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Learn how to retouch eyes naturally with Photoshop and not overdo it. Many professional photographers retouch the eyes to enlarge the pupils as a natural and subtle enhancement.

How to Retouch Eyes Photoshop Tutorial

Step 1

Open the photo into Photoshop. It is best to work on a high resolution photo where you can see the pupil of the eye.

Step 2

Before we do any editing, zoom in really close to the eyes.  This will make editing easier, faster, and more precise.

Step 3

First, we will enlarge the pupils. Enlarging the pupils will make the model seem more friendly and there have been studies to prove this.

Use the circular marquee tool to create a selection of the pupil.Make the selection a little smaller than the pupil.

Step 4

Now press Ctrl+J to duplicate the selection into a new layer. You should now have a new layer with the pupil as the layer contents.

Step 5

With the new layer, Layer 1, selected, choose Edit > Transform > Scale. Enlarge the pupil to a natural looking size. Remember the amount that you scaled the pupils by because you'll need to apply the same settings to the other pupils later.

Step 6

Select the tool from the tool bar and blur the edges of the pupil so that it doesn't look too sharp. The sharpness of the edge needs to match the sharpness of the photo.

Step 7

Now select the tool from the tool bar and with the hardness set between 0% and 50%, erase the top area of the pupil where it covers the eyelid.

Step 8

Enlarge the pupil of the other eye using the same steps before.

Compare the before and after results. Enlarging the pupils is a very subtle effect and most people won't even notice it. However, it can have a dramatic impact on the look of the model.

Step 9

Now we're going to enhance the catch light in the eyes. This will only work if you have a catch light in the eyes, otherwise there will be no catch light to enhance. Begin by adding a Brightness/Contrast adjustment layer. It should be positioned so that it is the top layer.

Set the Brightness and Contrast to +100. If you are using Photoshop CS2 or older, set the Brightness and Contrast setting to +50 instead.

Step 10

Select the layer mask in the Brightness/Contrast adjustment layer then choose Image > Adjustments > Invert.

Step 11

Now select the Brush tool and, with the layer mask selected, paint the cornea/iris so that the Brightness/Contrast adjustment layer affects that area. Do the same with the other eye.

Step 12

The eyes should look overdone. Some people may like this, but I highly recommend against this because it looks unnatural and makes them look like owl's eyes. To fix this, we'll reduce the effect the of the adjustment layer. First, change the blending mode to Luminosity so that it does not affect the color and saturation.

Step 13

Then, reduce the opacity until the eyes look natural and not overdone. Retouching eyes is a very delicate process so the effect needs to be subtle.

Final Results

Before and After