Until you're told they're important, you don't even know they exist: catchlights. Those little white reflections in the eyes that only appear in a photo when you look at a bright light source. Since the Renaissance, portrait artists have painted their subjects with these lights in the eyes to create more drama and vibrancy. And it works! That little bit of extra contrast that a light in the eyes adds to a portrait makes the portrait come to life.
To create catchlights in the eyes of your subjects, you use a technique that makes your subject look into a light source. This can be done artificially with reflectors, but it can also be done more naturally, for example using the light of the sun.
Old technology
The painters of the Renaissance often chose to place spotlights on the upper iris at the ten o'clock and two o'clock positions. No one really knows why, but catchlights simply look best when placed there. Presumably that balances the shape of the rest of the eye, especially if it's a pure circle.
To get these positions in your photo, you need to place a light source somewhere above your subject's eyes so that the reflection appears in the upper part. Your subject should also be looking at the light source. Otherwise, the light spot will not fall on the model's eyes.
One of the easiest ways to do this outside The best way to apply this is to have the model kneel and look up at the sun while you take the photo from above. As long as you don't completely block the sun, you should see some nice catchlights in the ten and two o'clock positions.
Optional equipment
Interestingly, the term “catchlight” also refers to the light sources used to create those small reflections. Photographers have many lighting tools at their disposal for creating catchlights in their subjects’ eyes. One of the most popular options is the softbox, it is a flash diffuser that you place a few meters in front of your subject.
You will also need an external flash to place in the softbox. When the flash fires and the photo is taken, the outline of the softbox appears in white toward the top of the model's eyes.
If you are going to use softboxes, or semi-transparent material or even reflective umbrellas as diffusers, remember that these should be placed slightly above the model's head. Have the model look slightly up at the catchlight so that the reflection is registered in the eyes and not elsewhere.
Fortunately, most are umbrellas and softboxes quite cheap. You're talking about a $30 to $50 purchase that will be worth it if you really start developing your portrait photography skills.
Have the model look slightly up at the catchlight so that the reflection in the eyes is registered
There are many types of diffusion materials on a roll that are more or less translucent and also cheaper. This gives you a lot of choice in the way the light source is reflected in the eyes. Some examples of this type of material are white diffusion in different degrees, and various types frost and silk also in different degrees. It's always fun to experiment with this, and thus create unity in the photos when you want to put them together in a photo book. The distance from the lamp to the diffusion material also partly determines the character of the catchlight.
The flash itself is the more expensive part, but you don't have it for all of you portraits need a flash. You can use studio lights that plug into an electrical outlet to get the same type of lighting.
Be creative
As you learn more about creating sparkles in your model's eyes, you'll learn to pay attention to them as you take the photo. It takes a little patience, but with enough practice and these extra tips you should be able to see them and then adjust your lighting until everything is just right. This will save you a lot of time later because you won't have to dig through hundreds of files to find the perfect portrait photo.
The most important thing is that you learn to be creative with catchlights. Almost any light source can become a catchlight if you position your subject accordingly. Think of your bedroom window, the chandelier in the dining room, a candle or an open door. You don't need a lot of fancy equipment to add some extra sparkle to your portraits. You just have to keep an eye on it.
