Juno Kim is a travel writer, photographer and culinary traveler. She left her cubic farm to follow her true love: the world. She is a firm believer in serendipity, astronomy enthusiast and adherent to living by passion and love in life. Currently on a quest to find the place where she can call “home,” she writes at Runaway Junoand photograph for Mastering the Art of Travel Photography.
Juno from the Travel Blog Runaway Juno
Can you tell us a little bit about yourself Juno.
I’m a Korean travel blogger who travels the world. I used to be one of those people who worked in the cubic farm but I decided to design my own life while traveling the world, finding the darkest night sky. As a social media expert, I’d love to spread the word about the power of social networking to the travel industry. I publish my work on my multi-media travel blog RunawayJuno.com and photography website MasterTravelPhoto.com.
You recently made the switch from cubicle life, to a career travel blogger. What was the hardest and scariest part of this?
The uncertainty. Even if you strongly believe what you do with your life, it’s always a scary thing not to know what’s really going to happen. I’m writing my own story, and I’m responsible for all the success and the failure. No one to blame, and no one to give the credit to. It’s the most amazing decision I’ve ever made in my 20 something life, but also the scariest thing.
What do you think is the most important thing you’ve learnt about yourself while travelling?
Knowing myself: the strengths and the weaknesses. It’s hard to truly get to know yourself when you are stuck in the routine and surrounded by people you have to impress all the time. Everyone expected you to be perfect, doing well, and fine. Even to know what you really like or hate, can be questionable. Traveling was a very critical moment of my early 20s, because I truly got to know myself for the first time: what I’m good at, what I really like or don’t, what I can or can’t do. It was fresh point of a view without overestimating/ underestimating my abilities.
Juno out in the desert
You are also interested in photography while travelling (just like me), is there a place in the world that you love photographing more than anything?
I started my photography with a star-trail photos (long exposure photography of the night sky) when I was in highschool. I’ve been working with my cameras ever since, but night sky is my favourite thing to photograph among all the fascinating subjects. Recently I had a chance to catch the Northern Lights in Iceland, and that was my ultimate dream-come-true moment. I would love to go back with more proper gear one day.
Juno and the giant flower
I always ask this question of my photographer friends, and I always find it tricky, but do you have a favourite photograph from your travels?
It is a tricky question. Photography is important to me because it captures the stories. I say it’s a good photograph when the stories come alive in the one still shot. For that reason, there’s always a favourite because of the emotional attachment not mainly because of the technical reasons. If I have to choose, I’d say the Northern Lights photos with my shadow. Technically it’s not the best photography but it includes the most precious memory.
Juno overlooking the mountains
You recently bought out an e-book showing some more of your favourite photos, can you tell us more about this book, and what inspired you to make it.
It is called “25 Favorite Photos from Around the World”. As you can see, it includes 25 photos in different subjects such as landscape, culture, objects and food. I decided to make it when I first opened my photography website Mastering the Art of Travel Photography. I wanted to remind people that anyone could be a photographer. The word photographer is such a heavy word but it is not limited to only certain people. You can be the one. I had a lot of fun put the photo book together and planning to do more in the future. I’m handing out to my newsletter subscribers. Get your free copy today!
Thank you Juno for taking the time to answer a bunch of questions for me. You can follow Juno’s travels over at her travel blog Runaway Juno, see her photography work at Mastering the Art of Travel Photography or follow her journey through Twitter or Facebook.
{ 0 comments… add one now }