Last year, just before Mother’s Day, my family and I were in Pets at home, passing time whilst my son was at football training. We were looking at the animals, when my husband called me over to where the hamsters were.
“Look at this one! You’ll love it!” He said.
And then this little black face poked out of the hole in the little house.
Oh he was just adorable! I instantly fell in love with him.
We had not long lost our daughter’s much loved hamster, Elsa, to old age. So we had a spare cage and accessories at home. In a spur of the moment decision, my husband and children decided to buy him, and that he would be my Mother’s Day present.
Much debate followed as to what his name should be. Littlest panda wanted to call him Kiwi, as we had been told that this was his favourite food. The other children had their own suggestions. But his colouring, and the fact that 2 out of our last 3 hamsters had been named after other animals, led me to the name Mole.
Mother’s Day arrived again, a little earlier this year, and with it came Mole’s 1st birthday. Ok, I’m using a little poetic licence there, I don’t actually know when he was born. But as he was a few weeks old when we got him, I’m assuming it was around that time!
I got him out of his cage for a cuddle, and wished him happy birthday. I joked that I should have made him a cake. And somehow, with the help of my children, this evolved into the idea of a cake smash shoot for him!
So there I was, soaking his pellet food in water and slicing up fruit to make him a “cake”. Not how I envisaged spending my Mother’s Day, but I went with it.
We tried to get him to wear a little party hat, but he wasn’t impressed with that haha.
So we took it off and let him do his thing. To start with, he wasn’t really bothered by the cake. We had to add a little bit of cheese to it to attract his attention (in true, stereotypical rodent fashion, he has a weakness for cheese). After that he discovered that he quite liked his cake!
Although bizarrely, he left his kiwi! He was obviously full up on cheese and soggy hamster pellets.
So after the cake smash is done, and the mess is cleared up (and hamster returned to his cage), the next step is the editing!
I didn’t do much to these to be honest, it’s not like you need to clear up runny noses or baby acne with a hamster. Although he did have an annoying piece of glitter from his party hat on his ear in most of the photos!
But I couldn’t resist making him a collage, just like I do for baby cake smashes.
If the children have their way, this will be printed and displayed on our family gallery wall haha.
I love a quirky shoot, and trying out new ideas. So if you have an idea that’s a little bit different and you need a photographer to help make those dreams reality, then please do get in touch. You can use the contact form that is displayed on most pages of my website, or message me via my Facebook page to discuss your requirements. Please do check out my Pet photography section on my website too, for information on pricing etc.