Portrait photographers can become obsessive about catchlights in the eye and for good reason. That little sparkle in the eye that a catchlight brings is what brings a portrait to life. But does the shape of the catch light also matter? Phototgrapher Gavin Hoey says generally no, and shows you why a round softbox doesn’t always mean you’ll see a round catchlight in the eye. However there are times when the shape of catchlight really does matter and that’s where Gavin takes us in this video. Using a large red balloon, Gavin shows how its curved shape mimics the surface of your models eye and shares the same catch light, only MUCH bigger! And if one balloon has one catch light, Gavin expands the idea with a wall of balloons as a studio backdrop. More balloons means more catchlights and although they’re technically “specular highlights” their size and shape matter just as much as the same catchlights you see in your models eyes. Timestamps and Chapters 0:00 Intro 0:41 Testing catchl...