Life & Work with Sierra Baldwin of Nashville/Middle Tennessee

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sierra Baldwin

Hi Sierra, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Sierra Devin Photo started in the midst of Covid. I was a College Freshmen who just moved back home for “two weeks”. As we kept staying home, I proceeded to pick up a camera I was gifted in high school and learn how to use it properly! I had always been interested in photography and always was the one taking all the photos but it wasn’t until 202 when I finally sat down to learn the craft. I spent that summer taking photos of anything I could and assisting any wedding photographers in my area that would have me.

I fell in love with the art, I fell in love with connecting with clients, and I fell in love with being creative! Over the next couple of years my photography business grew, I graduated college, and began my full-time photography career. I have photographed over 80+ weddings, countless families, seniors, newborns, etc. With each session, wedding, and event, my love for this job only grows stronger! I feel so grateful to call this my job!

Recently, SDP has made the move from North Georgia to Nashville, Tennessee. This was a move about a year in the making! It was time to see a new city post-grad and I couldn’t be more thankful for this decision. This move wouldn’t have been able to happen with out the support from my clients, family, friends, fellow photographers in the community, and of course my sweet boyfriend! We are so happy to be in this new, fun city and are excited for each opportunity it has!

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Working in the wedding industry there are always ups and downs. I have over all had a very smooth road, luckily. Overall, the hardest thing in this industry is finding a balance of work and life. I have hard some hard lessons with burnout and over booking myself. In this industry, you want to say yes to every opportunity and serve each client. However, there are only so many days in the year, and hours in the day!

I remember my first “busy season” the spring of 2021. I had said yes to EVERYTHING, I was shooting twice a day, everyday. I made sure I was fitting in everyone who needed me. This drained me. I was missing family dinners, not sleeping enough, etc! And I quickly found out that this is not sustainable. This was one of the biggest shifts in my career. I raised my prices, created a set scheduale for when I would shoot, and truly found a balance that allowed me to still love this job!

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a wedding and lifestyle photographer. I enjoy meeting people and capturing their happiest moments. I consider my style of shooting to be very candid and raw and I consider my editing to be clean, colorful, and warm! I love to create a story behind each session and wedding. This entails me asking the clients what they enjoy doing together to truly capture them with each session. I want to draw out how they actually feel towards each other with each moment captured so when you look back at these memories you can feel exactly what they were feeling!

I think my ability to connect with others truly sets me apart. Being able to make people comfortable in front of a camera is hard, and you can most certainly tell when they are not. I have spent the last few years truly caring for each client who comes through my inbox. From the first inquiry, I want to get to know you so I can make you feel comfortable in every scenario.

If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
A quality I value most about myself is how driven I am. If I set a goal in my mind, I will reach it, and I will work hard for it. I dreamt of shooting weddings, and I worked hard in educating myself and getting the correct gear so I could do that. I dreamt of hosting shoot and mentoring other photographers and now I get to watch my mentees blossom. I dreamt of moving to Nashville, and now we are here and I am creating a new client base. This all comes from hard work and being able to see the goal!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.sierradevinphoto.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sierradevinphoto/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sierradevinphotography