CarolineJensen

I am all over flower growing over here! I spend everyday starting seed flats for my flower farms, but here are a few from the flower show I attended with Sony and Unique Photo in Philly this past March!

I adore that you get out and photograph things growing on your property! I do too!

These are beautiful!

Thank you for joining me! I love to share all things flowers, so be sure to follow me on Instagram where I share my daily flower farming journey in my stories as well as my shooting BTS. You may join my free community here for daily conversation and image sharing!

I love to be diverse! I am working on an audio course (audio book) on my process right now as well as outlining in-person courses. As far as products go, I have been surprised at the market for digital products! The only caveat is they tend to make me less money and people tend to print at places that are not professional, like Walmart or Walgreens. Some things will print fine at those places, but digital products leave me very little control after the sale. There are so many income streams to explore, but only so many hours in the day. My focus now is on serving my customer with a product that fixes a problem for them, like creating a custom gift. Flowers are UNIVERSAL. Everyone loves flowers and they are symbolic of so many things. There is not a holiday or event that wouldn't benefit from flowers. I have sold quite a few wall gallery sets that customers print themselves. I tend to shoot for easy printing...limited color palette and lots of bokeh!

I am still growing my print sales, but getting your finger on the pulse of what people buy and why, has been a huge factor! I get about half of my income from products I sell and the other half from education, teaching at stores, etc. I love alternative products and I just started marketing blankets and wall tapestries. I have started adding the ability to personalize my work too, which helps find customers that aren't just looking for pretty wall art. I want my work to be giftable.

A blanket! I had one of my still life images woven with 100% cotton thread by a weaver in North Carolina, USA. It looks so 3D! I love alternative ways to make practical things from my photography. I am going to hang it on the wall as you would a tapestry.

I am a minimalist though. I tend to shoot one camera and one lens for a year or more.

Lenses....I LOVE my 50 1.2. Lately, I am loving the 24GM. It is a little lighter and a 24 gives a unique effect with close up flowers.

My #1 suggesting is get all the resolution you can! I like to slice and dice my images into many vertical crops and then string them together for social reels. A very pretty and large arrangement is surprisingly boring as one shot on social. By cropping into multiple frames, I can get the viewer deeper into the image. I LOVE my a7R5. I used the IV version prior. Now, if you want to shoot flowers and wildlife, the a9III may be a great choice, but I am more interested in resolution.

One more thing....starting a private community is a great thing too. I have my own, private, Facebook-style, group where there are no ads and people are all interested in similar things.

Another fave is double daylilies. I have to shoot them with flash in the garden, as you cannot cut them, but the fluffy doubles are stunning!

I love to photograph many kinds of flowers, but I particularly like collarette flowers. These flowers have interesting middles and fluffy petals. I particularly like dahlias and peonies with this kind of form. I also love English garden roses with the twisted petals in the middle and a halo of soft petals around the outside. Dreamy!

A lot less than you might think, haha! I used to edit so much. Now, I just do a very quick prep in Lr and then I like some filters by Exposure software that I use at low opacity to adjust the colors. I can do a complete edit in Lr alone in about five minutes. If I am feeling fancy, I might dodge and burn or hours, but that is because I find the process of dodge and burn very relaxing. I love textures a lot again. I'm enjoying adding grungy textures, which is a throw back to 12 years ago. I love it and so I am doing it, haha! I love the results when printed on fine art paper.

It is really important to have clear goals. Who do you want to attract and why? The people who want to buy your work are different from those who want to like as they scroll by. I have made more over the years teaching than selling prints, but that was deliberate. I want to interact with those who want to grow and shoot flowers. Those are my kind of people. I love talking about gardening as much as I like talking about shooting flowers. I have found that having the right kind of community is the best. When that is in sync, you will be successful. I am a true believer in the '1000 true fans' idea. You don't need millions, just a thousand or so, that genuinely connect with what you have to offer.

Also, I think it helps to understand a bit of psychology around what draws people in. I have found that studying classic paintings that are loved by millions for generations, really helps me to tap into what people like. If I fall in love with something at a gallery, I want to dissect WHY I love it.

Yes, I have been on Instagram forever, but only switched to flowers in the last few years. Honestly, word of mouth has been a big helper for me too.

It took a few years, but I have to say I didn't work too hard at it. I am a big believer in 'finding your people' and those who want to learn from me, usually don't need to be inundated with ads. I find that macro or flower photography meets so many diverse people in a place that is beneficial for them. Macro and flower photography has truly healing benefits....it calms my mind, and brings so much joy. I often find people of all ages seeking out this sort of photography because they have stressful jobs and need a retreat from the world. I see this type of photography as a way to help other de-stress and stressed out people are not hard to find!

Yes! Macro is so much fun! I would first stop down more than you think. I tried for years to shoot wide open with my 90 macro, but that just doesn't work well. I like to start at f8. Everything is much more shallow with a macro lens, due to how close you are to the subject. I like to add light too. I haven't had good luck with ring lights, but I do use battery-powered LED lights mounted to my camera to add fill light. I also use my small flash to add light as well. It is harder with skittish subjects, like insects, but fine for water drops on flowers! Also, never forget glycerin water! It adds nice little drops that are easy to photograph and don't run away. I have found a facial mister (battery powered) works great to build up the tiniest of drops.

my pleasure!

I am always trying to re-create a 'natural' window light. I tend to shoot with light bounced into a very large light source and super super close to the subject. I often have to clone my light out of the images. I also use a large reflector on the opposite side of the light to some fill. I LOVE drama.... so I tend to face the light more toward the camera than my subject. The goal is to just GRAZE the light over the face of the flowers. I use two different types of light indoors...LED mats and strobes. The LED mats let me see what I am getting and I tend to use a slower shutter speed, as they are not as powerful. Usually, I only ever have one light source, supported by reflectors and flags to shape the light. Inside, I use an FJ400 strobe and 7 ft umbrella with white interior.

I love light and getting the smallest detail is what makes me excited. I love dreamy light too, so I use unusually large light sources (7 ft umbrella with diffusion) which make the softest light with the most details. I am all about the details!

I love the way that botanical photography relaxes me. There is nothing like spending time in nature and growing my own subjects. It has become a lifestyle for me. I spend every morning, in the summer, with coffee in hand, walking around my gardens. I also love the thrill of getting the shot. I seriously look like a contortionist sometimes! I usually shoot with a flash in one hand and my camera in the other, which can be a challenge in garden full of roses! It is also fun to see my work in print. Lately, I have been printing in unconventional ways, such as getting tapestries woven of my work.

Hi everyone! My name is Caroline Jensen – I am a botanical photographer, Sony Brand Ambassador, and flower farmer. I specialize in photographing flowers and lighting the arrangements just so. I love sharing my knowledge of botanical photography, macro photography, and lighting with the Sony Alpha Community. You’re welcome to check out some of my work on my instagram (@carolinej). I will be typing these answers in real time, I’m excited to answer your questions!

I am teaching at the Philly Flower show for Sony and Unique Photo next month and I made an unusual product to wear! I'm excited to make more of these and shoot specifically for them. It is a 100% cotton poncho and it is woven in the USA (North Carolina). The photo is literally woven into the product--so fun and yet practical. Sorry, for the phone photos, but my usual model is at work right now. 🙂 This kind of thing would be beautiful with landscapes, sea shores, drone shots or underwater scenes!