yet! 

Cindy changed Ella into her second outfit for the cake portion. Cakes are not required for First Birthday sessions, and about 20% of our First Birthday clients opt to skip including a cake in the session. I think they’re adorable and a lot of fun. If your baby didn’t react well to cake at their party, don’t let that faze you! Cakes in the studio are often much more well received because they’re not tired and overwhelmed with a bunch of loud strangers watching them. It’s a very low key experience with zero pressure or stress. So many of our parents are shocked at how much more their baby enjoyed and interacted with their cake in the studio as opposed to their official party! 

We started off with Ella in the high chair, and managed to take a few images before Ella let us know she was NOT going to sit in it anymore. Cakes don’t have to be done in the high chair (although it’s much easier for parents in terms of cleanup and corralling their baby!) so we just moved her to the floor where she was happy and content. It was adorable watching Ella explore her cake and taste the icing. There were a few moments where she was unsure (girlfriend did NOT like the feeling of icing all over her hands) but she worked through it. I just love photos of babies with their birthday cake icing all over their face… it’s so cute! 

Enjoy a few of my favorite images from Ella’s session! 

If you're expecting a baby or already a parent and looking for a newborn, maternity, or family photographer, I would love to work with you to create images that you will love for a lifetime. Watch this video to hear about my philosophy and see how I work in the studio so you can determine if I'm the right fit for you. I can't wait to meet you!


Lily Sophia Photography specializes in newborn, baby, maternity, and family photography in Atlanta, Georgia and surrounding areas.