Hi friends!! Welcome to my first blog post! Ahh I am so excited to be writing this right now, and even more excited knowing that YOU are finally reading it! I am Christina Baird, owner and lead photographer of Christina Marie Photography. I’m a wedding and portrait photographer, fur-mom to two crazy cute cats, eat Chick-fil-A WAYY too many times a week, and am a sucker for a good nap. I have been wanting to start blogging for awhile now, and FINALLY am making the time to do it!

The purpose of this blog is to document my amazing couples and clients, and provide a space for all things WEDDINGS!! As a past bride myself, I COMPLETELY understand how overwhelming and stressing wedding planning can be, but I’m here to tell you it doesn’t have to be that way!! I am here to provide inspiration from past weddings, give you ALL the wedding planning tips + tricks, and help you plan the Best. Day. Possible!! Because chances are you’ve never planned a wedding before, so probably don’t know where to start. (And that’s completely OKAY!) But before we dive deep into the rabbit hole that is wedding world, I’d like you to get to know a little bit about what makes me, ME, and how I came into the wonderful world of wedding photography!!

So let me introduce myself…

I’m Christina, a 28 year-old Midwest girl, now living in a Southern world (and loving every minute of it!!) I was born + raised in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and spent the first 26 years of my life living in the Midwest. If you don’t know much about Green Bay or Wisconsin in general, just know the people have an intense love for beer, cheese, and the Green Bay Packers. I am a die-hard Packer fan (see below) and try to attend at least one game a year! When you meet me I’m sure you’ll be able to tell I’m from the midwest, as I’ve been told I have a “Wiscaaansin” accent! (although when I return home, my Wisconsin family/friends tell me I’m starting to sound southern!)

Before I found my love for photography, my passion for serving others led me to the field of nursing! After 4 years of nursing school I graduated with my BSN and passed my nursing board to become an RN. Since then, I have worked as a pediatric nurse for 5 years and counting! I currently work in pediatric oncology, meaning I take care of kids with cancer. It can be a very tough job but is often rewarding. I am glad my flexible schedule (and amazing coworkers) allows me to run my photography business while still being a nurse. It’s such a great creative outlet for me!

I guess I’m getting a head of myself here, because before I became a nurse OR photographer, I met my husband, Aaron! We met my freshman year of college, at the hospital where we both worked! What started off as a simple friendship quickly led to something more. We started dating my sophomore year of college, and after about 4 years of dating, he proposed! We got married in Green Bay, WI on November 2, 2019 and had our reception at a brewery! If I’m your photographer, there’s a 99% chance you meet Aaron as well. He is often my right hand man on wedding days and for your sessions and is a great hype man!! He is my best friend and biggest supporter, and I couldn’t imagine going through this life (or running this business) without him.  

How I went from midwest nurse to charleston wedding photographer

After reading all this information, you might be thinking…

“How does a Midwest nurse end up in Charleston as a Wedding Photographer?”

And that is a VALID question. I wasn’t one of those people who “always knew they wanted to be a photographer.” In fact, if five years ago you told me I would be living in Charleston, SC and photographing weddings across the country, I probably would have laughed in your face… Because five years ago, I was a new grad nurse and had never even picked up a camera, let alone thought I’d be living on the coast, running my own business and being a part of countless wedding days.

How it began…

I became interested in photography after my own wedding in 2019; I really enjoyed our experience with our photographer – she made taking photos seem so effortless and fun! I absolutely LOVED the moments she was able to capture for us. And being the people serving person I am, I loved the idea of being able to photograph those special moments for someone else. And not going to lie, after our wedding was over I had a LOT of extra time on my hands. (You don’t realize how much time wedding planning takes up until you’re done!) So to fill the void, I bought a camera, watched a LOT of youtube videos and started photographing some of my coworkers’ families for fun. One session led to another, and before I knew it I was running a full-fledge photography business in addition to working as a nurse.

The funny part in all of this was I NEVER planned on being a wedding photographer. When I initially got into photography, I wanted to focus on families and high school seniors. And that’s what I did my first year…until I helped a friend shoot a wedding…I came home that night after the wedding with the BIGGEST smile on my face. Photographing a wedding was more than I ever thought it would be. It was exhilarating!! Knowing that I was able to serve this couple on one of the biggest and happiest days of their lives was SO special to me. I told Aaron I wanted to switch gears and be a wedding photographer to which he laughed and said something along the lines of “I was waiting for this to happen.” (he truly does know me best!)

At about this same time, Aaron and I were looking to make some life changes. We had both lived in the Midwest our whole lives and wanted a change of scenery. (I had enough of the cold midwest winters!) Since I am a nurse and Aaron also works in healthcare, we knew we could move just about anywhere. A few of our friends had relocated to Charleston and raved about living there. So after a quick google search, I not only found out Charleston is the dream location for a wedding photographers, but I also found an opening for a pediatric oncology nurse at the children’s hospital, applied, and was offered a job.

So we packed up our townhome, made the LONNNNG 1100+ mile drive across the country and settled in here in Charleston. I had NO idea what it would be like moving my photography business to a new state, all while pivoting my main focus from families and seniors to couples and weddings!! Thankfully the transition could not have been better. I quickly connected with some AMAZING wedding photographers here in Charleston (who are now some amazing friends), started second shooting weddings with them and built up my Charleston wedding portfolio.

How it’s going…

While we have only been here in Charleston for a little over a year, I have been a part of over 20 wedding days, along with countless engagements, proposals, and some family portrait sessions!! To say I am so grateful for these opportunities is an understatement. I am SO DANG EXCITED to continue growing my business with some of the BEST clients around. My 2023/2024 wedding books are open and quickly filling up, so if you or someone you know are looking for a fun wedding photographer that feels like an old friend, please send me a message on my contact page!!

If you want to see more of my work, visit my wedding gallery page HERE or continue to scroll through the Blog!

Also need to S/O the amazing photographers who took me under their wing when I first moved. Ya’ll are the BEST and I am so thankful for your friendships!! Check out their work here: Kate Dye Photography, Gladyxa Mari Photography, Karen Schanely Photography, Corrin Jasinski Photography, Taylor Marie Photography