Today’s Question: I’ve had good results with red eye correction in Lightroom Classic when it is needed. However, when I tried the pet eye variation, the results were not very good at all. Is there a trick to using this tool with photos of dogs?
Tim’s Quick Answer: In my view the Pet Eye option for Red Eye Correction in Lightroom Classic is simply not very good. I recommend using Photoshop for a manual correction when you have photos of animals that require the equivalent of red eye correction.
More Detail: Pet eye is a variation on red eye that occurs when a flash is used that is too close to the lens. In humans the light reflects off blood vessels at the back of the eye, resulting in a red glow in the pupil. For various animals the biology is different, resulting in a glow that is generally yellow, green, or white.
Unfortunately, this difference seems to represent a serious challenge for Lightroom Classic. While the Red Eye Correction works very well most of the time, in my experience the Pet Eye option rarely provides a good solution. Instead, it creates a fuzzy black circle with part of the pet eye effect still visible around the perimeter.
Therefore, when it comes to pet eye, I recommend using Photoshop to apply a correction. This involves using the Brush tool to paint on a new empty image layer in the area of the eyes. I paint with black using the Color blend mode to neutralize the color to a shade of gray, then paint with black using the Multiply blend mode to darken the area. For the latter a reduced setting for Opacity will help ensure the pupil is not made to be too dark.
