Midday photos can be tricky. The sun pouring down overhead makes for some very unflattering shadows and harsh light. To mitigate this, try finding some shade and shooting there. While in that shade that is a perfect time to pull out your flash to fill in some shadows. Alternatively, you can get a reflector and reflect some light onto your subject. In this case, we did all three. First, we found some shade, then I set up a strobe for the key lighting and, finally, that white sheet is acting as a reflector.
After that we set up a few more props – a basket, a vase, and some fake flowers, and then we let the baby be a baby. She first explored the immediate setup and then had fun tearing things apart. Keep that in mind; babies enjoy exploring and destruction so keep your props safe with that in mind. But this setup can work for pretty much anyone and if the shady area is thin enough you can use that harsh light as a back light to help bring your subjects out.
