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Meet Christina Buck

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Christina Buck.

Christina, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I grew up in Glendale – born and raised – with a passion for animals and photography. My grandfather gifted me a film Canon camera when I was about nine, and I went everywhere with it! In high school, I took my first digital photography class and eventually was also gifted a new DSLR.

I was in love and spent an incredible amount of time photographing landscapes and pets. I was always a shy child and teenager, so being behind the camera and photographing non-human subjects just felt natural and calming. After high school, I pursued a career as a pet groomer and did not have much time for anything else, sadly including photography.

I quickly advanced in my career and within five years found myself as a Director for a local pet grooming company. I enjoyed my job but was not loving it.

In the beginning of 2018, I met a woman who was looking for headshots for her portfolio, and, even though I was always a hobbyist pet photographer, I agreed to help. It was the first time in MONTHS that I had felt excited for working. I felt even more excited when I saw how much she loved her photos and how appreciative she was. I knew quickly that I needed to get back into photography and that portrait work was what I needed to focus on.

I upgraded my DSLR (still Canon!) and started to take on more clients and models while still working my “day job.” I was a very busy mom, photographer, business director, and pet groomer. I was taking any and all types of photography jobs but was starting to fall in love with boudoir.

In August of 2018, my husband, young toddler, and I were in a car accident. I realized then that I needed to truly focus on what I loved, enjoyed, and what allowed me to be the mom I wanted to be. I decided to make the (not so) difficult decision to leave my job and jump head first into my photography business.

Now, I have a home-studio in Goodyear, and I regularly travel into Scottsdale and Tucson for photo shoots. I am a portrait and lifestyle photographer who specializes in boudoir and professional and personal branding. My mission is to ensure that everyone, especially my fellow moms and female entrepreneurs, feels confident and empowered to be the best mom, sister, daughter, colleague, and boss they can be.

I believe the more confident and beautiful you feel, the more light you shine on others, and nothing helps to boost that confidence like a gorgeous photograph!

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It honestly has not! Haha, In the beginning, I struggled to obtain clients and felt a lot of doubt. I had to take a step back and learn where my market was, who they were, and how to get to them.

My shyness has followed me into adulthood, so I also had a difficult time reaching out to hair and makeup artists to work with, but I, luckily, had experienced previously with networking for my “day job,” so I was able to push through those awkward feelings.

Truly though, I have had many nights crying to my husband. Leaving my job was a huge leap of faith – something I am not used to doing. I have always been a by-the-book, real-job-having kind of person, so to jump into something with much less structure scared the heck out of me.

And honestly, it still does at times. But I have an amazing support system, a beautiful set of clients, and a tribe of like-minded photographers and entrepreneurs who keep me grounded and help to get me out of my own head when needed.

It always helps to remind myself that I did not get into self-employment to be a millionaire, I did it to make me happy and to spend more time with my son. It has been a dream come true.

We’d love to hear more about your business.
Christina Buck Photography is a photography business specializing in boudoir and professional and personal branding. I love helping other people, especially moms and female entrepreneurs feel beautiful, confident and empowered. As a mother and business owner, I always do my best work when I am feeling 100% confident in myself, and that is what I want to give to others.

I recently photographed a woman who had been paralyzed for years and, as a result, lost nearly 200 pounds. She had to relearn to walk, talk, and eat. While she was excited for the photo shoot opportunity, this woman was nervous and not very confident walking into my studio. She received her hair styling and make-up application (both done by Tanya Miley), and we started her shoot. I showed her one photo from the back of the camera because she looked so GORGEOUS. She could not believe that woman was her.

The rest of the shoot, she was confident and working every pose as if she had been a model her entire life. At the end of the day, she gave me a big hug and cried. She was so thankful for how beautiful and drop-dead-gorgeous she felt, and could not stop commenting on how great of a day she was having. And THAT is why I do what I do. I feel so proud to give other women the confidence boost we all sometimes need.

On top of my empowering and confidence building work with women, I also volunteer my time with children. I was the photographer for a local children’s business fair at the beginning of the year, and I plan on attending Camp Courage, a camp for the Arizona Burn Foundation, as a photographer later this year. I also have plans for a couple pick-your-price sessions where the profits will be donated to local children’s advocacy programs in Arizona – details are pending and will be announced on social media!

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
My dog, Harley. She was my first best friend and the subject of many of my first photographs. She was a golden retriever mix, and definitely one of the best pups in the whole world!

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Image Credit:
Christina Buck Photography

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