We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Stella Cho a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Stella , thanks for joining us today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

My services go beyond photography—they’re cinematic in spirit but grounded in your truth.

One needs to build a brand in a noisy world by staying authentic. The mission of the founder and the brand must be aligned from the inside out. Being your true self will set you apart from the mass. The audience is drawn towards people and their imperfection, articulated only to strengthen trust and core human values.

I studied hard, worked my way through school, and paid close attention—to people, to pain points, to the beauty in the unnoticed. I continuously study every day, observing the pain points of the community and familiarizing myself with the needs of the community to offer value where it is needed. The growth of my own personal brand is a journey and testament to my life-long mission to create and elevate value of the individual story of resilience.
My name, Stella Ahyeon (아리따울 아, 전할 연), means “to spread beauty” in Korean—and that’s what I’ve set out to do: help others see and share the beauty of their potential.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Stella Ahyeon (means to spread beauty in Korean) and it carries the mission I embody in my brand, Stella Lumina. I want to illuminate the story and beauty of founders in the Austin community. My own path to founding my own company is after series of harship being an immigrant minority founder who had to break multiple barriers coming from another culture and into a creative path I had to build with resilience and self-belief.
Stella Lumina is more than a photographer. She’s a creative strategist here to support the personal branding journey of the founder with values rooted in authenticity, access to education and arts, and empathy in minority/women-owned businesses.
I work with dreaming founders to clarify their identity, translate their mission into stunning visuals, and craft a one-of-a-kind brand story that resonate on a soul-deep level.
I come from a humble background and want to pave the way for dreamers coming from all walks of life. I believe in the power of self-help and continuous improvement, that all children should have access to education and be able to pursue a path of their choice with the right resolve and perseverance in the United States of America. I believe real founder stories are even more powerful than movies—because they’re lived, not scripted.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I moved to San Francisco during covid to pursue my path in AI research with a big ego and 2 duffel bags. I was unhappy in the place because my heart was not aligned with my day-to-day life. I found a calling with a camera in hand at a fashion event and accepted the fact that this is what I should be doing. It was the first time I felt that I was not out of place.
I am now a branding photographer in Austin with a mission to help illuminate the passions and stories of young women and minority founders. I have a magazine series called Career Compass that highlights the challenges and initial stories of professionals in various fields here in Austin.
I love what I do and have grown so much since starting my own business.

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

When I first moved to Austin last September, I wanted to find a community and mentors to help me guide through my career path to come. I was able to connect with the FIESTA FoundHERs community and Austin Women in Technology and got my first paid photography gig. With resilience and consistency, I am not the most in-demand photographer for Austin events and professional photos! I am blessed to be able to do this full-time. As a creative, I love having an outlet and making people see the vision come to reality.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://stellalumina.myportfolio.com/
• Instagram: stellaluminallc
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ahyeonc/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@CareerCompassPod

Image Credits

Taken with own camera by friends