Let Them Eat Cake

The wedding cake is often the zenith of our pastry experience. Birthday cakes come and go, but it's not often in our lives that we lavish so much attention and thought into one confection. Whether a cake is modern and elegant, Rococo or fuly of whimsy, a great wedding cake will leave a lasting impression on your wedding day.

In fairness, I might be biased (sometimes I like to think of myself as a professional cake-eater who takes pictures, rather than a wedding photographer). Still, the wedding cake stands tall amidst our wedding traditions in New England even as others wax and wane with fashions. A wedding cake also looks amazing nestled amidst a wedding a album, a tower and edible work of art amidst the thousand other details that make up a wedding.

So how do you get the most out of your wedding cake? The first step is finding the right baker (get samples and take notes), making a gorgeous wedding cake is almost an art unto itself and it takes skill and attention to detail to pull off properly. You'll also want to taste around.

Once you know what kind of cake you like there are a few other questions you'll want to answer:

1. How much cake do you need?

2. What style of cake fits with your wedding?

3. What is your cake budget?

These are the most important factors when selecting your cake (apart from the particular combination of frosting and cake). If you're trying to serve a lot of people on a limited budget, bakers we've spoken with recommend supplementing a beautifully-decorated (but modestly-sized) cake with a larger sheet cake for the guests. The decorated cake will serve as a showpiece in your wedding album and during the cake cutting, and the sheet cake will keep the guests happy without breaking your budget (which you'll need for hiring your friendly neighborhood Massachusetts Wedding Photographer).

For the more cake conscious, you can also consider adding a groom's cake. This smaller cake is often decorated to match the groom's interests (or his dietary restrictions) though it's not right for every event. Cupcakes have also become popular with brides, they're cute and a little bit fun.

What about presentation? You bought a gorgeous cake, so should you just put it in the back corner on a folding table? Consider adding drama and flair to your cake presentation with floral arrangements and lighting accents (though a great cake can often stand on its own). Bring the accents and motifs of your cake onto it's table.

Your last decision doesn't come at the bakery, it comes at the cake cutting. Will you behave, or will you smash some cake into your partners face? There's some shock value and laughs in the latter, but resist this urge. It's a waste of perfectly good cake and it's bound to get cake right back in your own face.

A note on storing the top tier of your wedding cake for your first anniversary. Freezer burn will ruin your cake experience, so wrap your cake as tightly as possible in plastic and then put it into a thick freezer bag (if you can). Store it toward the back of the freezer where it can cool evenly and not be so subject to warm air rushing in every time you open the door. Still, when you bring it out for your first anniversary any amount of champagne will help wash it down.

A million small details go into your wedding and Ryan Richardson Photography is here to help you get teh most out of your wedding day, with wedding photography that you'll treasure for the rest of your life.