Catch lights are white highlights in the eye, created by a reflection of a light source. There are numerous types of sources that will create catch lights, including the sun, sky, water, snow, window light and reflectors. The key is to reflect the light source into your subject’s eyes.

Up until a year ago, I hardly paid attention to catch lights. Once I became very aware of their dramatic impact on photos, I suddenly became very cognisant of catch lights. I’m almost obsessed with them now, and try to achieve them with most of the photos I take.


INDOOR WINDOW LIGHT

It wasn’t until I took this photo of my son Mackenzie leaning on the back of a chair in our kitchen, did I realize that our french doors created incredible catch lights. The chair he’s sitting on faces our French doors on a 45 degree angle. Ever since this discovery, I have been taking natural light photos in this exact spot.

The following are photos taken using my natural light set up:

You may also have a window or door in your home capable of producing great photos and catch lights. Experiment with your lighting at home and see what you come up with.

LATE AFTERNOON SUN

Besides my natural light set up, I have had the most success obtaining great catch lights with late afternoon sun. The sun is low in the sky and even though it is still direct, the sunlight is relatively soft. Another advantage to late afternoon sun is the warm tones it produces.

The following photos were all taken in my backyard using late afternoon sun.

Water is highly reflective and will naturally reflect light onto your subject creating catch lights.

For the following pictures, the subjects were facing sand and water. Sand is also very reflective and the combination of sand and water has created dramatic catch lights in the photos below.

These were taken mid afternoon in open shade, directly facing sand and water.

Here are some photos taken by Tara Whitney using water as a reflector:

Snow acts as a great reflector by bouncing light from the ground and onto your subject, creating an even illumination.

In the photos below of Alex, the direction of the sun is to her left. Her face is being illuminated by the snow and you can actually tell by the low catchlights in her eyes that the reflective surface is coming from below.

OTHER REFLECTIVE SURFACES

Don’t limit yourself to the common reflective surfaces that I’ve mentioned. When taking a photo, take a look at your surroundings, you’ll be amazed at how many reflective surfaces are out there that can be utilized, such as: glass, mirror, light coloured walls and metal.

My niece had asked me to take some photos of her friends. It was very impromptu and the lighting at the time was not ideal. Instead of just snapping away, I took the time to look at my surroundings. I instantly found a perfect reflector – a nice shiny chrome bumper from a pick-up truck! I positioned her friends in the shade and had them sitting down so they were eye level with the bumper.

In your quest to improve your photography skills and master techniques such as capturing catch lights – don’t forget to take those spontaneous, not so perfect photos. The last thing you want to do is miss a great photo opportunity simply because the sun was too bright or the background was too distracting.

The following photo was taken midday in harsh sun, facing water which can really throw your metering off. This didn’t stop me from taking this spontaneous picture of my daughter and her two newly founded green friends. I love this picture, even though the lighting is harsh and her face is shadowed. It’s spontaneous and fun.

After taking some snapshots in the sun, I moved Alex and her friend into the shade and took a few more pictures. I do this often – I capture those spontaneous moments no matter what the conditions are and then I do my artsy let’s look at the lighting thing!

Shelley Sullivan took advantage of the midday sun here and captured some amazing catchlights in these photos:

Here are some photos from Leslie Lightfoot taken in open shade at various times of the day:

So grab your camera and get out there – I want to see some amazing photos from all of you and don’t forget those catch lights!!