By the Babbez team · Celebrations & photos · Times checked October 2026
Our top first birthday photoshoot ideas at home are a window portrait, a cardboard number one, family hands, peekaboo and the cake smash, in window light or low sun. In our run of NOAA's calculator code, New York City's sunset on November 15, 2026, is 4:38 p.m. (observed times may vary), so our outdoor start is 3:38 p.m.
Key takeaways
- Shots: our 12-shot list needs only a window, the floor, the yard and the cake. No studio, no photographer.
- Light: the Sixty-Minute Rule, our rule of thumb: outside, shoot in the hour after sunrise or the hour before sunset. The tables below give sunrise and sunset for four US cities, month by month, computed with NOAA's Solar Calculator code.
- Time: about an hour in total by our estimate, in four short sessions, with the cake last.
What are the best first birthday photoshoot ideas at home?
A first birthday shoot isn't a studio job: light and timing matter more than props. Our 12-shot list uses the Three-Spot Method: every shot happens at one of three spots you already have (the window wall, the floor sheet or outside), so you set up three times, not twelve.
- Window portrait (window wall): Sit them on a blanket side-on to the window; get down to their eye level.
- The big number one (window wall): A big number one cut from a cardboard box, leaning on the wall beside them.
- Tiny details (window wall): Close-ups of hands, feet and eyelashes in the window light.
- The paper crown (window wall): A crown cut from cardstock or a paper bag, in your party colors.
- Then and now (floor sheet): Their newborn photo, or the outfit they came home in, laid beside them.
- Peekaboo (floor sheet): A parent holds up the backdrop sheet, then lowers it; shoot the reveal.
- Family hands (floor sheet): Every family member's hand around theirs, shot from above.
- Whole family on the self-timer (floor sheet): Phone on a shelf or a stack of books, self-timer on, so you are in it too.
- Coming to you (floor sheet): Call them from across the room and shoot low as they crawl, cruise or walk to you, whatever they do right now.
- Low sun outside (outside): On a blanket in the hour after sunrise or before sunset (the Sixty-Minute Rule), sun to the side or behind them.
- Cake: the clean before (floor sheet): Cake on a plate on the floor sheet, a clean face, before the first touch.
- Cake: the smash and the mess (floor sheet): Keep shooting through the smash, then the mess and the cake face.
Pick the backdrop color from your party palette (our first birthday themes have palettes to borrow). If you took a photo every month, set the very first one beside them for the then-and-now shot; our monthly baby photo ideas planner ends right where this shoot starts.
How do you set up a first birthday photoshoot at home?
Set up the three spots once and reuse them:
- The window wall. Our set-up: a plain wall, or a sheet taped or clipped up beside your brightest window (at least 5 ft (about 1.5 m) wide, so it fills the frame behind a seated child). Sit your child about 3 ft (about 0.9 m) from the glass, side-on to it, never with the window behind them.
- The floor sheet. Our set-up: a plain flat sheet on the floor, at least 4 by 4 ft (about 1.2 by 1.2 m), with the window wall or a second sheet behind. The cake goes here too.
- Outside. Our set-up: a blanket on grass or a porch step in the low-sun hour from the light tables below, with the sun to the side of your child or behind them.
Our one prop worth making is the big number one: cut it from a cardboard box, about 18 inches (about 46 cm) tall, so it still reads in a small phone photo.
Our tip for the family shot: stand the phone on a shelf or a stack of books about 6 ft (about 1.8 m) away and use its self-timer.
For family hands, hold the phone about 2 ft (about 0.6 m) above them; for the coming-to-you shot, hold it about 1 ft (about 30 cm) off the floor, which is our height for a child-level view.
Everything else comes from home:
- A plain flat sheet (two if you can)
- Painter's tape or clips
- A cardboard box (for the number one)
- Cardstock or a paper bag (for the crown)
- A blanket for outside
- A stack of books or a shelf (for the self-timer)
- The newborn photo or coming-home outfit
What time of day is best for first birthday photos?
Indoors, any hour works at a bright window. Outside, we use our own rule of thumb, the Sixty-Minute Rule: shoot in the 60 minutes after sunrise or the 60 minutes before sunset, when the sun is low in the sky and its light comes from the side.
The honest answer depends on the month. On December 15, 2026, sunset falls between 4:20 p.m. (Chicago) and 4:45 p.m. (Los Angeles), so our evening start is no later than 3:45 p.m. in all four cities.
On June 15, 2027, sunset is between 8:06 p.m. (Los Angeles) and 8:30 p.m. (Denver), so in all four cities our evening start is after 7 p.m. and our morning hour ends before 6:45 a.m. If both clash with naps or bedtime, use the window wall instead.
