Meet Our Guest Instagrammer: Karen Sofie Egebo in Copenhagen

We spotted journalist and Copenhagen native Karen Sofie Egebo on Instagram and liked her photos so much we named her one of our 24 Best Travelers on Instagram. Read on to learn how a nomadic life inspires her and head over to Instagram for a #FathomTakeover from Copenhagen.

Tell us a little about yourself.

I'm a 28-year-old journalist from Copenhagen. Although this is where I was born and where I currently live, I've spent most of my life away from this place. I was three weeks old when I moved to Paris with my parents. We went back and forth and moved around in Denmark, too. Later, I lived in Montreal, Aarhus, and Berlin — my most ardent love affair. Somewhere in a box, I've written down all the places I've lived. My recent move, just the other day, is my 26th. Although the nomad life has been hard at times, it’s brought some very lovely things with it, too. I partied my way through Berlin and braved the insane cold in the Montreal winter. I know my way around Paris and Copenhagen like an old lover I keep going back to. During my roaming around, I've kept on writing. I can't live without words and I love hearing good stories. I think that's why being a journalist suits me so well. I can do it wherever I want and always encounter interesting people along the way.

Describe your photography style.

My photography is sort of a condensed, aesthetic view through my eyes. I have something for buildings, windows especially, and I very much get to know a city through the architecture and the way people have settled in. Therefore, my Instagram feed is a lot of portraits of buildings and daily life. I love simple things — I am Scandinavian, after all — and I love lines. I happen to live in one of the most beautiful places in the world, where old architecture meets new, and I find that super charming. I loved Berlin's ugly beauty as well, and the Montreal staircases, but Copenhagen is something else.

My photography is a reflection of who I am. I want to limit the space between myself and those that follow along, so I avoid things like sponsorships, which can cloud relationships. I'm happy to have a wide enough audience on Instagram that I get to know people from all over the world, which is so valuable to me.

What do you love most about photographing on the road?

I take a lot of photos when I travel. It's how I see the places I go. Not through a camera, but I look and look and photograph things and places that convey to me where I am. That's how I get to know a city or a place. It's by framing it and angling it. Much like you would with a piece of journalism. I don't think it limits my view of the place or takes me out of experiencing it. Actually I find it's the complete opposite. I often notice things nobody else does because I look around, frame things, and keep it on my phone or on my camera. While editing my photos, I see even more things. So I feel I really know a place once I've been there with my camera.