If someone were to ask me- “what do you look for in a great portrait photo?”, I would have to answer that it is the eyes of the subject. I have seen, more often than not, that the most engaging portraits are ones that have captured ‘catchlights’ in the eyes.
A catchlight is simply the highlight of a light source reflected off the surface of the eye. This highlight, against the dark eye iris adds depth and dimension to the eye and gives life to the portrait.
The shape and position of a catchlight in the eye is determined by the type of strongest light source falling on the face (called key light), and the placement of secondary light sources (called fill light). Usually we may find more than one catchlight after taking the photo. This is common if you have set up reflectors to bounce the light and fill shadows (required to prevent the areas under the eye from getting too dark, and shadow of the nose from falling on the face). The extra catchlight can be removed relatively easily in Photoshop. Adding catchlights in Photoshop, however, is challenging. If overdone, it gives a weird, drug-induced ghostlike look to the subject, so I avoid it as much as possible.
The shape and position of the catchlight tells you a lot (actually almost everything) about what and where the light source is. This is an exercise given to photography students to figure out how a scene is lit, and thereby, how to create such lighting in their own work.
For example, you can see two catchlights in the model’s left eye, formed from two banks of constant lights on either side of her face –
The model below was shot using a softbox high in front of her left side, with a reflector (white screen) at a slight angle in front of her –
The lead photo is the same model, now with the softbox behind me, with the light coming almost directly at her face.
A ring flash (or ring light- a doughnut shaped light with the camera lens in the center) is used for dramatic portraiture. People shot using a ring flash have a characteristic round catchlight in their eyes. Ring lights give a sharp falloff with no shadows (all the shadow is directly behind the subject’s head). They are used frequently for high fashion together with other lights to selectively illuminate the face and other areas of the scene. The photo below by Flickr user faniqui is a good example of illumination by a ring flash –
It is of course possible to take good portraits without catchlights. In the shot below, I intentionally removed the catchlights to give the photo a mean, cold, sinister look –
A well-illuminated eye also helps to focus your camera on the shot. Good portraits should always have eyes that are very sharp. The contrast between the white cornea and dark iris is great for getting accurate focus on the camera. When I am composing portrait shots, I always try to have at least one autofocus (AF) point placed on this area.
Of course, you don’t need expensive lighting gear to get catchlights. Any large light source coming at an angle will do. Bouncing your flash off the ceiling or wall is a sure way of getting catchlights indoors. Using the on-camera flash will not be enough because the light source will be too small. When outdoors, you can position your subject so that sunlight can filter through trees and reflect off shiny surfaces. In the outdoor photo below, the catchlight is because of sunlight coming through buildings and trees –
Sometimes all you need is a large window. The photo below is of a makeup artist for one of the models above. I was up on a chair (don’t ask, it was a crowded class!) and light was streaming through this large window on her left. Got a lucky candid shot with a great catchlight to boot –
:: writelights :: 