| Date | New York City | Chicago |
|---|---|---|
| November 15, 2026 | 6:43 / 4:38 | 6:40 / 4:30 |
| December 15, 2026 | 7:13 / 4:30 | 7:11 / 4:20 |
| January 15, 2027 | 7:18 / 4:53 | 7:16 / 4:45 |
| February 15, 2027 | 6:50 / 5:31 | 6:46 / 5:24 |
| March 15, 2027 | 7:08 / 7:03 | 7:03 / 6:57 |
| April 15, 2027 | 6:18 / 7:35 | 6:11 / 7:31 |
| May 15, 2027 | 5:39 / 8:06 | 5:31 / 8:04 |
| June 15, 2027 | 5:24 / 8:29 | 5:15 / 8:27 |
| July 15, 2027 | 5:38 / 8:26 | 5:29 / 8:24 |
| August 15, 2027 | 6:06 / 7:54 | 5:59 / 7:51 |
| September 15, 2027 | 6:37 / 7:05 | 6:31 / 7:00 |
| October 15, 2027 | 7:07 / 6:16 | 7:03 / 6:09 |
| Date | Denver | Los Angeles |
|---|---|---|
| November 15, 2026 | 6:45 / 4:44 | 6:26 / 4:49 |
| December 15, 2026 | 7:14 / 4:36 | 6:51 / 4:45 |
| January 15, 2027 | 7:19 / 5:00 | 6:58 / 5:07 |
| February 15, 2027 | 6:53 / 5:36 | 6:38 / 5:37 |
| March 15, 2027 | 7:12 / 7:07 | 7:03 / 7:01 |
| April 15, 2027 | 6:23 / 7:38 | 6:22 / 7:24 |
| May 15, 2027 | 5:45 / 8:08 | 5:51 / 7:48 |
| June 15, 2027 | 5:31 / 8:30 | 5:41 / 8:06 |
| July 15, 2027 | 5:44 / 8:27 | 5:53 / 8:05 |
| August 15, 2027 | 6:12 / 7:56 | 6:14 / 7:40 |
| September 15, 2027 | 6:41 / 7:09 | 6:36 / 7:00 |
| October 15, 2027 | 7:10 / 6:21 | 6:58 / 6:19 |
Source: computed by Babbez with NOAA's own code for NOAA's city points. Observed times may vary.
How to read it: the times are for NOAA's point in each of these four cities only, not for nearby places, so for your own place use NOAA's calculator (steps below).
In each cell, in local clock time, the first time is sunrise and the second is sunset; our morning window runs from sunrise to an hour later, and our evening window from an hour before sunset to sunset.
How do you find your own sunset time?
- Open the NOAA Solar Calculator.
- Drag the large red pin with the dot to your location, and enter the date.
- Check the time zone: NOAA says its calculator tries to set the correct time zone for the place and date, but because time zones and daylight saving time dates sometimes change, the value may not be accurate for future dates.
- Read the Apparent Sunrise and Apparent Sunset boxes (apparent, because the air bends sunlight, so sunset comes shortly after the sun crosses below the horizon), then apply our Sixty-Minute Rule.
According to NOAA's calculation details, its sunrise and sunset results are theoretically accurate to within a minute for places between 72° north and 72° south, but observed values may vary from calculations; the calculator is for research and recreational use only, and its results may vary significantly from what you see outside.
NOAA also says the calculator is no longer actively supported or maintained, and it cannot guarantee its accuracy. We compared all 96 times in the table with a second, independent sunrise formula (our check): none differed by more than a minute.
How do you do a cake smash photoshoot at home?
The cake smash is the exception: every other shot can happen in any order, but the cake goes last, on the floor sheet, because it ends in a mess. Our order is the clean before, then the smash, then the mess and the cake face. One adult takes photos while the other helps with the cake.
Our clean-up kit:
- A plain floor sheet, with a second old sheet or an old towel under it if you want to protect the floor
- The cake on a plate
- Wipes or a warm damp washcloth
- An old towel
- The spare outfit
- A bag for the sheet afterwards
This page covers the photos, not the recipe: what goes into the cake is up to you or your baker.
What should a one-year-old wear for birthday photos?
- Two outfits: one for the portraits and one you don't mind getting cake on (or just a diaper cover).
- Solid colors or small prints, because big logos and text pull the eye in a small phone photo.
- A color that stands out from the backdrop: on a white sheet, a mid or deep tone.
- Check the fit a few days before the shoot: our guide to what size a one-year-old wears helps.
On the party day itself, grab the cake and group photos early; our first birthday party plan explains why. More first-year ideas are in our first-year guides.
How long does a first birthday photoshoot take?
About an hour in total by our estimate, split into four short sessions, so nobody has to hold it together for long. Plan each one around your child's usual naps and meals:
- Window wall (window portrait, big number one, tiny details and paper crown): about 16 minutes by our estimate.
- Floor sheet (then and now, peekaboo, family hands, whole family and coming to you): about 21 minutes by our estimate.
- Outside (the low-sun shot): about 10 minutes by our estimate.
- Cake (the clean before, the smash and the mess): about 13 minutes by our estimate.
First birthday photo questions
Do you need a photographer for first birthday photos?
No. A phone, a bright window and a plan cover a home shoot; book a photographer if you want a styled studio set.
Can you do a first birthday photoshoot with just a phone?
Yes. Our shot list is built for a phone. For phone settings, angles and editing, see our guide to baby photos at home with just a phone.
When should you take first birthday photos?
Any day in the weeks around the birthday. Shooting a week or two before gives you prints for the party, and the cake smash can wait for the day itself.
Sources: sunrise and sunset times from the NOAA Solar Calculator and its calculation details page; data provided by NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory, Boulder, Colorado, USA (gml.noaa.gov). The times are our run of NOAA's own calculator code for its New York City, Chicago, Denver and Los Angeles points, not official NOAA figures. Unit conversions: NIST Guide to the SI, Appendix B.8 (1 inch = 2.54 cm, exact; 1 foot = 0.3048 m, exact). All read October 2026. Use of NOAA and NIST material does not imply endorsement of Babbez or its products by NOAA, NIST or the U.S. Government. The shot list, set-ups, session minutes and the Sixty-Minute Rule are ours. Medical disclaimer · Editorial standards.